[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 101 (Tuesday, June 23, 2015)]
[House]
[Page H4572]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                DHS IT DUPLICATION REDUCTION ACT OF 2015

  Mr. HURD of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass 
the bill (H.R. 1626) to reduce duplication of information technology at 
the Department of Homeland Security, and for other purposes, as 
amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 1626

       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 ``DHS IT Duplication Reduction 
     Act of 2015''.

     SEC. 2. DHS INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY DUPLICATION REDUCTION.

       (a) Information Technology Duplication Reduction.--Not 
     later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this 
     Act, the Chief Information Officer of the Department of 
     Homeland Security shall submit to the Committee on Homeland 
     Security of the House of Representatives and the Committee on 
     Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate a 
     report that includes the following:
       (1) The number of information technology systems at the 
     Department of Homeland Security.
       (2) An assessment of the number of such systems exhibiting 
     duplication or fragmentation.
       (3) A strategy for reducing such duplicative systems, 
     including an assessment of potential cost savings or cost 
     avoidance as a result of such reduction.
       (4) A methodology for determining which system should be 
     eliminated when there is duplication or fragmentation.
       (b) Definitions.--In this Act:
       (1) The term ``duplication or fragmentation'' of 
     information technology systems means two or more systems or 
     programs that deliver similar functionality to similar user 
     populations.
       (2) The term ``information technology'' has the meaning 
     given such term in section 11101 of title 40, United States 
     Code.
       (c) No New Authorization of Funding.--This section shall be 
     carried out using amounts otherwise appropriated or made 
     available to the Department of Homeland Security. No 
     additional funds are authorized to be appropriated to carry 
     out this section.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Texas (Mr. Hurd) and the gentlewoman from New Jersey (Mrs. Watson 
Coleman) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Texas.


                             General Leave

  Mr. HURD of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all 
Members have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their 
remarks and include any extraneous material on the bill under 
consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Texas?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. HURD of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 1626.
  Call me crazy, but it just doesn't make sense to me to have Federal 
agencies using multiple IT systems that do the same thing. As chairman 
of the Oversight and Government Reform Information Technology 
Subcommittee and a member of the Homeland Security Committee, I see 
these cost overruns and hear stories of duplicative systems on a daily 
basis. It is a ridiculous and outrageous waste of taxpayer dollars.
  This year, the GAO's annual High Risk report designated information 
technology as a new area of high risk within the government. Federal 
agencies spend nearly $80 billion a year on IT projects, and nearly 80 
percent of them are on outdated and legacy systems. In the Department 
of Homeland Security, there are more than 600 IT systems in FEMA alone.
  The DHS IT Duplication Reduction Act is designed to change that. My 
bill requires the DHS Chief Information Officer to identify all IT 
systems in the Department, figure out which ones are redundant, and 
then come up with a strategy to reduce their number.
  Mr. Speaker, when I was building a cybersecurity firm in the private 
sector, things like this didn't happen because there is no way that a 
small business trying to grow would ever waste their money like this.
  Washington should have the same mentality, especially since this 
money being wasted isn't Washington's in the first place. I believe 
Washington can and should be much better stewards of the dollars 
taxpayers have entrusted to them. It is past time to change the ``it is 
not my money, so let's spend it'' culture here in Washington that leads 
to this kind of waste.
  Taxpayers should be able to trust that every dollar is being used 
carefully and thoughtfully on effective and efficient government that 
works for them. I believe this legislation is a good start in reining 
in Federal IT spending and getting our government back on track.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume, and I rise in strong support of H.R. 1626, the DHS IT 
Duplication Reduction Act of 2015.
  Mr. Speaker, H.R. 1626 seeks to address duplication or fragmentation 
within the Department of Homeland Security's information technology 
systems. Specifically, H.R. 1626 requires the Department's Chief 
Information Officer to report on the number of IT systems throughout 
the Department and identify and address those areas where duplication 
or fragmentation may exist.
  This undertaking at the headquarters level should help inform the 
Department's IT budget planning which, in light of sequestration and 
the downward trend of the Department's budget, becomes all the more 
important when considered in the critical missions entrusted to DHS.
  This legislation is in the spirit of the Department's Unity of Effort 
initiative and has the potential of fostering more coordinated IT 
planning and management among the Department's components. In 
committee, a number of technical refinements authored by Democrats were 
accepted to ensure that reducing redundancy frees up resources for DHS' 
operations.
  Mr. Speaker, I do urge support for this measure, and I reserve the 
balance of my time.
  Mr. HURD of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my 
time.
  Mr. Speaker, in closing, I, once again, want to point out the 
bipartisan efforts in regards to this measure. This measure has the 
potential of fostering more coordinated IT planning and management 
among the Department's components.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge passage and support of this measure.
  I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. HURD of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my 
time.
  Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank Chairman McCaul, Ranking Member 
Thompson, Congresswoman Watson Coleman, and my colleagues on the 
Homeland Security Committee for their support on this bill.
  I, once again, urge all my colleagues to support this strong, 
bipartisan piece of legislation, and I yield back the balance of my 
time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Hurd) that the House suspend the rules and 
pass the bill, H.R. 1626, as amended.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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