Whither go the CIOs?

The door is revolving, but it is uncertain how many chief information officers will come out.

Of the seven major agency CIOs that were appointed by President Clinton, only two are leaving for certain. Two others are staying and three are lobbying to keep their jobs, according to agency officials.

Acting Labor Department CIO Leah Daughtry has been asked by the Bush administration to stay on, according to her staff. And Defense Department CIO Art Money has been asked to remain in office at least through the change of administrations, said a Pentagon spokeswoman.

John Callahan, the CIO and budget chief at the Department of Health and Human Services, stepped down Jan. 20, as did Joseph Leo, the CIO at the Agriculture Department.

Three other CIOs are hoping for re-appointments by President Bush. They are Ed Levine, the Environmental Protection Agency's deputy assistant administrator and CIO; Edward Meagher of the Department of Veterans Affairs; and George Molaski of the Transportation Department.

"They want to stay and have been campaigning heavily to stay," said a government official who is familiar with the CIOs' efforts. With Bush's inauguration less than 24 hours away, the trio had not been invited to remain. If it hadn't happened already, it probably wasn't going to happen, the official said.

At the Pentagon, Money was asked to stay "for a limited time," which was expected to mean at least several months, officials said. Money is not a typical government information chief. Besides serving as the Defense Department's CIO, he is the assistant secretary of Defense for command, control, communications and intelligence.