WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Gary Peters (MI), Chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, introduced bipartisan legislation to hold agencies more accountable to the public on how they reuse excess personal property. Federally-owned personal property includes physical items such as office supplies, furniture, automobiles, and heavy machinery. The federal government is the largest purchaser of goods and services in the world, and this bill would encourage federal agencies to consider reusing the surplus property of other agencies – available at no cost apart from any necessary transportation – before buying new products to save taxpayer dollars. 

“Every year government agencies purchase new office supplies, equipment, and vehicles even though other agencies may already own surplus items that could meet those needs in a more cost-effective way,” said Senator Peters. “My bipartisan bill would ensure agencies can save taxpayer dollars and maintain the supplies they need by reusing excess property the government already owns.” 

The Reuse Excess Property Act would update existing requirements for agencies to report their excess personal property to the General Services Administration (GSA) by making those reports available to the public as well. This would help agency officials and taxpayers better understand the extent to which agencies are working to cut wasteful spending through the use of excess property. The bill would also require agencies to publicly report on their guidance on the use of excess personal property and designate an employee to be responsible for searching through available excess personal property for items that meet agency needs.  

Peters has been a leader in efforts to ensure that taxpayer dollars are spent effectively and efficiently. His bipartisan bill to streamline the federal property review process was signed into law. This law cuts down on wasteful government spending by requiring agencies to assess property more regularly to ensure property can be more frequently be declared as excess, and acquired by other federal offices where it is needed. 

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