The General Services Administration (GSA) indicated in a statement late Thursday that additional funding for Federal government technology included in the American Rescue Plan Act will help improve IT security, infrastructure, and digital experience.
The $1.9 trillion pandemic relief bill was signed into law by President Biden on March 11. The legislation includes, among other tech-related items, $1 billion of funding for the Technology Modernization Fund (TMF), which is managed by GSA via a TMF Board, and $150 million for GSA’s Federal Citizen Services Fund.
The TMF funding increase, GSA said, “will give agencies a unique opportunity to make strategic investments to strengthen the Federal government’s cybersecurity posture and help agencies develop state-of-the-art tools and infrastructure for a changing world.”
The fund, which marked its third anniversary earlier this month, has seen somewhat modest demand since its creation – due in part to the requirement that monetary awards from the fund be repaid through savings generated by the IT modernization projects that Federal agencies undertake. TMF has funded ten projects so far with $79 million of awards, versus a total funding level of $150 million.
GSA said it will use the $150 million of funding for the Federal Citizen Services Fund “to enhance the government’s ability to operate digitally.” It added, “Near-term efforts will secure our systems while longer-term initiatives will enable mission delivery, transform the Federal technology workforce, improve the citizen experience, and bring small business innovation into government.”
“GSA is committed to working with partner agencies to maximize the impact of this important investment in our nation’s technology infrastructure,” said Katy Kale, the agency’s acting administrator.
