Purchase priorities

Overview

This section establishes the mandatory hierarchy of procurement sources that federal ordering offices must follow when both Federal Prison Industries (FPI) and AbilityOne participating nonprofit agencies provide identical supplies or services.

Key Rules

• Supplies Priority: When purchasing goods, agencies must prioritize sources in this specific order:
  1. Federal Prison Industries, Inc. (FPI/UNICOR)
  2. AbilityOne participating nonprofit agencies
  3. Commercial sources
• Services Priority: When purchasing services, the priority shifts:
  1. AbilityOne participating nonprofit agencies
  2. Federal Prison Industries, Inc. or commercial sources (equal priority)
• Statutory Basis: These priorities are governed by 41 U.S.C. chapter 85 and 41 U.S.C. 8504.

Practical Implications

• Contracting officers must perform market research to determine if FPI or AbilityOne can meet the requirement before seeking commercial bids.
• Failure to adhere to these priorities for supplies is a common point of compliance failure, as FPI holds a "super-priority" status for products that overrides even AbilityOne.