GSA Professional Services Schedule Contract for Environmental Services

Firms that want to offer environmental services to government agencies should consider obtaining a GSA Schedule contract. These task order contracts can be used by all federal agencies and departments. And under some circumstances—such as preparing for or responding to natural disasters—state and municipal agencies also can use these contracts.

With a base period of 5 years, and 3 successive option periods of 5 years apiece, GSA Schedule contracts offer many advantages to professional services firms and government agencies alike.

Firms can obtain these contracts by submitting proposals at any time, under “evergreen” (always-open) RFPs.  GSA considers all offers and makes awards on a rolling basis.

Which GSA Schedule to Pursue
GSA awards contracts under approximately 30 “Schedules,” each of which focuses on different sets of services or products.  If your firm provides environmental services, there are two options you should consider: the “Professional Services Schedule”; and the Facilities Maintenance and Management Schedule.

GSA Professional Services Schedule

GSA no longer accepts proposals under the “GSA Environmental Schedule” (Schedule 899), which had included four main scope of work elements–“Special Item Numbers” (SINs).  Those SINs are  now exclusively contained, verbatim, in GSA’s “Professional Services Schedule” (00CORP).  These SINs are:

• SIN 899-1, Environmental Consulting.
• SIN 899-3, Environmental Training
• SIN 899-5, Materials and Waste Recycling and Disposal Services
• SIN 899-8, Remediation and Reclamation Services

If you submit a proposal under the Professional Services Schedule, your proposal also can include one or more other SINs in that Schedule.  There are many.  A few examples include:

• SIN 874-1, Integrated Consulting Services.  This SIN, which used to be in the MOBIS Schedule, is now exclusively in the Professional Services Schedule.  While this SIN is still sometimes referred to as a “MOBIS SIN,” the fact is that MOBIS no longer exists as a stand-alone Schedule.
• SIN 871-7, Construction Management Services, and SIN 871-4, Test and Evaluation Services.  These SINs are now exclusively in the Professional Services Schedule.  They used to be in the Professional  Engineering Services Schedule, which has been merged into the Professional Services Schedule.
• SIN 541-2, Public Relations Services.  That SIN is now exclusively in the Professional Services Schedule.  It used to be in the Advertising and Integrated Marketing Services (AIMS) Schedule, which no longer exists as a stand-alone Schedule.

In all, the Professional Services Schedule is now the exclusive home to more than 5 dozen SINs that used to also reside in the following Schedules (which no longer exist as stand-alone Schedules):  Environmental Services; Professional Engineering Services; MOBIS; Advertising and Integrated Marketing Services (AIMS); Logistics Worldwide (LOGWORLD); Language Services; and Financial and Business Services (FABS).

[Note:  The Professional Services Schedule also “shares” certain SINs from other Schedules that remain as stand-alone Schedules.  The Professional Services Schedule also shares certain energy efficiency SINs that also are contained within the Facilities Maintenance and Management Schedule; one SIN that also is contained in the Human Resources and EEO Services Schedule; and one SIN that is also contained in the Information Technology Schedule.  But within the Professional Services Schedule, these SINs are only available under certain limited circumstances.  Contact the author of this article for details.]

Facilities Maintenance and Management Schedule

The Facilities Maintenance and Management Schedule (sometimes referred to as Schedule 03FAC) remains a stand-alone Schedule.  It was not merged into the Professional Services Schedule.  Schedule 03FAC contains several SINs that are of interest to some environmental firms:

SIN 871-210, Water Conservation.  This SIN covers a wide range of services, reduction of water usage, reduction of potable water consumption intensity, reduction of industrial, landscaping and agricultural  water consumption, and promoting and implementing water reuse strategies.  This SIN also covers a wide range of storm water topics, such as consulting on storm water management plans and property hydrology maintenance.  The SIN also covers water system audit services (e.g., leak surveys).

There is some overlap between SIN 871-210 (in the Facilities Maintenance and Management Schedule) and SIN 899-1 (in the Professional Services Schedule).  For example, most types of storm water services can be covered under either SIN.  But some services covered under SIN 871-210 are unique to that SIN (e.g., water system audit services); and on the other hand, many types of environmental services that are within the scope of SIN 899-1 are not within the scope of SIN 871-210.

If a firm wants to provide services to the federal government that are unique to SIN 871-210, it might be preferable to pursue a contract under GSA Schedule 03FAC.  But keep in mind that within that proposal, you will not be able to pursue the wide range of environmental SINs that are exclusively within the Professional Services Schedule (e.g., SIN 899-8, which covers environmental remediation).

On the other hand, perhaps your firm: (a) has a strong interest in providing services that are solely within SIN 871-210; and (b) your firm also has an interest in other SINs within Schedule 03FAC.  For example, perhaps your firm also has a strong interest in providing facility maintenance consulting services or other services covered by Schedule 03FAC.

The choice ultimately boils down to a balancing of your firm’s interests.  If it is a close call, you might want to also consider timing issues.  There is a very large backlog of proposals under the Professional Services Schedule.  GSA will move more quickly in evaluating proposals under Schedule 03FAC compared to the Professional Services Schedule.

Energy Efficiency SINs within Schedule 03FAC.  There are eight SINs within the Facilities Maintenance and Management Schedule that focus on energy efficiency.  Four of those SINs are “shared” with the Professional Services Schedule.  But there are special rules that govern when a firm can include any of those four energy efficiency SINs in a proposal for a Professional Services Schedule contract.  Among other rules, if you are submitting a proposal for that Schedule, none of these SINs can be offered on a stand-alone basis.   On the other hand, if you are submitting a proposal under Schedule 03FAC, you can include any of these SINs on a stand-alone basis.  Click here for a separate article on this issue.  Also, please contact the author of this article, who will be happy to answer any questions you might have.

Other Considerations
GSA Schedule contracts are not suitable for all firms; all Schedule contract have advantages and disadvantages that should be considered; click here for an article on this topic. Among other considerations, companies that pursue GSA Schedule contracts have to be prepared for unique contract clauses and responsibilities—e.g., those associated with the Price Reductions Clause.

And there are many alternatives. For example, firms should consider whether to pursue contracts that are periodically put out for competition by other agencies. Examples include EPA Response Action Contracts and U.S. Air Force Worldwide Environmental Restoration & Construction contracts. (When these contracts near the ends of their periods of performance, the relevant federal agency typically will procure the next generation of the contracts, sometimes using somewhat different titles for the contract.) In addition, there are an abundance of opportunities for firms to participate as subcontractors under existing contracts, under another firm’s contract (e.g., another firm’s GSA contract; another firm’s EPA contract). The choices certainly are not mutually exclusive. Many firms have large portfolios of contract (and subcontract) vehicles, including contracts issued by other agencies plus GSA Schedule contracts.

Obtaining a GSA Schedule contract might make sense for your environmental firm if: (a) you provide services in at least one of the SINs in either the Professional Services Schedule or the Facilities Maintenance and Management Schedule; and (b) your firm is interested in breaking into the federal market for the first time, diversifying within the market, or providing existing federal clients with an additional contract vehicle.

Click here for tips on how to get a GSA Schedule contract.

About the author:
Dave Alexander is the Principal of Lincoln Strategies, LLC. He helps service providers and manufacturers enter and thrive in the federal government market. He has helped dozens of firms obtain GSA Schedule contracts, under the Professional Services Schedule, Schedule 03FAC, Schedule 70 (Information Technology), and many others. His clients include many leading providers of energy efficiency services. Mr. Alexander also helps firms win other types of contracts. He can be reached at (978) 369-1140 or da@LincolnStrategies.com.