Tracey L Cross

Tracey L. Cross serves as a Contract Specialist within the Federal Railroad Administration, where she plays a pivotal role in executing procurement strategies aligned with the agency’s mission to modernize rail safety and operational resilience. She manages the full lifecycle of acquisitions for technical services supporting rail infrastructure inspection, human factors analysis, and predictive modeling tools, ensuring compliance with federal regulations and performance-based contracting standards. Her work directly enables the FRA’s technical innovation goals by securing specialized engineering and data analytics capabilities critical to advancing national rail system integrity. Cross cultivates strategic partnerships with a diverse pool of small business vendors, consistently prioritizing full small business set-asides under FAR 19.5. Her contracting patterns reflect a deliberate commitment to socioeconomic programs, with nearly all awards directed toward small businesses, including those certified under 8(a), HUBZone, and Women-Owned Small Business (WOSB) programs. She actively engages with small business advocates and pre-solicitation outreach initiatives to foster equitable access and build capacity among qualified niche providers serving the rail sector. Her procurement focus is concentrated in NAICS 523910 (Miscellaneous Intermediation), which encompasses specialized financial and technical intermediary services essential to rail system modernization. This includes contracting for data aggregation platforms, operational analytics services, and third-party technical advisory support that facilitate performance-based oversight of rail infrastructure projects. Cross’s domain expertise lies in securing non-traditional service providers who bridge engineering, data science, and regulatory compliance, enabling the FRA to deploy agile, evidence-based solutions for rail safety and capacity optimization. Her approach emphasizes collaboration, transparency, and compliance with socioeconomic mandates to ensure taxpayer value and mission success.