GSA Eases Rules on Cloud-Based SaaS Acquisition

The General Services Administration is allowing federal agencies to acquire cloud services on a consumption-based model, aligning the government’s acquisition practice with industry standards.

In the second acquisition letter from the agency’s Office of Acquisition Policy, Senior Procurement Executive Jeffrey Koses said that the GSA is empowering contracting officers to acquire cloud-based software-as-a-service using upfront payments as long as the deal does not violate federal procurement laws that prohibit advanced payments.

Cyrrus Analytics founder and federal procurement expert Rich Beutel described the GSA authorization memorandum as a technical workaround addressing challenges faced in buying necessary cloud offerings, Federal News Network reported.

Despite the letter, Beutel is still calling on lawmakers to address the challenges of acquiring cloud-based services, claiming that amending the Anti-Deficiency Act will allow “industry to bill in arrears for cloud services on a consumption basis.”

SaaS solutions have been helping various agencies address operational challenges. The U.S. Marine Corps is among the components of the U.S. government that have turned to the technology. In July 2023, it tapped software developer Unison to upgrade its Community Services Non-Appropriated Fund organization’s acquisition and procurement activities using Unison’s Prism commercial-off-the-shelf contract lifecycle management solution.