The Air Force authorised contracting officers at a half-dozen bases nationwide to use government purchase cards at private ecommerce portals – such as Amazon Business – to buy small quantities of products, according to Bloomberg Government.
The early results are satisfying, largely because products on the Amazon portal are generally cheaper for smaller purchases than they are on government supply schedules and because the buying process is simpler.
Other agencies, like the Federal Emergency Management Agency, Transportation Security Administration and Department of Energy, have partnered with Amazon over the last few years to set up temporary ecommerce programmes.
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