OMB Names Who Will Divvy Up Modernization Funds
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Here are the seven people who will evaluate agency proposals.
The Office of Management and Budget on Thursday announced the seven federal technology leaders who will hold the keys to an up to $500 million fund that agencies can borrow against to update aging unsecure systems.
Newly appointed Federal Chief Information Officer Suzette Kent will head the board of the Technology Modernization Fund. The other members are:
- Alan Thomas, commissioner of the Federal Acquisition Service at GSA
- Mark Knidienger, director of the cybersecurity division at the Homeland Security Department
- Matt Cutts, acting administrator of the U.S. Digital Service
- Rajive Mathur, chief information officer of the Social Security Administration
- Maria Roat, chief information officer of the Small Business Administration
- Charles Worthington, chief technology officer of the Veterans Affairs Department
The seven-person board will review project proposals from agencies hoping to access the Technology Modernization Fund. The provisions were created by the Modernizing Government Technology Act, a bill passed as part of the National Defense Authorization Act that also establishes IT capital funds where agencies can stash savings from other modernization projects—like migrating to cloud computing—to use for future projects.
The board will officially come into existence March 12, but agencies can already begin applying for funds. The board will evaluate proposals based on public impact, feasibility, outcomes and security, and make funding recommendations to the General Services Administration, according to OMB Director Mick Mulvaney.
“The MGT Act will allow agencies to invest in modem technology solutions to improve service delivery to the public, secure sensitive systems and data, and save taxpayer dollars,” Mulvaney wrote in a program guidance document published Tuesday.
Agencies must also notify OMB by March 27 if they plan to establish an IT Working Capital Fund in fiscal 2018, the guidance said. OMB will oversee the fund and require agencies to submit quarterly reports on how resources were spent that quarter, spending plans for the upcoming quarter, and a summary of actual obligations, expenditures and unused balances by fiscal year.