The Office of Management and Budget has issued a memorandum directing federal agencies to increase the acquisition of commercially available products and services in accordance with an executive order signed in April 2025.
OMB Director Russell Vought said Friday the memo outlines actions agencies must take to prioritize commercial solutions and strengthen oversight of non-commercial procurements.
What Are the Reporting Requirements of the OMB Memo?
The memo requires agencies to submit a report to OMB by May 4, detailing non-commercial contracting activity. The report must exclude source selection-sensitive information and include the following elements:
Recent Non-Commercial Awards
- Total value and number of non-commercial contracts awarded between April 15, 2025, and Sept. 30, 2025, categorized by product service code
- A list of procurement instrument identifiers associated with those awards
- For contracts exceeding $10 million: description of the requirement, contract pricing type and total value; date of the next contract option; planned actions by the senior procurement executive, or SPE; explanation if a transition to a commercial solution is not planned
Near-Term Non-Commercial Acquisitions
- Total number of pre-award non-commercial actions in process as of March 31, 2026
- For actions exceeding $10 million: description of the requirement, planned contract type and cost estimate; planned actions by the SPE; justification for continuing with a non-commercial approach
Future Procurements
- Description of internal controls to ensure SPE review of planned non-commercial awards
Agencies must submit the report using a template available through the MAX platform.
What Does the Memo Say About Competition Advocates & Data?
The memo directs agencies to ensure the competition advocate role is held by an official at or above the head of the contracting activity or deputy SPE level and to submit that official's name, title and contact information.
The document also states that the Office of Federal Procurement Policy will work with the Procurement Committee on E-Government and the General Services Administration to improve data collection and benchmarking for commercial acquisitions in the Federal Procurement Data System.
Optional Consultation With OMB
The memo states that agencies may request input from OMB before pursuing a non-commercial acquisition. Requests must be submitted by the SPE and include details such as the requirement description, market research findings, cost estimates and justification for not using a commercial solution.
Agencies are required to provide OMB at least 15 days to review consultation requests prior to issuing a solicitation.
