“We had brainstorming sessions within the garrison, but the G-9 and IMCOM helped us move in the right direction: here are the regulations, here are the memoranda you need to do, the cost-benefit analyses,” he said. They kind of put us in the crawl and walk, and now it`s basically our turn. But without their support, it would have been very difficult. And I can imagine that a lot of facilities are really challenged to put their feet forward because they don`t know what possibilities are. This is another mechanism to provide the same service, but at a discounted price while keeping things local. The Army Facilities Management Command (IMCOM) and officials at its Pentagon headquarters provide support services to local commanders looking for IGSAs, and agreements worth $3 million or more require approval from the Deputy Chief of Staff for Facilities (G-9). Five years ago, with tight budgets for funds needed to operate and support its bases, the Army began saving money by sharing services with communities outside the fences of its bases. These efforts are beginning to bear fruit. But military officials promised to review and approve the deals quickly. In the case of Fort Stewart, base leaders received help from both organizations with higher headquarters, said Travis Mobley, director of Fort Stewart`s Office of Planning, Analysis and Integration.
This is the fourth IGSA in Fort Stewart only. The four agreements have reduced the base`s operating costs by about $2.2 million a year, said Col. Bryan Logan, commander of the Fort Stewart garrison and nearby Hunter Army airfield. For facility commanders who may be considering a public-public partnership for the first time, Logan said the first step should be to gain a solid understanding of the capabilities and capabilities of local government. Jared Serbu is deputy editor of the Federal News Network and reports on the Department of Defense`s contractual, legislative, personnel, and IT issues. But Logan said there`s also room for some creativity. At Fort Stewart, officials signed an agreement with Georgia Southern University with an IGSA to calculate the overall impact of the base on the local economy. Last month, the army signed the 66th Army. Intergovernmental Support Agreements (IGSAs): public-public partnerships between military institutions and adjacent local governments. The latest, in Fort Stewart, Georgia, will appoint long County local government officials responsible for animal control services in the garrison. “But there`s also a non-financial article, and it comes down to relationships and ease of execution,” Logan said in an interview with Federal News Network`s On DoD.
“For example, during our site maintenance IGSA with the City of Hinesville, I probably talk to the City Manager or Mayor once a week. We know the majority of people who are a maintenance team for this reason. So if we see something that might be a little twisted, it`s a phone call – it`s not the bureaucracy we`d be dealing with in a contract. That`s why I`m a big fan of it. “There are a lot of people who see money. They see opportunities. And sometimes they exaggerate their hand, so you have to make sure the proof is in the pudding,” he said. These are flawless options, so if they don`t have enough lawn mowers or can`t hire enough employees, it`s probably not the right deal. It starts with a handshake and then the employees work. Some of them last a year, others three years. But do all your homework. In the case of the military, popular uses of IGSA include many of the things most people associate with local government agencies — things like animal control, police operations and prison services, and waste disposal.
Congress helped lubricate runners to increase military acceptance of the IGSA concept in the 2015 National Defense Authorization Act, when lawmakers clarified that facilities could partner with local governments without having to comply with the restrictions of the federal procurement regulations. Since then, the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps have all reported a reduction in administrative time and improved relations with communities around their bases, according to the Government Accountability Office. “We had to let in an external contractor, do this study for probably a year or two, and then give us the results. So we looked and said, “Can it meet the standard of an IGSA?” That way, we avoid the contract schedule, and we also wanted to see if we could keep it local,” he said. “Can we use an organization that truly understands the impact and may be receiving federal funding for the region?” . . . .