The House voted on Wednesday to approve bipartisan legislation that aims to improve the management of how the Federal government purchases and uses software.
The Strengthening Agency Management and Oversight of Software Assets (SAMOSA) Act would require Congress, the Office of Management and Budget, and the General Services Administration to conduct an independent, comprehensive assessment of their software licensing practices.
The findings from the reviews required by the legislation would help agency chief information officers (CIOs) better manage how their agencies buy IT products.
The goal is to increase Federal oversight of software contracts, streamline operations, and reduce wasteful spending. Rep. Matt Cartwright, D-Pa., introduced the bill in March 2023, and it is backed by 20 cosponsors.
“Without in-depth assessments of how agencies buy and use software, vendors often have the upper hand in transactions with Federal agencies,” Rep. Cartwright said last year when he introduced the bill. “This bipartisan, bicameral legislation will streamline software procurement practices governmentwide to the benefit of American taxpayers.”
Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman Gary Peters, D-Mich., and Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., also introduced a Senate companion bill in March 2023. The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee (HSGAC) voted to approve the bill in May 2023, but it has yet to make it to the Senate floor for a vote.
Matthew Cornelius, the former senior professional staff member for HSGAC Chairman Sen. Gary Peters, D-Mich., told MeriTalk last year that he worked with Sen. Peters on the bill. Cornelius said the SAMOSA Act is a smart way to cut spending and expressed his optimism that it would pass.
“I think that’s going to lead to agency CIOs and chief data officers having the kinds of the kind of data and information they need to make smarter, better buying decisions when it comes to software and how they’re going to modernize effectively, and how they’re going to rationalize their applications and databases,” Cornelius told MeriTalk.
“And I think that can lead to tremendous cost savings as well as improve cybersecurity and performance with agency IT, so very bullish that that will happen,” he added.
