[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 143 (Wednesday, November 2, 2005)]
[House]
[Pages H9484-H9487]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT
IMPROVEMENT ACT OF 2005
Mr. BUYER. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill
(H.R. 4061) to amend title 38, United States Code, to improve the
management of information technology within the Department of Veterans
Affairs by providing for the Chief Information Officer of that
Department to have authority over resources, budget, and personnel
related to the support function of information technology, and for
other purposes.
The Clerk read as follows:
H.R. 4061
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Department of Veterans
Affairs Information Technology Management Improvement Act of
2005''.
SEC. 2. MANAGEMENT OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY IN DEPARTMENT OF
VETERANS AFFAIRS.
(a) Resources, Budget, and Personnel Authority of Chief
Information Officer.--Section 310 of title 38, United States
Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new
subsections:
``(c) To support the economical, efficient, and effective
execution of the information technology objectives, policies,
and plans of the Department in support of Department goals,
the Secretary shall ensure that the Chief Information Officer
has the authority and control necessary for the development,
approval, implementation, integration, and oversight of
policies, procedures, processes, activities, and systems of
the Department relating to the management of information
technology for the Department, including the management of
all related mission applications, information resources,
personnel, and infrastructure.
``(d)(1) The Secretary, acting through the Chief
Information Officer, shall develop, implement, and maintain a
process for the selection and oversight of information
technology for the Department.
``(2) As components of the development of the process
required by paragraph (1), the Secretary shall develop for
the Department--
``(A) an information technology strategic plan that
includes performance measurements; and
``(B) an integrated enterprise architecture.
``(3) The information technology strategic plan shall set
forth a multiyear plan for the use of information technology
and related resources to support the accomplishment of the
Department's mission.
``(4) The Chief Information Officer shall review and update
the information technology strategic plan and the integrated
enterprise architecture on an ongoing basis to maintain the
currency of the plan and the currency of the enterprise
architecture with technological changes and changing mission
needs of the Department.
``(e)(1) Funds may be obligated for information technology
for the Department only in accordance with the process
implemented under paragraph (1) or as otherwise specifically
authorized or delegated by the Chief Information Officer or
as otherwise directed by the Secretary.
``(2)(A) Amounts appropriated for the Department for any
fiscal year that are available for information technology
shall be allocated within the Department, consistent with the
provisions of appropriations Acts, in such manner as may be
specified by, or approved by, the Chief Information Officer.
``(B) If for any fiscal year amounts referred to in
subparagraph (A) that are available for the Veterans Health
Administration (or are otherwise available for functions
relating to medical care) are to be allocated under
subparagraph (A) in a manner that is inconsistent with the
allocation method known as the Veterans Equitable Resource
Allocation, such allocation may be made only with the
approval of the Secretary and after the Under Secretary for
Health is notified.
``(3) When the budget for any fiscal year is submitted by
the President to Congress under section 1105 of title 31, the
Secretary shall submit to Congress a report that identifies
amounts requested for information technology for the
Department. The report shall set forth those amounts both for
each Administration within the Department and for the
Department in the aggregate and shall identify, for each such
amount, how that amount is aligned with and supports the
information technology strategic plan under subsection (d),
as then in effect.
``(f)(1) The Chief Information Officer shall select the
Chief Information Officer for each of the Veterans Health
Administration, the Veterans Benefits Administration, and the
National Cemetery Administration. Any such selection may only
be made after consultation with the Under Secretary with
responsibility for the Administration for which the selection
is to be made.
``(2) Each Administration Chief Information Officer
selected under paragraph (1)--
``(A) shall be designated as a Department Deputy Chief
Information Officer; and
``(B) shall report to the Department Chief Information
Officer.
``(3) The Department Deputy Chief Information Officers are
responsible for implementing in their respective
Administrations, as directed by the Department Chief
Information Officer, the information technology strategic
plan and the integrated enterprise architecture developed for
the Department by the Department Chief Information Officer
pursuant to subsection (d)(2).
``(4) To accomplish the policies, programmatic goals,
information technology system acquisitions, and alignments
prescribed, authorized, or directed by the Department Chief
Information Officer, each Department Deputy Chief Information
Officer shall maintain, for their respective Administrations,
operational control of all information technology system
assets and personnel necessary, including direct management
of the Administration's software and applications development
activities.
``(5) The Department Deputy Chief Information Officers--
``(A) shall be the principal advocate for the information
technology needs of their respective Administrations; and
``(B) shall assure, by coordinating with the Department
Chief Information Officer, that the business and mission
needs of their respective Administrations are met by
considering requirements at all levels.
``(g)(1) The Secretary shall ensure that the annual report
submitted by the Secretary pursuant to section 11313 of title
40 includes an identification of any obligation approved by
the Chief Information Officer under subsection (e)(1),
including the date, amount, and purpose of such obligation.
[[Page H9485]]
``(2) The Secretary shall submit to the Committees on
Veterans' Affairs of the Senate and House of Representatives
an annual report, not later than March 1 of each year
(beginning in 2009), providing the Secretary's assessment of
the implementation during the year covered by the report of
the provisions of subsections (c), (d), and (e). Each such
report shall include--
``(A) the assessment of the Secretary as to increased
efficiency within the Department of information technology
acquisition processes, management, responsibility, and
accountability as a result of those provisions; and
``(B) estimated cost savings to the Department as a result
of those provisions.
``(h) In this section, the term `information technology'
has the meaning given that term in paragraph (6) of section
11101 of title 40.''.
(b) Reports to Congress on Implementation.--
(1) Periodic progress reports.--
(A) Reports required.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs
shall submit to Congress progress reports on the
implementation of subsections (c), (d), and (e), of section
310 of title 38, United States Code, as added by subsection
(a).
(B) Time for progress reports.--A report under subparagraph
(A) shall be submitted as expeditiously as feasible after the
end of the 60-day period, the 90-day period, and the 180-day
period beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act.
(C) Matter to be included.--Each report under this
paragraph shall set out the progress to date on the
implementation of the provisions specified in subparagraph
(A).
(2) Interim reports.--After the completion of the first 12
months, and after the completion of the first 18 months, of
the implementation of the provisions specified in paragraph
(1)(A), the Secretary shall submit to Congress an interim
report on the operation of those provisions to that date.
Each such report shall include the following:
(A) The assessment of the Secretary as to increased
efficiency within the Department of Veterans Affairs of
information technology acquisition processes, management,
responsibility, and accountability.
(B) Estimated cost savings to the Department as a result of
those provisions.
(3) Final implementation report.--Not later than January 1,
2008, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a final report
on the implementation of the provisions specified in
paragraph (1)(A). The Secretary shall include in that report
the matters specified in paragraph (2) and the Secretary's
recommendation for any modifications to information
technology management within the Department of Veterans
Affairs.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Boozman). Pursuant to the rule, the
gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Buyer) and the gentleman from Texas (Mr.
Reyes) each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Buyer).
Mr. BUYER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, as chairman of the Committee on Veterans' Affairs, I
rise in strong support of H.R. 4061, the Department of Veterans Affairs
Information Technology Management Improvement Act. I, along with the
committee's ranking member, Lane Evans, along with other members of the
committee, introduced this legislation on October 17 of 2005.
Over the last several years, the Veterans' Affairs Committee has
worked extremely hard on this groundbreaking legislation. We believe
its passage will greatly assist the VA to improve its efforts to
achieve the one VA mission. The VA has long had a problem with stove-
piped administrations that veterans must deal with as though they are
separate parts of the government.
Since coming to Congress, I have witnessed the VA's inability to
adequately manage its IT funding and IT modernization efforts. In fact,
the VA's IT modernization efforts go back at least 20 years, to 1985
when it was the policy of the Veterans Administration to provide
``better service to the veteran through modern technology.''
Unfortunately, the Department has annually requested and spent
billions of dollars without accountability or measurable performance
outcomes on IT modernization, and America's veterans are still waiting
for the ``one VA.''
According to GAO, the VA spent approximately $10 billion over the
last decade alone for VA IT spending, and this is probably a very
conservative figure. Historically, the VA has included funding for IT
in its general administration accounts of each of the Veterans Health
Administration, Veterans Benefits Administration, and National Cemetery
Administration.
What that really means is that the VA has been spending billions of
dollars on three separate IT infrastructures within the Department. For
example, the Health Administration, the autonomy is downstream to the
VISIONS and then on to the hospitals with their own operating systems.
To take a second example down further is what happened with Katrina
when they took the medical records from New Orleans and they then
transferred them within the same VISION, VISION 16, and downloaded the
medical records at the Houston VA. They had to be reconfigured when
they were brought to Houston. That is just within a same VISION.
To make matters worse, these three separate IT infrastructures within
the VA cannot efficiently and effectively share important information.
For our veterans this is a significant and unacceptable convenience.
Ultimately, centralizing the VA IT organizational structure will
allow the VA to better serve our veterans. The VA absolutely needs to
modernize its IT, both in hardware and software, and it should be the
vehicle and tools of efficiency.
{time} 1515
When there is truly One-VA with modern IT support, it will provide a
seamless transition of our military being treated at the VA hospital as
he or she move in and out of that system, whether it be back to active
duty status or to veterans status. We will also improve timely medical
appointments and reduce waiting time. It will foster better patient
safety through updated and correct medical data. It will have faster
and more accurate claims processing and afford timely benefits delivery
of all VA benefits, such as VA home loans and GI Bill education
benefits.
Equally important, the cost of VA's inability to manage its IT
programs and initiatives has resulted in some significant IT failures:
as much as $600 million-plus for a decade of VETSNET, the automated
compensation and pension claims processing system that still has not
been implemented after 10 years of development efforts; $342 million
for CoreFLS, the failed financial management system; $300 million for
the HR Links, the failed automated personnel system; $485 million
annually to maintain VISTA, VA's 25-year-old medical information
system.
In 1996, Congress passed, and President Clinton signed, the National
Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1996, legislation that
created the position of chief information officer for Federal agencies.
The provisions of the bill were later renamed the Clinger-Cohen Act.
In 2001, 5 years after this mandate, the Department of Veterans
Affairs became the last Cabinet-level Department to comply with the
requirements of the Clinger-Cohen Act and appoint a full-time chief
information officer.
In 2003, then-Secretary Principi directed VA to centralize its IT
processes to better align IT management. It did not happen.
In 2004, the VA hired Gartner Consulting, a Fortune 500 IT
consultant, to analyze and review its IT infrastructure and processes.
In testimony before the Veterans' Affairs full committee in September
2005, Gartner testified that the VA's IT budgets are very fluid,
without much accountability on how and when funding is spent. Gartner
analyzed several organizational models, including no change or the
status quo to help VA resolve its IT issue.
Two of the models have the greatest potential application to the VA.
One that the VA advocated is called a ``federated model,'' where
centralized planning, technology operations, and budgeting/financial
are controlled by a chief information officer with business
applications developed and supported by application teams in each
business line. But it still preserves the stovepipes.
Then you have what is called the ``centralized model,'' where all VA
IT is organized into a single entity reporting to a chief information
officer. Key functional entities reporting directly to the CIO include
business applications, infrastructure and operations, customer
relations, enterprise architecture, data and information management,
security management, and IT finance.
According to VA's own consultant, the centralized approach provides
the greatest opportunity to successfully execute the One-VA mission
objectives. It maximizes asset utilization and achieves economies of
scale across all of VA by managing the infrastructure
[[Page H9486]]
through a central function; and through common organization, it will
more rapidly mature the IT investment management processes across the
VA's IT program portfolio. The bill in front of us is the centralized
approach that has also been endorsed by Gartner Consulting to the VA.
Furthermore, Gartner testified that the centralized approach could
save the VA $345 million annually, or more than $1.7 billion over 5
years.
Gartner also estimated that the cost to VA for reorganizing IT will
be $14 million. Even if the implementation cost is doubled and the
estimated savings are too optimistic and halved, the return on
investment will be approximately three to one, and this is from one of
the leading IT consultants in the world, the very consultant on which
the Fortune 500 companies rely.
Despite these findings and recommendations, the VA has now decided to
adopt a federated approach and they really do not need Congress to act,
that we are going to do this all on our own. Quite frankly, VA's plan
looks like the Department wants to carry on, really, business as usual,
but give it a title. On a bipartisan basis, we find this completely
unacceptable.
So, Mr. Speaker, I am also putting the Department on notice.
My advice to the Under Secretary of the Veterans Health
Administration, Dr. Perlin, is to cease and desist in his staunch
efforts to push for this federated model.
My advice to the Under Secretary of the Veterans Benefits
Administration, Admiral Cooper, is to stop his efforts to adopt a
federated approach.
My advice to the newly designated Under Secretary of the National
Cemetery Administration, William Turk, is not to proceed with the
federated approach.
Earlier this year, the Veterans' Committee recommended that Congress
withhold $400 million for VA IT because the Department has poorly
managed its major IT initiative. Furthermore, the Department has not
held anyone accountable when multimillion dollar projects fail.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank my distinguished
colleague and the chairman of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on
Military Quality of Life and Veterans Affairs (Mr. Walsh) for adopting
our recommendation and withholding $383 million from the fiscal 2006
budget.
If the Department of Veterans Affairs continues down this path of
disregard for this legislative body, we have no choice. We will
continue to recommend withholding a portion of VA's IT budget until the
CIO is allowed to instill a disciplined and accountability approach to
the VA's IT budget and that it be done on a centralized approach.
Congress should not tolerate the continued mismanagement of the
precious veterans resources on failed IT programs within the
Department. Allow the CIO to do his job.
Ultimately, this bill will empower the CIO with the authority over
IT's budgets, equipment, and personnel. This legislation is long
overdue, and I urge my colleagues to support this important effort.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. REYES. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I fully support H.R. 4061 and encourage my colleagues to
approve this legislation. I also want to thank our chairman and the
ranking member for their leadership and the hard work of the staff on
both sides of the aisle.
This bill helps the Department of Veterans Affairs construct a
balanced, responsive, and accountable system to manage information
technology at the VA.
This legislation is necessary to overcome a mindset at the VA
regarding the management of information technology that increasingly is
defined by clouded management processes and a lack of accountability
within the three principal administrations.
In just the last decade, VA has expended hundreds of millions of
dollars to field information technology systems that were discontinued
due to misalignment with VA's mission, mismanagement or serious cost
overruns. Under H.R. 4061, this will change.
The Department will receive a centralized framework to manage IT
assets throughout the Department in pursuit of its One-VA initiative.
Information technology will be managed by a highly qualified VA-wide
information technology team that will ultimately report to a chief
information officer, or CIO.
The CIO will have control of the budget, assets, personnel, and
systems necessary to achieve success department-wide, but there is an
express understanding that information technology in VA is a support
function. It is not a final goal. Measures of effectiveness across the
administrations will be tracked and should demonstrate that VA has
become a more effective organization.
Also under this bill, a deputy CIO will be assigned to each of the
three administrations. In this capacity, they are the principal
advocates for the business and mission needs of the respective
administration at all levels of use, from senior managers to end-users
throughout the field. This requirement will facilitate innovation and
fine-tune the design of the IT infrastructure.
The deputy CIO will be responsible to the Department CIO for IT
system alignment and related matters, but will otherwise be in control
of day-to-day IT operations in their respective administration.
I would like to congratulate again the staffs from each side of the
aisle for working out this improved IT management system for VA, and I
am glad to be an original cosponsor of this bill.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. BUYER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from South
Carolina (Mr. Brown), chairman of the Veterans' Affairs Health
Subcommittee.
Mr. BROWN of South Carolina. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for
yielding and also for his leadership in bringing this bill forward and
for his leadership as chairman of the Veterans' Committee.
Mr. Speaker, as a cosponsor of H.R. 4061, I rise in support of the
Department of Veterans Affairs Information Technology Management
Improvement Act of 2005.
This legislation calls for a strategic plan that includes performance
measures and an integrated enterprise architecture, working to create
greater accountability within VA.
Money spent by VA in its modernization efforts has been costly. For
example, VA spends $485 million annually to maintain VISTA, VA's 25-
year-old medical information system. It does not seem economical to
spend $485 million each year on out-of-date computer application
systems in the 21st century.
Passage of H.R. 4061 would build on the work of the committee over
the past few Congresses in expecting accountability of VA's people and
resources and for the IT programs of the Department.
Restructured IT management at VA will have an impact on VA's ability
to provide services to veterans more quickly and effectively.
Subsequently, it will help improve the health care of our Nation's
veterans. As chairman of the Subcommittee on Health, it is my mission
to ensure our veterans have the quality health care they have earned
and deserve.
Mr. REYES. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from
Illinois (Mr. Evans), our ranking Democratic member of the committee.
Mr. EVANS. Mr. Speaker, the need for this bill has been growing for
more than a decade.
The Department of Veterans Affairs usually does a reasonable job
managing programs of interest to veterans, but it does not do well in
managing information technology programs.
Significant funding was invested in VA information technology
programs that later failed due mostly to mismanagement. If VA had in
place the sound management processes required by this bill, many of
those information technology failures could have likely been avoided.
This would be better for the taxpayer, and it would be better for the
mission of VA, and most importantly, it would give us an opportunity to
thank our veterans who served more than they anticipated in the Armed
Forces.
I want to thank Chairman Buyer for keeping our Nation's commitment
focused on this initiative. The bill language contains the checks and
balances needed to successfully manage information technology at the
VA. It will
[[Page H9487]]
allow us in Congress to track how VA manages its information technology
assets.
I cosponsored this legislation, and I encourage my colleagues to vote
``yes'' in support.
Mr. REYES. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from
Florida (Ms. Corrine Brown).
Ms. CORRINE BROWN of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank Chairman
Buyer and Ranking Member Evans for bringing this important bill to the
attention of the House of Representatives.
This legislation will empower the chief information officer of the
Department of Veterans Affairs to control and influence information
technology in the Department.
I fully support H.R. 4061 and am very pleased to be an original
cosponsor.
This bill helps the Department of Veterans Affairs construct a
balanced, responsive, and accountable system to manage information
technology at VA.
As we have all seen from the emergencies that have recently affected
this country, it is important for all of the computers to be able to
communicate with each other in every region. A veteran needs to know
that he or she will be served when they enter any VA facility.
Under this bill, we are taking the first steps to make sure this
happens.
I encourage my colleagues to approve this legislation.
Mr. BUYER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Ohio
(Mr. Turner), a member of the committee.
{time} 1530
Mr. TURNER. Mr. Speaker, I am a cosponsor of H.R. 4061, the
Department of Veterans Affairs Information Technology Management
Improvement Act of 2005. This important legislation would provide the
Chief Information Officer at the Department of Veterans Affairs with
future authority over information technology budgets, equipment and
personnel.
Importantly, this legislation will centralize information technology
at the Department, increasing the ability of the Department to serve
veterans by providing information more productively, and improve the
delivery of health care to Veterans.
Under this legislation, claims for veterans will be processed more
speedily, waiting times for medical care will be reduced, all veterans
benefits will be delivered more quickly, and medical data for veterans
will be improved through more rapid updating. In short, this
legislation will not only improve information technology at the
Department but will make a real difference in improving the delivery of
health care and other benefits for our Nation's veterans.
This legislation will allow our veterans to save time in accessing
the benefits to which they are entitled, improving their experiences at
the VA and improving their quality of life. Should this legislation
become law, the Department of Veterans Affairs may improve information
technology management at the Department and help better serve our
veterans.
Mr. REYES. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from
South Dakota (Ms. Herseth).
Ms. HERSETH. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to speak in support of H.R.
4061, the Department of Veterans Affairs Information Technology
Management Improvement Act. This bill helps the VA construct a
balanced, responsive and accountable system to manage information
technology at the Department of Veterans Affairs.
The Department Chief Information Officer will be given the control
and resources necessary to manage information technology department-
wide. Measures of effectiveness across the administrations will be
tracked and should demonstrate that VA has become a more effective
organization. The CIO will have control of the budget, assets,
personnel and systems necessary to achieve this success.
Also under the bill, as the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Reyes) noted, a
Deputy CIO will be assigned to each of the three administrations. In
this capacity, they are the principal advocates for the business and
mission needs of their respective administrations at all levels of use,
from senior managers to end-users throughout the field. The Deputy CIO
will be responsible to the Department CIO for IT system alignment and
related matters but will otherwise be in control of day-to-day IT
operations in their respective administration.
I, too, would like to congratulate Chairman Buyer, Ranking Member
Evans, their staffs and all Members who worked hard on working out this
improved IT management system for the VA. I am glad to be a cosponsor
of this bill which will help our veterans.
Mr. REYES. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I
yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. BUYER. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my good friend, the ranking
member and Marine, Lane Evans, for his work and cooperation on this
bipartisan legislation. This is the way the committee is supposed to
work.
We have invested almost 6 years of work on this to bring corrections
to IT systems, and I am glad that we have been able to work together in
a bipartisan fashion to deliver a product to this floor for which we
can be proud of.
I would also like to commend the gentleman from Florida (Mr.
Bilirakis) and the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Strickland), the chairman
and ranking members of the Subcommittee on Oversight and
Investigations, for their hard work in providing the oversight required
to define these problematic issues and helping to make needed
legislative changes to address these shortcomings at the Department of
Veterans Affairs.
I would also like to reiterate my thanks to the gentleman from New
York (Mr. Walsh) for his support in bringing accountability to VA's IT
programs within the appropriations process.
I would also like to thank the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Reyes), Army
Vietnam vet, for his work on this and the original cosponsorship, along
with the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Brown) and the gentlewoman from
South Dakota (Ms. Herseth).
Finally, I would also like to thank Art Wu, Len Sistek, Kimo
Hollingsworth, Ginny Richardson, and Risa Salsburg for their diligence
and dedication in serving our Nation's veterans on the committee, and
also the staff directors, Jim Lariviere and Jim Holley, both for the
majority and the minority.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support the Department of
Veterans Affairs Information Technology Management Improvement Act of
2005. This is a bill whereby when we come to this body we do not leave
our experiences behind. We are to learn from the past and to plan for
the future. We are to modernize Federal governments, to cut through the
bureaucracy, and to create workable solutions that will become a
standard that will be leveraged across all departments of the
government, creating greater efficiencies, responsiveness to people,
and saving money. That is exactly what this product has done, and it is
being brought to the floor in a bipartisan fashion, and so I ask all my
colleagues to support this.
Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back
the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Boozman). The question is on the motion
offered by the gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Buyer) that the House
suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 4061.
The question was taken.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds of
those present have voted in the affirmative.
Mr. BUYER. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
The yeas and nays were ordered.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this question will
be postponed.
____________________