Amending the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949 To Permit Recovery of Estimated Replacement Cost of Vehicles

The Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949 charged the General Services Administration (GSA) with operating the Interagency Motor Pool. It was apparently Congress' intent that all costs of operating the motor pool system would be fully recovered and that it would be self-sustaining. Although section 211(d) of the act provides that payments by requisitioning agencies shall be at prices fixed by the Administrator at levels to recover as far as practicable all elements of cost, a subsequent section states that the purchase price of vehicles is to be recovered through amortization. This, in effect, precludes the recovery of replacement costs through charges to customers. Since GSA can only recover the cost of the original vehicle, additional funds required to purchase replacement vehicles have been obtained from other sources within the General Supply Fund. The use of general supply funds to replace vehicles reduces the moneys available for other supply operations.