THE GAO HAS CONTINUOUSLY MONITORED ACTIVITIES OF GSA AND REPORTED TO CONGRESS ON THE MANY PROBLEMS UNCOVERED BY ITS INVESTIGATIONS. IN RESPONSE TO A CONGRESSIONAL REQUEST, THE ADMINISTRATOR OF GSA HAS ESTABLISHED NEW PROCEDURES TO IMPLEMENT CORRECTIVE ACTIONS REQUIRED BY GAO REPORTS. UNDER THE DIRECTION OF THE DIRECTOR OF AUDITS, MANAGERS INVOLVED WITH IMPLEMENTING THE SUGGESTED CHANGES WILL MEET ON A WEEKLY BASIS TO DISCUSS THEIR PROBLEMS AND PROGRESS. IMPLEMENTATION OF THE OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT AND BUDGET (OMB) CIRCULAR A-109 HAS BEEN SLOW BECAUSE THE REGULATIONS GOVERNING MAJOR SPACE ACQUISITION ARE COMPLEX. THE PRINCIPAL AREA OF CONFLICT CONCERNS ALTERNATIVE SOLUTIONS AND WHETHER THEY CAN BE EXPLORED BEFORE OR AFTER THE PROJECT ITSELF HAS CONGRESSIONAL APPROVAL. SINCE JUNE 1978, GSA HAS BEEN ACTIVELY WORKING TOWARD COMPLYING WITH A-109 BY IMPROVING ITS COMPETITIVE PROCESS FOR SELECTING ENGINEERS AND ARCHITECTS AND BY DEVELOPING AN ACQUISITION TRAINING PROGRAM. FULL COMPLIANCE ON THE DAILY OPERATING LEVEL WILL REQUIRE CONSIDERABLE TIME AND EFFORT. AFTER INVESTIGATIONS REVEALED THAT THE GOVERNMENT OFTEN PAID MORE FOR PRODUCTS THAN PRIVATE CUSTOMERS, THE GAO SUGGESTED THAT GSA DEVELOP PROCEDURES TO INSURE THAT DISCOUNTS FOR PURCHASING IN VOLUME WERE OBTAINED. SOME IMPROVEMENTS HAVE BEEN MADE, BUT GAO FEELS THAT THE GOVERNMENT COULD OBTAIN BETTER PRICES ON MANY ITEMS. EXAMINATION OF THE SYSTEM USED BY GSA TO SELECT A BENCHMARK CONTRACTOR IN NEGOTIATIONS SHOWED INCONSISTENCIES WHICH SUGGESTED THAT THE GOVERNMENT MAY NOT HAVE NEGOTIATED THE BEST POSSIBLE PRICE. (MJM)