Spending bill addresses modernization, e-government

Business modernization and e-government initiatives are among the technology issues addressed in the fiscal 2006 spending bill for the Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Transportation, and Treasury departments.

Under the bill, H.R. 3058, nearly $200 million would go toward acquisition of information technology systems for the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). That would be a decrease of about $4.4 million from fiscal 2005 and the same as the budget request from President Bush.

In the House Appropriations Committee report on the measure, lawmakers noted that the Government Accountability Office, IRS Oversight Board and inspector general for tax administration have voiced serious concerns about prior program performance.

"The committee recognizes that IRS ... scaled back the proposed ... work plan to a more manageable level and expects that each milestone for fiscal year 2006 will be met on time and within budget as a result of providing the budget request," the report said.

For the Treasury Department, meanwhile, the committee recommended $21.4 million for development and acquisition and the purchase of automatic data-processing equipment, software and services -- $3 million less than requested and $10.6 million less than provided in fiscal 2005.

According to the committee report, lawmakers were uninspired by the "department's ability to manage its IT portfolio" due to recent reports of "unrealized savings" from significant projects like the network communications system know as the Treasury Communications Enterprise. TCE was scrapped in May.

The legislation would curtail e-government efforts. It would bar e-government program funding at Treasury and HUD, and eliminate funds for Transportation's Office of the Chief Information Officer. The bill also would eliminate funding for the e-travel program, which uses e-commerce to streamline travel bookings across federal agencies.

"The latest chapter in small-business lost opportunity comes from the General Services Administration," Rep. Nydia Velazquez, D-N.Y., said on the House floor. "GSA is moving forward with an ill-conceived mega-contract called e-travel. With this contract, GSA is poised to eliminate a whole sector of the small-business community, travel agents, from working with the government."

The Information Technology Association of America (ITAA) has objected to the elimination of e-government funding and has called for the Senate to restore funding.

The measure further would provide $4.3 million for Transportation's Research and Innovation Technology Administration, which is charged with managing the Department's research portfolio and expediting the implementation of technologies. While the appropriation represents only a minor increase over fiscal 2005, the committee report said the figure represents a reduction of $1.9 million from the Bush administration's request due to inadequate justification.

"The committee is disturbed by the poor quality of the budget justification that was provided for this newly formed agency and notes the complete lack of information pertaining to specific requested increases above prior-year funding levels," the report said.