Glossary / Contracts
Governmentwide Acquisition ContractGWAC
A Governmentwide Acquisition Contract (GWAC) is a pre-competed, multi-agency IDIQ contract for information technology products and services, available to all federal agencies. Current GWACs include GSA's Alliant 2 and Alliant 3 (unrestricted), Polaris (small business pools), VETS 2 (SDVOSB) and 8(a) STARS III (8(a)), and NASA's SEWP. NIH's NITAAC cancelled its planned CIO-SP4 in 2026 as agencies consolidate overlapping vehicles. OMB designates the agencies that run GWACs under the Clinger-Cohen Act. Orders under a GWAC follow fair-opportunity ordering procedures, so they usually move faster than a new open competition.
Why it matters to your pipeline
A GWAC prime position lets a firm compete for the IT work that flows through that vehicle against a limited pool of holders for the life of the contract. Losing a GWAC seat can mean losing access to a whole class of work, so contractors plan well ahead for GWAC on-ramps and re-competes.
When this term shows up in an opening GovSmith finds for you, your vCM explains what it means for that pursuit and does whatever it calls for. You decide; we do the work.
Example
A mid-sized defense IT firm wins a prime seat on a GSA GWAC. Over the first 24 months, it wins seven task orders totaling $38M, each competed among the vehicle's prime holders rather than against the full federal IT market.
Find out what applies to you
Some terms will matter to your business right away and some won’t for years. A vCM can tell you which are which.