NITAAC's CIO-SP3 and CIO-CS GWACs Close to New Orders as HHS Hands Remaining Work to GSA

Federal agencies have lost one of their longest-running IT buying channels, and the contractors who reached customers through it must now find a new route. Agencies can no longer award new task orders on NIH's CIO-SP3, CIO-SP3 Small Business and CIO-CS governmentwide acquisition contracts (GWACs). The cutoff came on Oct. 29, 2026, the date set in a June 9 NITAAC notice to the acquisition community and contract holders. The notice says future requirements will be procured through existing vehicles within the General Services Administration (GSA) portfolio and other agency sources. Work already on the books will wind down through the end of 2028.

The notice states the decision plainly: "In accordance with Administration priorities, the HHS Senior Procurement Executive (SPE) office has determined that all NITAAC GWACs will sunset on October 29, 2026." It says the decision followed a strategic review aligned with Executive Order 14240 and OMB Memorandum M-25-31, and that HHS and NIH are "streamlining procurement to eliminate duplication and improve efficiency."

The program itself will shut down in stages. According to the notice, "NITAAC support will decrease commensurate with workload through December 31, 2028, after which HHS/NIH will cease all NITAAC program functions, including fee collection and administration of assisted orders."

The Three Dates That Govern the CIO-SP3 Wind-Down

NITAAC's notice sets out three deadlines. On June 8, 2026, period-of-performance (POP) restrictions took effect for new orders. On Oct. 29, 2026, the GWACs reached final expiration, and that was the last day to award new orders. Dec. 31, 2028, is the end of the period of performance for all orders, including options, awarded on or after June 8, 2026.

The notice gives each side its own instructions. Agencies may not award new orders on or after June 8 with a period of performance running past Dec. 31, 2028. They must stop new ordering after Oct. 29, and they must retrieve all order file documents from NITAAC's eGOS system before Dec. 31, 2028. Contract holders get the mirror image. They may not accept new orders awarded on or after June 8 with performance past the 2028 cutoff, and they may not accept any new order under any NITAAC GWAC after Oct. 29.

The download deadline deserves attention from contracting officers. NITAAC says it will cease all program functions after Dec. 31, 2028, so agencies that leave order files in eGOS past that date risk losing easy access to them.

Why HHS Orders End in 2028 While Other Agencies' Orders Move to GSA

On Sept. 25, NITAAC director Ricky L. Clark signed a sunset-timeline reminder that explains what happens to orders already in performance. It separates them by when they were placed and which agency placed them.

Orders executed before June 8, 2026, "retain their original period of performance and remain governed by the specific terms and conditions active at the time of their award," the reminder says. HHS's own orders get no such room: "All active HHS orders will terminate on December 31, 2028 . No extensions beyond this operational cutoff will be permitted."

Other agencies' orders take a different path. Non-HHS orders with a period of performance beyond Dec. 31, 2028, will be administered by GSA after the sunset. The reminder says the NITAAC contracting officer, working with GSA, "will coordinate the future administration and transition of all non-HHS orders directly with the contracting officer of record for your specific order." The reminder ties the process to "the mandate under Executive Order 14240 to centralize government-wide IT contracts." Federal News Network describes that March 2025 order as "Eliminating Waste and Saving Taxpayer Dollars by Consolidating Procurement."

Clark Cites Better Than 90% Overlap With GSA and NASA Vehicles

Jason Miller of Federal News Network reported on Oct. 30 that the day before was the last day NITAAC officially existed. Clark told Miller in September that NITAAC found through a multi-agency review that there was better than 90% duplication between what it offered and what was already available through IT contract vehicles managed by GSA and NASA, as Miller summarized it.

Miller also wrote that NITAAC had been a successful GWAC over its roughly 30 years, noting that Clark likes to highlight a 98% customer service approval rating. Clark credited the vendors. "I'll give the vendors who were a part of NITAAC a thanks because over the last 30 years, they made NITAAC the place to be," he said in September.

Clark pointed contractors toward GSA. "Secondly, there is an opportunity with GSA, and we'll be having a lot of industry days to gather a lot of feedback, so I would encourage contractors to be a part of those, and then avoid any concerns that they may have if they don't currently have a GSA vehicle," he said in September, according to FNN.

Those conversations have started. On Aug. 31, GSA and NITAAC held a joint roundtable "to update industry partners regarding the sunsetting of NITAAC's GWACs, including key dates and timelines, as well as informing industry of the benefits of GSA's schedules," according to an Oct. 19 posting on the NITAAC homepage.

SEWP VI Opens Nov. 1 With Its Future Beside GSA Still Open

The same FNN column looked at the other big non-GSA IT GWAC. The ordering period for NASA's SEWP VI starts Nov. 1, 2026, and runs through Oct. 31, 2036. Each of its three contracts has a $20 billion ceiling. Miller reported that the new contract adds services to the products SEWP has long offered.

Miller wrote that the future of NASA SEWP "still remains in question to some extent," and that whether GSA takes it over is still to be determined.

What It Means for Contractors

CIO-SP3 and CIO-CS holders can no longer win new work on these contracts. Their remaining revenue depends on existing orders, and the rules differ by customer. Work for HHS ends Dec. 31, 2028, with no extensions. Firms should plan staffing and recompete strategy around that date now, because the notice says future requirements will be procured through GSA vehicles and other agency sources.

Non-HHS orders that run past 2028 will move to GSA administration. Contractors should expect the NITAAC contracting officer and the contracting officer of record to coordinate the handoff, and they should confirm who will handle modifications and invoices once NITAAC stops operating.

The biggest exposure belongs to firms that sold mainly through NITAAC and hold no GSA vehicle. Clark's advice is to attend GSA's industry days and look for the on-ramps he expects GSA vehicles to offer. With NITAAC closed to new orders and SEWP VI opening Nov. 1, a GSA schedule or GWAC position looks increasingly important, in this author's assessment, for any firm that wants to keep selling IT across agencies.