The House Oversight and Reform Committee voted to advance the Federal Risk Authorization and Management Program (FedRAMP) Authorization Act to the full House during a work session today.
The FedRAMP Authorization Act, sponsored by Reps. Gerry Connolly, D-Va., and Mark Meadows, R-N.C., would:
- Codify the program into law;
- Establish a presumption of adequacy for FedRAMP authorized cloud services;
- Encourage further automation of the FedRAMP process;
- Establish a Federal Secure Cloud Advisory Committee, and:
- Require the Office of Management and Budget to ensure all agencies get authorizations for cloud services.
The bill also would authorize $20 million annually for FedRAMP’s program management office and the Joint Authorization Board.
During today’s work session, Reps. Connolly, Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y., and Jody Hice, R-Ga., speaking on behalf of Rep. Meadows, offered their support for the bill.
“Cloud computing is the future of technology. The Federal government must do better when it comes to acquiring cloud services, because cloud adoption leads to more modernized systems and more secure data,” said Rep. Connolly. “We cannot afford to repeat the siloed policies of the past that have led to spending $90 billion annually, much of it to simply maintain old legacy systems that are inefficient, expensive, and not encryptable,” he added.
“Shifting to the cloud provides for improved asset utilization, increased innovation, and a more responsive tech environment. These improved efficiencies lead to a significant cost savings,” said Rep. Hice, reading a letter prepared by Rep. Meadows.
“This bill supports a critical effort to keep our nation’s information secure in cloud environments, and it’s very important,” said Rep. Maloney.