Budget forecasts, campaign apps and congressional data centers

Forecast: Flat IT budgets ahead

The civilian IT budget will be flat in the near term, totaling $73.7 billion for fiscal 2015, according to a survey of 360 government executives, industry and think tank analysts polled for the Vision Federal Market Forecast by the TechAmerica Foundation.

"Budget constraints are forcing agencies to limit extras and focus on IT as a commodity," Vision Strategic Forecast Council Chair Robert Haas said in a briefing. "Any budget uncertainty will constrain technology migration."

"Cybersecurity concerns continue to challenge the agencies with security issues slowing the adoption of new technologies," he added. "Even in the Department of Defense, where cybersecurity has been more formalized as a mission, challenges remain. Cloud computing, mobility and information sharing still face cultural and security issues. This is where industry can assist government customers."

TechAmerica said the 360 interviews conducted for the survey were the most in the 50-year history of the forecast.

Pennsylvania app accesses campaign finance data

Pennsylvania is now making campaign finance information filed by candidates for state office and political action committees available to the public on a mobile app, GCN reports. The campaign finance mobile app provides an overview of a committee's activity in a reporting period, including the total amount of money received, money spent and the remaining balance or cash on hand.

House seeks help with its data centers

The U.S. House of Representatives is developing a contract to modernize its existing data center facilities and build new facilities to accommodate legislative branch data needs.

Washington Technology reports that the work would include consolidation, general management oversight, technical oversight, installation services and support monitoring, and service-level enforcement.