Hoyer Tech Act Passes in House
The Information Technology Modernization Act authorizes creation of an Information Technology Modernization Fund, according to House Democratic Whip Steny H. Hoyer (D-Md., 5th) , who introduced legislation included in the bill.
“We are taking the first step toward upgrading systems to improve performance and protect against cyber threats,” Congressman Hoyer said when announcing passage of the bill through the House of Representatives. “Such a fund would be used to finance rapid upgrades of large, vulnerable systems with the latest best practices from Silicon Valley, such as cloud computing, shared services, and agile development. Once the upgrades are completed, agencies will pay back into the Fund over time using the savings achieved through greater efficiency. As a result, $3 billion invested today could finance up to $12 billion worth of investments over the first decade alone. Transparency would be maintained by requiring all Fund upgrade details to be updated regularly online for the public to see.
The Modernizing Government Technology Act includes the Information Technology Modernization Act that Re. Hoyer introduced earlier this year and is part of House Democrats’ Renewing Faith in Government agenda.
“Technology plays a central role in government today. Modern technology can make government more efficient, transparent, user-friendly, and secure. In the same vein, outdated technology systems make it harder for government to provide services effectively and places classified or personal data at risk. Unfortunately, the technology infrastructure of the federal government is currently in terrible shape. We cannot continue with the status quo, where flat-line budgets lead to essential technology upgrades being delayed indefinitely.”
The text of HR 4897 — the Information Technology Modernization Act — can be found here and a section-by-section summary can be found here.
The congressman talked about the bill in an April 2016 op-ed piece. Here is an excerpt:
“Here’s how it works. From a single upfront investment of $3 billion in a new Information Technology Modernization Fund, an independent review board of technology and cybersecurity experts would award grants to agencies for rapid, large-scale, whole-system upgrades. Awards would be made based on need and on the potential impact on improving service, increasing efficiency and strengthening cybersecurity.
The board would also ensure that every project adopts the latest best practices from Silicon Valley, including shared services, cloud hosting and agile development. Once an upgrade is completed, the agency would begin paying back into the fund using the savings achieved by making its systems more efficient.
In such a way, just $3 billion invested today could sustain at least $12 billion worth of upgrades by 2026 — and continue supporting modernization in perpetuity. No longer would technology upgrades be subject to the annual political scuffles of the congressional appropriations process.
Americans deserve a government that is responsive, effective, transparent and secure. Moreover, bringing agencies’ technology systems into the 21st century will help renew Americans’ trust in government, which is unfortunately at historic lows.
My legislation complements House Democrats’ Make It In America plan, which holds that government ought to be on the side of American workers and businesses trying to get ahead by ensuring they have the tools needed to compete in a changing economy. This begins by making government as transparent and responsive as possible.”
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For more information about House Democratic Whip Steny H. Hoyer, visit his Leader Page.
