Federal Information Technology Management and Security

The Federal Information Technology (IT) budget has grown to nearly $60 billion. The President introduced 'Expanding Electronic Government' as part of his management agenda1 to 'improve the management and performance of the federal government.' 2 The challenge for the President's Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is how to re-engineer Federal electronic business processes while reducing the Federal IT budget. These two objectives appear to be diametrically opposed. However OMB contends it can: 1) reduce annual IT spending; 2) ensure collaboration in e- Government interoperability; and 3) improve security. This paper examines the long-standing vision of one senior OMB manager to re-enforce a seven year-old plan he helped draft that uses the Federal IT budget planning process to accomplish these three principal objectives. It also reviews his contention that improving IT Security requires better management not increased funding.