The Federal Information Technology Acquisition Reform Act (FITARA): Frequently Asked Questions

Summary

Federal agencies rely on information technology (IT) to conduct their work, requiring extensive investments in both updating existing IT and developing new IT. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has reported that the federal government budgets more than $80 billion each year for IT investment, but that these investments often incur “multi-million dollar cost overruns and years-long schedule delays,” may contribute little to mission-related outcomes, and in some cases fail altogether. The Federal Information Technology Acquisition Reform Act (FITARA) (P.L. 113-291) was enacted on December 19, 2014, to address this problem. FITARA outlines seven areas of reform to how federal agencies purchase and manage their information technology (IT) assets, including—

enhancing the authority of agency chief information officers (CIOs);

improving transparency and risk management of IT investments;

setting forth a process for agency IT portfolio review;

refocusing the Federal Data Center Consolidation Initiative (FDCCI) from only consolidation to optimization;

expanding the training and use of “IT Cadres,” as initially outlined in the “25 Point Implementation Plan to Reform Federal Information Management Technology” issued by the CIO of the United States;

maximizing the benefits of the Federal Strategic Sourcing Initiative (FSSI); and

creating a govemment-wide software purchasing program, in conjunction with the General Services Administration.

Not all federal agencies are covered by FITARA. Generally, agencies identified in the Chief Financial Officers Act of 1990, as well as their subordinate divisions and offices, are subject to the requirements of FITARA. The Department of Defense, the Intelligence Community, and portions of other agencies that operate systems related to national security are subject to only certain portions of FITARA.

The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) published guidance to implement the requirements of FITARA in June 2015 (OMB Memorandum M-15-14). In addition to implementing FITARA, this guidance also harmonizes the requirements of FITARA with existing laws, primarily the Clinger-Cohen Act of 1996 (P.L. 104-106) and the E-Government Act of 2002 (P.L. 107-347). The OMB also monitors agency implementation of FITARA. Congress also monitors the progress of FITARA implementation through audits conducted by GAO and hearings by relevant House and Senate committees. Since FITARA was signed into law, the Senate and House have each held two hearings on overall agency FITARA implementation.

OMB has imposed an April 30, 2016, deadline for agencies to submit updated FITARA common baseline self-assessments.