Mrvan Opening Statement for Technology Modernization Subcommittee Hearing on Information Technology Budget
Washington, DC - Rep. Frank J. Mrvan convened a hearing today as the Chairman of the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Subcommittee on Technology Modernization entitled Review of the Fiscal Year (FY) 22 Veterans Affairs Information Technology (IT) Budget.
A video of the hearing is available here and the text of the opening statement as prepared for delivery is below.
"Today, the Subcommittee will be reviewing the Department of Veterans Affairs’ Fiscal Year 2022 Information Technology budget request. Following our very productive full committee hearing, I feel that it is important for this subcommittee to take a deeper dive on IT spending.
"According to the Office of Management and Budget, VA spends more on IT than any federal agency other than the Department of Defense. I want to ensure that VA has proper management and acquisition controls to ensure they are making the most of their investment.
"For FY22, VA requested a ten percent overall increase in funding from FY21 enacted levels, and a nine percent increase in discretionary funding. Despite these large increases, funding for information technology decreased. VA plans to supplement this request with funds from the “Recurring Expenses Transformational Fund.” I am concerned that the modernization of IT assets and the critical upgrade of VA’s financial system are not included in the base budget request. The transformation fund is an excellent supplement, but funding levels fluctuate on a yearly basis.
"As the Government Accountability Office will testify, VA has struggled to successfully manage IT programs. In 2015, VA’s management of IT acquisitions and operations were added to their high-risk series and remain there. The department is now going through its third effort to modernize VA’s financial management system, which is a 35-year-old unsupported legacy system. The Electronic Health Record Modernization Program has been preceded by three unsuccessful modernization attempts over the past 20 years. I am very concerned about the management and budgeting for these programs. VA is reliant on IT to serve and care for veterans and it is my goal to ensure the mistakes of the past are not repeated.
"In May, the Subcommittee held a hearing to examine VA’s cybersecurity efforts. For good reason, the Subcommittee is concerned about VA’s ability to protect the information of veterans as well as its ability to ensure there are no disruptions in service.
"Among 19 major agencies and departments, VA ranks fifth lowest in cybersecurity funding. This is despite spending more on IT than any department other than DoD.
"At the full committee hearing with the Secretary, I discussed my concerns with the lack of discretionary spending on cybersecurity. I intend to continue pursuing this issue.
"I look forward to hearing from our VA witnesses about the Department’s IT funding priorities. I’m interested in hearing whether this budget request will be sufficient to continue modernizing aging IT systems, and funding cybersecurity requirements. We will also hear from GAO who has performed substantive work with VA on IT, cyber, and acquisition management.
"I thank the witnesses for being here, and I look forward to their testimony."
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