Williams to head GSA's FAS

Jim Williams, a Homeland Security Department director, will move to the General Services Administration to become commissioner of the recently created Federal Acquisition Service, GSA announced today.

GSA officials also announced that acting FAS commissioner Marty Wagner will return to GSA’s Office of Governmentwide Policy.

The agency will make a number of other appointments in the next week, GSA administrator Lurita Doan said in an interview today. She did not give details about the appointments.

Williams is director of DHS’ U.S. Visitor and Immigrant Status Indicator Technology program, an immigration and border management identification system. Before working at DHS and the Internal Revenue Service, Williams was director of GSA’s Local Telecommunications Procurement Division, which is responsible for all of the agency’s local telecom purchases.

“I am delighted to have attracted Jim Williams back to GSA and to have found an outstanding permanent commissioner of FAS,” said Doan in a press release.

Wasting no time since her swearing-in six days ago, Doan has made her first major appointment at the agency. Her appointment as administrator ends in 2008, and many GSA observers have said Doan must work quickly to improve GSA and its financial woes.

In an interview today, she said that despite observers' concerns about the time left in the Bush administration, she is starting to immediately rejuvenate the agency. She said she is enthusiastic about the job ahead of her and confident in improving the agency.

In April, congressional appropriators approved the creation of FAS, which merged the Federal Technology Service and the Federal Supply Service.

A native of Virginia, Williams holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Virginia Commonwealth University and a master's degree in business administration from the George Washington University.