Input: Stimulus to generate $350B in new contracts

Government contractors should expect more than $350 billion in new contracting opportunities as a result of President-elect Barack Obama’s anticipated economic stimulus package, according to Input Inc.

The Reston, Va., market research company said Jan. 8 that the stimulus package is likely to include a wealth of projects related to infrastructure improvements, electronic health records, green initiatives, school modernizations and more.

Although a large portion of the funding in the stimulus package is likely to be designated to cover health care costs and pay for tax cuts, Input analysts have identified a number of ways that the package will generate contracting opportunities.

The package is likely to provide funds to the General Services Administration, military and other agencies overseeing government buildings to implement green technologies; offer grants to states for road and bridge construction; and furnish funding to health care providers to switch from paper to electronic medical records, the Input analysts said.

Other likely funding initiatives that will spur contracting are grants to state and local governments for school modernization and funds for the Army Corps of Engineers for additional infrastructure projects, they said.

“It’s too early to tell the mix of investments that will be included in the economic stimulus package, but it is clear there will be an abundance of opportunities for contractors to participate at the federal, state and local levels,” said Kevin Plexico, a senior vice president at Input.