Executive Office of the President

This fact sheet provides information on procurements made by the White House since January 1, 1990. GAO focused on contracts that were awarded under procedures using other than full and open competition and the reasons for restricting competition. For each major competition made during calendar years 1990 to 1993, GAO provides the date of the procurement; the goods or services acquired; whether the contract had sole or limited sources; and, if so, the reasons for restricting the competition.

GAO found that: (1) EOP awarded a total of 77 contracts over $25,000 during calendar years 1990 to 1993; (2) about 49 percent of the total dollar value of EOP contracts was awarded using full and open competition, about 37 percent was awarded under full and open competition after the exclusion of sources, 4 percent was awarded under limited source competition, and 11 percent was awarded on a sole source basis; (3) 12 percent of EOP contracts awarded from 1990 to 1993 were awarded under full and open competition, 12 percent under full and open competition after the exclusion of sources, about 19 percent under limited competition, and 57 percent on a sole source basis; (4) from 1990 to 1993, competition was restricted for 76 percent of EOP contracts; and (5) the most frequently cited reason for restricting competition was the need to meet unusual or urgent requirements.