Task forces are being created to review each of three new line-of-business initiatives proposed by the Office of Management and Budget, and the Congressional Research Service has said that as OMB continues to collect and analyze information, it will further be able to develop the federal enterprise architecture and identify additional opportunities for e-government initiatives based around those LoBs.
Federal IT spending has grown more than $60 billion annually, and the White House, looking for ways to cut costs, proposed three LoBs in February aimed at reducing duplicative spending and improving cross-agency collaboration.
The three new initiatives are IT Infrastructure Optimization, Geospatial Systems, and Budget Formulation and Execution, which are in the earliest stages of development.
The original five are Financial Management, HR Management, Grants Management, Case Management, and Federal Health Architecture — and a sixth was proposed for Information Systems Security in March 2005.
OMB estimates the original five initiatives could create $5 billion in savings over 10 years, and with another tight year fiscal year ahead for non-defense or security budgets, they are being looked to, to form the basis of cost cutting strategies.
In April the General Services Administration issued requests for information for each of the three new LoBs, seeking “strategies, alternatives, and experiences in developing and implementing programs and innovative practices.”
During fiscal 2006, interagency task forces are expected to assess current circumstances, and identify opportunities for consolidation to be proposed during the fiscal 2008 budget review.
In earlier guidance, OMB asked agencies to get creative in finding ways to lower costs or reduce or eliminate programs, specifically through IT efficiencies. It has also complained that agencies have failed to secure requested funding for e-government initiatives.
