WASHINGTON – The IT Alliance for the Public Sector (ITAPS), a division of 91pro视频, joined a chorus of technology groups including BSA | The Software Alliance, the Professional Services Council, TechNet, and the Security Industry Association to voice our support for adding Senate Bill 990, the Modernizing Government Technology Act of 2017 (MGT Act), which was passed in the House of Representatives earlier this spring, as an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act. In a to lawmakers sent to the Senate Armed Services Committee, the groups said the legislation creates new options, outside of the funding cycle, for information technology (IT) investment and offers ways to makes money available to agencies when they are ready to invest.
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The Honorable John McCain
Chairman
Senate Armed Services Committee
228 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
The Honorable Jack Reed
Ranking Member
Senate Armed Services Committee
228 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
Dear Chairman McCain and Ranking Member Reed:
On behalf of the undersigned organizations, we write to express our support for the Amendment Number 949 by Senators Moran, Udall, Daines, and Warner which adds S. 990, the Modernizing Government Technology Act (MGT Act), to the FY18 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). This amendment would create funding mechanisms to address the federal government’s efforts on cybersecurity and fund information technology (IT) modernization.
Federal government networks and systems face increasing cybersecurity threats. That fact, coupled with the reality that the federal government spends approximately eighty percent of the annual IT budget to sustain and operate legacy networks and systems, makes it imperative that we shift funding emphasis to investment in innovation and modernization of government IT. Many parts of the federal government’s IT infrastructure are woefully outdated. Obsolete technology is less efficient and harder to protect from cyberattacks and puts citizens’ personal information at risk. Inconsistent funding cycles inhibit agency ability to plan for and procure the latest innovations to address mission IT needs and force agencies to instead maintain older systems for mission continuity. We believe that the MGT Act is a good first step to help agencies fund investment in new technologies, as well as strengthen their cybersecurity posture.
We believe that by enacting the MGT Act, Congress will enable agencies to better acquire innovative technologies, improve constituent services, deliver greater efficiencies for the taxpayer, and increase capabilities and technological advantages for fulfilling the government mission. Our organizations urge you to accept the Moran and Udall amendment to the NDAA.
Thank you for your attention to this effort to bolster the federal government’s technological capacities and information security.
Respectfully,
BSA | The Software Alliance
IT Alliance for Public Sector
Professional Services Council
Security Industry Association
TechNet
cc: The Honorable Mitch McConnell, Majority Leader
The Honorable Charles Schumer, Minority Leader
The Honorable Ron Johnson, Chair, Committee on Homeland Security and
Governmental Affairs
The Honorable Claire McCaskill, Ranking Member, Committee on Homeland Security
and Governmental Affairs
The Honorable Thad Cochran, Chair, Senate Appropriations Committee
The Honorable Patrick Leahy, Ranking Member, Senate Appropriations Committee