Commissioner Heyman, the Miami-Dade Department of Procurement Management, and the National Institute of Governmental Purchasing (NIGP) have been strong supporters of this green legislation. Current law limits access to contracts established by the federal government. However, Miami-Dade County, with the support of NACo, NIGP, and the League of Cities, was successful in securing authorization to open Schedule 84 in 2007. Schedule  84 includes total solutions for law enforcement, security, facilities management, fire, rescue, clothing, marine craft, and emergency/disaster response.  

“My hope is that this resolution will add to the growing nationwide support for opening up Federal General Service Administration schedules for green procurement and access,” said Commissioner Heyman. “GSA contracts for supplies and services are negotiated by the federal government in order to acquire the best possible pricing. The ability to obtain green goods and services with this method will make our taxpayers’ dollars go a long way in attaining cost effective and environmentally sustainable commodities.”

It is estimated that in addition to local government benefiting, the federal government would also benefit from the increased purchasing power by opening its GSA schedules, with $1 trillion added by local governments alone on top of the federal government’s roughly $200 billion in annual procurement.