Tech vendors urge passage of procurement overhaul

The Government Electronics and Information Technology Association (GEIA) on Friday urged House lawmakers to adopt a measure that would give government agencies the buying power of commercial customers.

In a letter to members of the House Committee on Government Reform, Dan Heinemeier, president of GEIA--a trade group representing technology firms that contract with the federal government--said H.R. 3832, the Services Acquisition Reform Act, "would help enlarge the pool of suppliers" offering "high-technology solutions to meet evolving government needs."

The bill would expand rules for government acquisition of commercial products, thus allowing agencies to purchase more items under a streamlined process.

The bill also creates a "performance-based" contracting system, to enable agencies to adopt best practices in measuring the performance of contractors.