Washington, D.C. – Today, Senator Mark Warner and Congressman Gerry Connolly (D-VA) reintroduced the Modernizing Government Technology (MGT) Act. The legislation is led in the House by Congressman Will Hurd (R-TX) and cosponsored by Senators Udall and Moran. The legislation builds on the MGT Act that unanimously passed the House in 2016.

"Ensuring that government agencies have the resources to invest in current technology is smart management: Up-to-date systems mean improved service delivery, enhanced security, and ultimately enable agencies to do their jobs more effectively and better serve taxpayers,” said Senator Warner.  “I’m pleased to again support this bipartisan proposal, which represents a commonsense step towards enabling agencies to make these critical investments."

“I am proud to join Senator Warner in reintroducing this critical IT modernization legislation,” said Rep. Gerry Connolly. “The MGT Act builds on the success of the bipartisan Federal IT Acquisition and Reform Act and ensures the savings and efficiencies created by FITARA provide the investment needed for agencies to transition to the cloud.”

“The working capital funds established by the MGT Act will create an incentive for agencies to find savings and reinvest them internally, creating a virtuous cycle. This reform has the potential to significantly speed up the federal government’s move to 21st century technologies,” Connolly added.

Under MGT, savings from IT modernization, including FITARA implementation, would be placed into a working capital fund that can be accessed for up to two years for additional modernization efforts. This approach eliminates the traditional use-it or lose-it approach that has plagued government technology for decades. MGT will help agencies move to the cloud, improve cybersecurity and realize additional efficiencies. 

Changes to MGT II Act include:

•The centralized fund is authorized for appropriation for 2 years instead of unlimited years. The limit for appropriation per year is $250m.

•Changes to ensure that agencies can only use future funds for modernization. This was the goal of the first versions, but we didn't have the language structured correctly.

•The working capital funds now have 5 years to pay back the Technology Modernization Fund if they borrow modernization funds. IT was unlimited before.

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