Twalla Gray

Twalla Gray serves as a Contracting Officer for Region 1: Emergency Preparedness under the Federal Emergency Management Agency within the Department of Homeland Security. In this role, she is responsible for managing the full lifecycle of procurement actions to support critical infrastructure resilience, including facility maintenance, life-safety systems, and operational continuity for emergency response assets. Her acquisitions focus on essential services that ensure federal facilities remain functional during disasters, aligning directly with the agency’s mission to sustain public safety and emergency readiness. She typically handles service-based contracts under the Federal Acquisition Regulation, with an emphasis on performance-based requirements and firm-fixed-price structures. Gray cultivates strategic partnerships with a diverse pool of vendors, primarily small businesses specializing in facility support services. While no single contractor dominates her portfolio, she consistently engages with firms capable of delivering integrated janitorial, HVAC, landscaping, and facilities management solutions. Her contracting approach prioritizes reliability, compliance, and rapid response capability, fostering long-term vendor relationships grounded in performance metrics and contract administration rigor. A strong advocate for small business participation, Gray consistently applies the Total Small Business Set-Aside (FAR 19.5) across 71.4% of her acquisitions, reflecting a deliberate commitment to socioeconomic contracting goals. Her patterns demonstrate a preference for non-set-aside awards only when full and open competition yields superior value, but she actively structures solicitations to maximize opportunities for small, disadvantaged, and locally based firms. Her procurement focus centers on NAICS 561720 (Janitorial Services), 238220 (Plumbing, Heating, and Air-Conditioning Contractors), 561210 (Facilities Support Services), and 561730 (Landscaping Services). She specializes in procuring mission-critical maintenance and operational services that sustain the integrity of emergency response facilities, ensuring compliance with federal standards for accessibility, safety, and environmental resilience. Her technical expertise lies in integrating service delivery with lifecycle asset management for high-reliability federal infrastructure.