AbilityOne and the Procurement List
What Is AbilityOne?
AbilityOne® enjoys a long history of supporting the federal government. In 1938, Congress created the Wagner-O'Day Act, which enabled nonprofits that served people who were blind to sell products to the federal government. The Act was amended in 1971 to include people with other significant disabilities. This expanded Javits-Wagner-O'Day (JWOD) Act serves as the basis for the federal AbilityOne Program.
The AbilityOne Program is among the nation's largest providers of jobs for people who are blind or have significant disabilities. The Program uses the purchasing power of the federal government to buy products and services from participating nonprofit agencies that train and employ workers with disabilities.
Meeting the 1% AbilityOne Pledge
The Office of Federal Procurement Policy released a memo on October 30, 2020, encouraging all government agencies to allocate at least 1% of their annual spend on AbilityOne® contracts. As a Central Nonprofit Agency in the AbilityOne Program, SourceAmerica is ideally situated to help you meet this contracting pledge. We have a nationwide network of nonprofit agencies that are AbilityOne authorized providers, and the products and services they deliver match strict requirements and quality standards. Connect with us to learn more.
"The DoD AbilityOne Program has pledged to grow the federal-wide AbilityOne Program over the next five years from 0.55% to 1.0% of DoD contract spending. This increase will match DoD’s mission needs with AbilityOne capabilities to grow employment and career opportunities for Americans with disabilities, including service-disabled veterans who are not small business owners.” [Department of Defense Equity Action Plan, April 2022]
AbilityOne expertise is in our DNA
SourceAmerica® was established in 1974 to support and implement the federal AbilityOne Program. AbilityOne expertise is a big part of our organization's DNA, and we know how to guide you through the process to ensure a smooth AbilityOne procurement experience for your agency.
Is my product or service on the Procurement List?
The U.S. AbilityOne Commission® maintains a Procurement List of products and services that have been placed in the AbilityOne Program, as referenced in FAR 8.002 and Subpart 8.7.
Federal agencies must purchase supplies or services on the Procurement List, at prices established by the U.S. AbilityOne Commission, from designated nonprofit agencies as long as those supplies and services are available within the period requested.
Your first step on the way to AbilityOne compliance is to find out if the product or service you need is on the AbilityOne Procurement List.
If it's not, you can add it using the following steps.
How do I add a product or service to the AbilityOne Procurement List?
- If you are interested in adding a product or service to the Procurement List, reach out to the SourceAmerica team at 888.411.8424 or CustomerService@SourceAmerica.org.
- Someone from the business development team at SourceAmerica will contact you to review the requirement and discuss next steps.
- If it is a good fit for you and the AbilityOne Program, the best nonprofit agency contractor will be identified; a site visit and capability briefing will be scheduled; and a proposed price will be developed.
- Once an agreed-upon price is met, SourceAmerica will prepare and submit the Procurement List addition package, including a fair market price recommendation, to the U.S. AbilityOne Commission.
- Next, the Commission will review the package and fair market price recommendation, publish the intent to add it to the Federal Register, and make a decision on its addition
- Finally, the Commission will publish the Procurement List addition; the contracting officer, nonprofit agency, and SourceAmerica will be notified; and the contract will be authorized to be awarded after the effective date.