The $210 million fleet order is the latest taxpayer gift to the ailing Big Three.
The Obama administration is pushing ahead its plans to purchase more than 14,000 new vehicles from General Motors Corporation, Ford Motor Company and Chrysler Group LLC. Earlier in the week, with the economy continuing to falter, Obama asked various U.S. agencies to step up spending of the $787 stimulus package approved by Congress back in February.
Obama also said the order represents part of the administration’s effort to bolster both domestic automakers and suppliers, who have been hit hard by the recession. Auto production in the U.S. has dropped by almost 40% this year, and shows no signs of reviving.
The U.S. General Services Administration has ordered 14,105 vehicles for the Federal fleet using $210 million of funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.
The new order, placed June 1, brings the total number of fuel efficient vehicles ordered by GSA using ARRA funds to 17,205 at a taxpayer cost of $287 million. The order includes 2,933 Chrysler vehicles worth $53 million; 7,924 Ford vehicles for $129 million; and 6,348 General Motors vehicles for $105 million.
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act) was signed into law by President Obama on February 17, 2009. The administration calls it “an unprecedented effort to jump start our economy, create or save millions of jobs, and put a down payment on addressing long-neglected challenges so our country can thrive in the 21st century. The Act is an extraordinary response to a crisis unlike any since the Great Depression, and includes measures to modernize our nation’s infrastructure, enhance energy independence, expand educational opportunities, preserve and improve affordable health care, provide tax relief, and protect those in greatest need.”
“This order represents just one of the multiple ways we are helping our customers meet their economic recovery and green government initiatives,” said Acting GSA Administrator Paul F. Prouty.
Each new fuel efficient vehicle purchased in the new order replaces, on a one-for-one basis, operational motor vehicles in the federal inventory that met replacement standards. Each also will have a higher miles-per-gallon rating than the one it replaces.
On April 14, 2009, GSA ordered 3,100 fuel efficient hybrid vehicles, worth $77 million. By September 30, 2009, GSA will order $15 million worth of advanced technology buses and electric vehicles for use in the Federal fleet.
“GSA is committed to spending Recovery dollars quickly and wisely,” said Commissioner James A. Williams of GSA’s Federal Acquisition Service. “Simultaneously, we are focused on acquiring vehicles that will provide long-term environmental benefits and savings by increasing the fuel efficiency of the Federal fleet.”
Founded in 1949, GSA manages more than one-fourth of the government’s total procurement dollars and influences the management of $500 billion in federal assets, including 8,600 government-owned or leased buildings and 213,000 vehicles.