The General Services Administration (GSA) will sell or lease unused government buildings to "rightsize its portfolio," save money and allow the government to run more efficiently.

This is according to former GSA head Emily Murphy, someone who served under the first Trump administration and is familiar with the way both the government and the current president function, as Fox News reported.

Questions have arisen about what will be the fallout from massive internal changes being made following audits of government departments and agencies.

From The Former Official

"I think that there's an incredible opportunity right now for GSA to save the government substantial amounts of money by rightsizing its portfolio," Murphy told reporters.

The former official was addressing Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and their work with GSA to cut government waste.

"Right now, GSA is losing money. The federal buildings that they own have over $370 billion in deferred maintenance. That's a liability that is just growing and growing and growing because the buildings haven't been maintained," Murphy said.

"So getting rid of owned space that hasn't been maintained and that isn't occupied, first of all, takes that off the government's books, gets rid of that liability. But it also creates opportunities in communities. Having a building that's unoccupied isn't good for a city. It isn't good for the state. It isn't good for anyone."

What is Being Offloaded

According to Murphy, the empty buildings are frequently in downtown, beloved locations that are known as "heavy utilization areas," which can be an asset to a community if used properly.

These buildings would not only contribute to the communities they serve but offer more funds moving back into the Treasury Department if they are sold to private sector buyers.

"GSA has to rightsize its lease portfolio. Otherwise, it's going to be paying rent on buildings it's not occupying, and it doesn't have the funding necessary to do that," Murphy said.

Audit Results

In addition to potentially bringing in income by letting out the buildings, an estimated 794 leases have been terminated due to GSA's cost-cutting efforts to date.

The result of the audit and lease release means that more than $500 million of lease obligations are being canceled, according to an insider cited by Fox News.

Murphy noted the two-fold benefits in her comments to the news outlet, saying "No taxpayer should want the government to be paying for space it doesn't use."

"It's billions of dollars a year [that] go out in rent and real estate payments from the federal government. This is a substantial amount of money, and it's a real chance for GSA to do a great job for the American people and reduce the long-term financial obligations of the government and, frankly, free up money for agencies in the short term as well."