November 11, 2002 -- The Bush administration has placed the printing of the federal budget out for bids, bypassing the Government Printing Office - GPO. The Printing Industries of America (PIA) has placed a link on the front page of their web site (www.gain.org) with more information about the project and the Associated Press reports that a competitive bidding process for the budget is the first in 81 years. The administration has advertised for competitive bids to print four of the five volumes of the President's 2004 budget. GPO still will produce the largest volume, which requires specialized work, but must join the open bidding process for the other four. In May of this year, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) issued Memorandum M-02-07, setting forth a policy allowing agencies to buy printing directly, without having to go through the GPO process. PIA, GPO and OMB have been among the parties working to determine the future of print buying within government agencies since May. At stake is the buying process of at least $500 million of printed materials purchased annually by agencies. Editor’s Note. See today’s related story from ABC Advisors which lists 2002’s Top 50 Printers producing work for GPO.