The General Services Administration’s (GSA) Technology Transformation Services (TTS) has selected 14 projects to receive funding from the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 to develop government-wide citizen-facing services to help recover and rebuild from the COVID-19 pandemic.
“These projects are a prime example of GSA’s commitment to using technology to make sure government can move at the speed of need and deliver for the people and communities we serve,” said GSA Administrator Robin Carnahan.
“From making it easier for families to access child care services to helping farmers access debt relief programs, these projects address some of the most pressing issues people face in their daily lives,” she said “Combined with efforts like the Technology Modernization Fund, we have an opportunity to make a truly transformative impact and reimagine how we deliver services to the public.”
The selected projects are broken into three categories: recover, rebuild, and reimagine.
Recover:
- Automating Farmers’ Debt Relief Processes;
- Investing in Cloud Adoption and Reuse;
- Putting the User at the Forefront of COVID Rental Relief;
- Assisting Families Eligible for the Child Tax Credit; and
- Creating a Consistent Search Experience.
Rebuild:
- Verifying Income for Public Benefits;
- Streamlining Identity Verification; and
- Creating Inclusive Design Patterns.
Reimagine:
- Reimaging USAGov as the Front Door to Government;
- Increasing Voter Information and Access;
- Locating Childcare Services;
- Bridging the Gap to Wifi Access;
- Building a Talent Pipeline for Government Technologists; and
- Spurring Innovation Through 10x Investments.
In a press release, GSA said TTS will leverage best practices from its 10x program as it tackles the new projects. Those best practices include using equitable evaluation criteria, performing due diligence, and project tracking.
“TTS is driving change in government technology by working to improve needed services directly with agencies and for the public,” said Federal Acquisition Service Deputy Commissioner and TTS Director Dave Zvenyach. “And this is just the beginning. As we head into FY22, TTS will be doubling down on what is possible to make the largest impact on public-facing digital services.”
The overarching theme of the new TTS project falls squarely within one of Federal CIO Clare Martorana’s priorities – improving the way that citizens access government services. Last week, the Federal CIO emphasized that goal, saying that the government needs to move relentlessly toward providing “a simple, seamless, and secure customer experience to the American people” that is on par with their expectations of services provided by the private sector.
