By Aldgra Fredly
Contributing Writer
The U.S. General Services Administration released on Tuesday a list of “non-core” federal buildings and facilities that are being considered for disposal or sale.
GSA initially identified over 440 non-core federal buildings and facilities but revised the list shortly after, scaling it back to 320 properties, with those located in Washington removed.
The GSA later removed the list and the website now says the list is “coming soon.”
The initial list included Washington buildings such as the FBI headquarters, the Department of Labor, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, and the American Red Cross. It also included the Robert F. Kennedy Department of Justice Building and the Old Post Office Building.
Buildings on the revised list include the Speaker Nancy Pelosi Federal Building in San Francisco, the Ronald H. Brown U.S. Mission to the United Nations in New York, the Sam Nunn Atlanta Federal Center, the Rosa Parks Federal Building in Michigan, and the Senator Paul Simon Federal Building in Illinois.
GSA said that these listed properties are “not core to government operations” and that selling them would help ensure “taxpayer dollars are no longer spent on vacant or underutilized federal spaces.”
“Disposing of these assets helps eliminate costly maintenance and allows us to reinvest in high-quality work environments that support agency missions,” the agency stated on its website.
In a statement announcing the planned disposal of non-core assets, GSA said that most of the listed properties are functionally obsolete and primarily consist of office space.
“Decades of funding deficiencies have resulted in many of these buildings becoming functionally obsolete and unsuitable for use by our federal workforce,” it stated. “We can no longer hope that funding will emerge to resolve these longstanding issues.”
According to the agency, the initial list of over 440 buildings spans nearly 80 million rentable square feet and represents over $8.3 billion in recapitalization needs.
GSA said it would consider divesting non-core assets from government ownership “in an orderly fashion” to save about $430 million in annual operating costs.
“GSA’s decisive action to dispose of non-core assets leverages the private sector, drives improvements for our agency customers, and best serves local communities,” it stated.
The agency also identified certain core assets that “are needed for critical government operations,” including courthouses, land ports of entry, and facilities critical to national defense and law enforcement. It stated that the government plans to retain these assets to meet long-term needs.
The move comes as the Trump administration intensifies efforts to eliminate waste and unnecessary government spending.
Since taking office on Jan. 20, the Trump administration has implemented sweeping executive actions on various federal agencies to reduce federal spending and downsize the workforce — particularly those involved in the previous administration’s diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives — except for those handling essential duties.
One of the executive orders signed by President Donald Trump was aimed at advancing the government’s cost-cutting efforts, led by the Department of Government Efficiency, an advisory body headed by Elon Musk.
That order directs departments to immediately review all contracts and grants for “waste, fraud and abuse” and to justify and publicly release government payments and travel expenses where possible. The General Services Administration will also create a plan for offloading any unnecessary government-owned or leased real estate property.
Another executive order, signed on Feb. 19, requires federal agencies to work with DOGE to cut any regulations that contradict the Trump administration’s agenda. It directs all agency heads to coordinate with DOGE and the Office of Management and Budget to review all regulations within their jurisdictions to make sure they’re consistent with the law and the president’s policies. It also asks them to prioritize any regulations that impose heavy costs.
Jacob Burg and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
