The GSA Has Completed Its Routine Review ETS Items.

If you are a product vendor on GSA schedule, please be aware that GSA has recently conducted a review of electronic catalogs on GSA Advantage! to identify commercial items that are “Essentially The Same” (ETS) as mandatory AbilityOne procurement list items.

Products and services on the AbilityOne Program procurement list are required to be purchased by the government when available, per FAR part 8.7. The AbilityOne Program is outlined in the Javits-Wagner-O’Day (JWOD) Act (41 U.S.C. 46 – 48c) and must be adhered to by all government contract holders. Vendors must continually monitor their contract offerings to ensure ETS items are not made available for sale.

If you are a product vendor, the GSA may be contacting you with a list of identified ETS items and derivative part numbers found on your contract(s). Vendors have 10 business days from receipt of the notification email to challenge removal of these ETS items from contracts. Vendors are asked to provide a brief, specific description of why to challenge the ETS determination(s) for GSA and the AbilityOne Commission to review and make a final determination. If vendors do not submit a challenge, GSA will unilaterally remove all identified ETS items from GSA Advantage! and issue an electronic modification to remove them from contracts. Vendors will have to adjust catalog upload files (SIP/EDI) to ensure ETS items are not incorrectly re-entered into GSA systems.

Please contact Centre’s GSA Consulting team for assistance if you are a product vendor seeking to challenge an ETS determination.