Much of the federal government’s information technology (IT) infrastructure is woefully outdated.  Federal entities spend nearly 80 percent of their total IT budgets on maintaining aging, insecure, and expensive legacy systems.  Obsolete technology systems are inefficient and especially susceptible to cyberattacks, which, among other challenges, put citizens’ personal information at risk.

TechNet supports reauthorization of the Modernizing Government Technology Act (MGTA) to allow for continued improvement of federal information systems.  Congress should appropriate the full funding required for the Technology Modernization Fund, which facilitates the development of inter-agency or federal government-wide strategies to better manage cybersecurity risk.  Congress should require agencies to inventory the technology they use and then prioritize use of the flexibility afforded by the MGTA to eliminate legacy products and services that are beyond their supported lifecycle.  Congress should also equip federal agencies with the resources needed to implement the Cloud Smart strategy in addition to remaining committed to procuring commercial services, products, and best practices to realize government technology modernization more efficiently.

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