Post by bot on Jul 17, 2016 18:25:52 GMT -5
Industry Support for the Information Technology Modernization Act
This week, Democratic Whip Steny H. Hoyer delivered a speech on how Congress can renew the American people's faith in government, indentifying four major proposals to renew trust and confidence in government: campaign finance reform, voting rights, redistricting reform, and government technology.
One of the proposals discussed in his speech was the Information Technology Modernization Act. Introduced by Whip Hoyer in April, this bipartisan legislation will create an Information Technology Modernization Fund, an innovative way to upgrade and modernize government IT systems while strengthening cybersecurity. Since the bill’s introduction, a number of leaders in the private sector have praised the proposal, including recent endorsements from:
Steve Case, Chairman and CEO, Revolution LLC; Co-Founder, AOL
“I applaud House Democratic Whip Rep. Steny Hoyer for introducing the Information Technology Modernization Act and earning bipartisan support from Rep. Darrell Issa. Investing in the country’s aging IT infrastructure will not only protect people and ensure better government, but it will help entrepreneurs more seamlessly work with federal agencies to grow their startups. Let’s bring more Democrats and Republicans together to pass this smart and sensible legislation.”
Frederick Humphries, Corporate Vice President of U.S. Government Affairs, Microsoft
“Thank you Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer for the Information Technology Modernization Act. Modern IT and the Cloud will improve the U.S. government's security and efficiency, and save money.”
Information Technology Industry Council
“ITI applauds Mr. Hoyer, Mr. Issa, and all the cosponsors who recognize we need to invest significantly in federal IT to meet the need of, and better serve the American public. Industry has long advocated for flexible funding solutions that allow the government to keep pace with innovation. This proposal makes a significant step in that direction, but as with all legislation, the implementation of the proposal is as important as the concept. We believe that management of this new fund needs to ensure agencies retain discretion and control over their IT priorities and investments. We look forward to working with the sponsors to ensure the prudent investment of taxpayer dollars for information technologies.”
Hewlett Packard Enterprise
“As the market leader in hybrid infrastructure, software, and services, Hewlett Packard Enterprise is acutely aware of and concerned by the significant cybersecurity challenges facing governments, companies, and individuals today. We are also very aware of the constraints government faces given the cost of maintaining aging systems and technology.
“Cyber-attacks from various nation states are increasing in frequency and capability while surreptitiously stealing unprecedented amounts of federal, commercial, and personal data. These actions are impacting every aspect of our American way of life and the federal government has an obligation to protect Americans from these threats. We applaud the leadership demonstrated by Democratic Whip Hoyer to provide for the modernization of government Information Technology systems. Furthermore, we look forward to working with the Congress to implement an Information Technology Modernization program; saving valuable resources as well as to ensure the latest security features and technologies are in place to innovate the delivery of services to all Americans who rely upon them on a daily basis.”
BSA | The Software Alliance
“BSA | The Software Alliance applauds Congressman Steny Hoyer for his introduction of the bipartisan Information Technology Modernization Act. A well-functioning and modern Federal IT system is critical to maintaining the safety and security of our nation’s IT infrastructure, protecting the personal information it contains, and improving the efficiency of government operations. Reliance on outdated legacy systems undermines the ability of US government agencies to operate efficiently to deliver cutting edge services. This legislation, consistent with the Administration’s proposal released earlier this year, will help the Federal government take advantage of innovation to build a more secure and efficient IT infrastructure. We look forward to working with Congressman Hoyer and the other supporters of this bill as it moves through Congress.”
Tom Kennedy, Vice President, Veritas Public Sector
“We applaud the introduction of H.R 4897, the Information Technology Modernization Act of 2016 and look forward to working with you as this legislation moves forward. While much of the focus around IT modernization tends to be on systems, we believe that data housed in those systems is of equal if not greater importance. From our experience, as a leading provider of enterprise data solutions to the federal government, we believe it is critical that the government modernize its aging information technology systems to keep pace with the evolution of technology in the private sector, the evolving requirements of digital service delivery and need for government to drive open, transparent and interoperable data, while recognizing the critical role that data plays in enabling effective transition to the cloud. Any effort to promote the modernization of the federal IT infrastructure, must also encourage policies that empower government’s leveraging of data.”
Steve Alfieris, Vice President of Federal, ServiceNow
“We applaud Rep. Hoyer’s efforts and welcome and endorse the IT Modernization Act as an essential step in advancing modern, digital government for the 21st Century As a leading enterprise IT transformation company, ServiceNow is on the front lines of government IT management; we have seen first hand that more than 75 percent of the government’s IT budget is spent on maintaining legacy systems. The IT Modernization Fund provides critical resources to federal agencies in migrating from inefficient and poorly performing IT platforms to newer, more secure systems that reflect ‘cyber by design’.”
Chris Howard, Vice President, U.S. Federal, Nutanix
“The federal government continues to spend a disproportionate amount of its IT funding on legacy systems. To be effective in truly engaging citizens and improving government operations, we need to shift the pendulum in favor of innovation. In recent years proven solutions have come to market that empower government to adopt world-class business practices that reduce costs and resource consumption, while making services and resources more accessible and secure for users. These are the types of innovations that government can embrace, if unencumbered by the status quo. The proposed IT Modernization Fund is a step in the right direction toward kick starting this effort and we applaud you for your work to move it forward.”
Click here to read the PDF
www.democraticwhip.gov/sites/default/files/Quote%20Doc%20ITMF%20071216%20FINAL.pdf