[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 88 (Tuesday, May 21, 2024)]
[House]
[Pages H3364-H3367]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              MODERNIZING GOVERNMENT TECHNOLOGY REFORM ACT

  Ms. MACE. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 5527) to amend section 1078 of the National Defense 
Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2018 to increase the effectiveness of 
the Technology Modernization Fund, and for other purposes, as amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 5527

       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 ``Modernizing Government 
     Technology Reform Act''.

     SEC. 2. REALIGNING USE OF FUNDS WITH ORIGINAL CONGRESSIONAL 
                   INTENT.

       Section 1078 of the National Defense Authorization Act for 
     Fiscal Year 2018 (Public Law 115-91; 40 U.S.C. 11301 note) is 
     amended--
       (1) in subsection (b)--
       (A) by amending paragraph (3) to read as follows:
       ``(3) Use of funds.--
       ``(A) In general.--The Administrator shall, in accordance 
     with recommendations from the Board, use amounts in the Fund 
     for the following:
       ``(i) To transfer such amounts, to remain available until 
     expended, to the head of an agency for the acquisition, 
     procurement, and operation of information technology, or the 
     development of information technology when more efficient and 
     cost effective, to--

       ``(I) modernize, retire, or replace legacy information 
     technology systems used by the agency;
       ``(II) enhance cybersecurity and privacy at the agency;
       ``(III) improve long-term efficiency and effectiveness of 
     agency information technology; or
       ``(IV) improve the ability of the agency to perform the 
     mission of the agency and deliver services to the public.

       ``(ii) To provide services or work performed in support 
     of--

       ``(I) the activities described in clause (i); and
       ``(II) the Board and the Director in carrying out the 
     responsibilities described in subsection (c)(2).

       ``(iii) To fund only programs, projects, or activities, or 
     to fund increases for any programs, projects, or activities 
     that have not been denied or restricted by Congress.
       ``(iv) To transfer such amounts only for programs, 
     projects, or activities that will be reimbursed to the Fund 
     to the extent necessary to ensure total amounts in the Fund 
     are no less than the amounts needed to keep the Fund 
     operational until the Fund sunsets pursuant to subsection 
     (g)(1).
       ``(B) Termination or suspension of funds.--The 
     Administrator shall, in accordance with recommendations from 
     the Board, suspend or terminate funding for any project with 
     respect to which the head of an agency provided fraudulent or 
     misleading statements about such project (including 
     fraudulent statements about technical design, the business 
     case, or program management with respect to the project) in 
     the application or proposal for amounts from the Fund for 
     such project.'';
       (B) in paragraph (5)--
       (i) in subparagraph (A)--

       (I) in clause (i)--

       (aa) by striking ``or (B)''; and
       (bb) by striking ``(3)(C)'' and inserting ``(3)(A)(ii)''; 
     and

       (II) in clause (ii), by striking ``, consistent with any 
     applicable reprogramming law or guidelines of the Committees 
     on Appropriations of the Senate and the House of 
     Representatives''; and

       (ii) in subparagraph (B)(i)--

       (I) by striking ``paragraph (3)(C)'' and inserting 
     ``paragraph (3)(A)(ii)''; and
       (II) by striking ``the solvency of the Fund, including 
     operating expenses'' and inserting the following: ``total 
     amounts in the Fund are no less than the amounts needed to 
     keep the Fund operational until the Fund sunsets pursuant to 
     subsection (g)(1)'';

       (C) in paragraph (6)--
       (i) in subparagraph (A)--

       (I) in the matter before clause (i), by striking 
     ``subparagraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (3)'' and inserting 
     the following: ``paragraph (3)(A)(i) and before any services 
     or work are provided under paragraph (3)(A)(ii)(I)'';
       (II) in clause (i)--

       (aa) by striking ``unless approved by the Director''; and
       (bb) by striking ``; and'' and inserting a semicolon;

       (III) by redesignating clause (ii) as clause (iv); and
       (IV) by inserting after clause (i) the following new 
     clauses:

       ``(ii) which shall include terms of repayment that require 
     the head of the agency to reimburse the Fund for funds 
     transferred

[[Page H3365]]

     under paragraph (3)(A)(i) at a level that ensures total 
     amounts in the Fund are no less than the amounts needed to 
     keep the Fund operational until the Fund sunsets pursuant to 
     subsection (g)(1);
       ``(iii) which shall include terms of repayment that require 
     the head of the agency to fully reimburse the Fund for any 
     services or work provided under paragraph (3)(A)(ii) in 
     direct support of the project; and''; and
       (ii) in subparagraph (B)--

       (I) by striking clause (i) and inserting the following:

       ``(i) for any funds transferred to an agency under 
     paragraph (3)(A)(i), in the absence of compelling 
     circumstances documented by the Administrator at the time of 
     transfer, that such funds shall be transferred only--

       ``(I) on an incremental basis, tied to metric-based 
     development milestones achieved by the agency through the use 
     of rapid, iterative, development processes; and
       ``(II) after the head of the agency has provided the 
     Director any information the Director is required to report 
     pursuant to paragraph (7)(A)(i); and''; and
       (II) in clause (ii)--

       (aa) by striking ``subparagraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph 
     (3)'' and inserting ``paragraph (3)(A)(i)''; and
       (bb) by striking ``paragraph (6)'' and inserting ``this 
     paragraph'';
       (D) in paragraph (7)--
       (i) in subparagraph (A)(i)--

       (I) by inserting ``the written agreement entered into under 
     paragraph (6),'' after ``description of the project,''; and
       (II) by inserting ``(including documented market research 
     into commercial products and services)'' after ``used'';

       (ii) in subparagraph (B)--

       (I) in clause (i)--

       (aa) by striking ``establishing''; and
       (bb) by striking ``the cost savings associated with the 
     projects funded both annually and over the life of the 
     acquired products and services by the Fund;'' and inserting 
     the following: ``the amount repaid to the Fund in accordance 
     with the terms established in the written agreements 
     described in paragraph (6);'';

       (II) in clause (ii)--

       (aa) by striking ``reliability of the cost savings'' and 
     inserting ``total cost savings''; and
       (bb) by striking the semicolon and inserting ``; and''; and

       (III) in clause (iii), by striking ``; and'' and inserting 
     a period; and
       (IV) by striking clause (iv);

       (2) in subsection (c)(2)--
       (A) in subparagraph (A)--
       (i) in clause (ii), by striking ``the greatest 
     Governmentwide impact; and'' and inserting the following: 
     ``the greatest impact on modernizing, retiring, or replacing 
     Federal legacy information technology systems; and'';
       (ii) by redesignating clauses (i) through (iii) as clauses 
     (ii) through (iv), respectively; and
       (iii) by inserting before clause (ii), as so redesignated, 
     the following new clause:
       ``(i) the ability for the head of the agency to ensure 
     repayment of funds transferred from the Fund to the head of 
     the agency, in accordance with subsection (b);'';
       (B) in subparagraph (D), by striking ``to improve or 
     replace multiple information technology systems'' and 
     inserting the following: ``to modernize, retire, or replace 
     legacy information technology systems under subsection 
     (b)(3)(A)(i)''; and
       (C) in subparagraph (F), by inserting after ``subsection 
     (b)(6)'' the following: ``or the identification of fraudulent 
     or misleading statements about the project (including 
     fraudulent statements about technical design, the business 
     case, or program management with respect to the project) in 
     the application or proposal for amounts from the Fund for the 
     project''; and
       (D) in subparagraph (G), by inserting after ``operating 
     costs of the Fund'' the following: ``to ensure total amounts 
     in the Fund are no less than the amounts needed to keep the 
     Fund operational until the Fund sunsets pursuant to 
     subsection (g)(1)'';
       (3) in subsection (c)--
       (A) in paragraph (5)--
       (i) in subparagraph (B) by striking the period at the end 
     and inserting ``; and''; and
       (ii) by inserting after subparagraph (B) the following;
       ``(C) a senior official from the Cybersecurity and 
     Infrastructure Security Agency of the Department of Homeland 
     Security, appointed by the Director of the Cybersecurity and 
     Infrastructure Security Agency, with the approval of the 
     Director of the Office of Management and Budget.'';
       (B) in paragraph (6)(A)--
       (i) by striking ``shall be--'' and inserting ``shall be 4 
     employees of the Federal Government primarily having 
     technical expertise in information technology development, 
     financial management, cybersecurity and privacy, and 
     acquisition, appointed by the Director.''; and
       (ii) by striking clauses (i) and (ii); and
       (4) in subsection (d)(2)--
       (A) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``subsection (b)(3)(A) 
     and for products, services, and acquisition vehicles funded 
     under subsection (b)(3)(B)'' and inserting ``subsection 
     (b)(3)''; and
       (B) in subparagraph (C), by inserting after ``and reduce 
     waste'' the following: ``and ensure total amounts in the Fund 
     are no less than the amounts needed to keep the Fund 
     operational until the Fund sunsets pursuant to subsection 
     (g)(1)'';
       (5) by redesignating subsections (e) and (f) as subsections 
     (f) and (g), respectively;
       (6) by inserting after subsection (d) the following new 
     subsection:
       ``(e) Responsibilities of the Federal Chief Information 
     Officer; Agency Chief Information Officers.--
       ``(1) Agency inventory.--An agency Chief Information 
     Officer, in coordination with stakeholders and other agency 
     officials, shall provide to the Federal Chief Information 
     Officer--
       ``(A) on or before the first September 30 that occurs after 
     the date of the enactment of the Modernizing Government 
     Technology Reform Act of 2023, a list of high-risk legacy 
     information technology systems used, operated, or maintained 
     by the agency, in accordance with the guidance issued under 
     paragraph (4); and
       ``(B) on or before September 30 of each year after the 
     first year in which the list is provided under subparagraph 
     (A), any updates to such list.
       ``(2) Legacy federal it inventory.--The Federal Chief 
     Information Officer shall--
       ``(A) on or before the first December 30 that occurs after 
     the date of the enactment of the Modernizing Government 
     Technology Reform Act of 2023, compile a Legacy Federal IT 
     Inventory on the basis of the each list provided by an agency 
     Chief Information Officers under paragraph (1)(A) that 
     includes information about each high-risk legacy information 
     technology system used, operated, or maintained by an agency; 
     and
       ``(B) on or before December 30 each year after the year in 
     which the Legacy Federal IT Inventory is compiled, update 
     such Inventory on the basis of each update to the list 
     provided by an agency Chief Information Officer under 
     paragraph (1)(B).
       ``(3) Prioritization list.--
       ``(A) Requirement.--The Federal Chief Information Officer 
     shall--
       ``(i) not later than 90 days after the date on which the 
     Federal Chief Information Officer receives the list required 
     by paragraph (1)(A) from each agency Chief Information 
     Officer, compile, on the basis of each such list, a list of 
     10 legacy information technology systems that present the 
     greatest security, privacy, and operational risks to the 
     Federal Government; and
       ``(ii) not later than 90 days after the date on which the 
     Federal Chief Information Officer receives updates under 
     paragraph (1)(B) from each agency Chief Information Officer, 
     update the list required by subparagraph (A) on the basis of 
     each updates to the list provided by agency Chief information 
     Officers under paragraph (1)(B).
       ``(B) Report to congress.--Not later than 14 days after the 
     date on which the Federal Chief Information Officer compiles 
     the list required by subparagraph (A), or updates such list, 
     the Director shall submit to the Committee on Oversight and 
     Accountability of the House of Representatives, the Committee 
     on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate, 
     and the Comptroller General of the United States, a report 
     (which may include a classified annex) containing--
       ``(i) such list (including any update made to such list 
     under subparagraph (A)(ii)); and
       ``(ii) each list provided by an agency Chief Information 
     Officer under paragraph (1)(A) (including any update made to 
     any such list under paragraph (1)(B)).
       ``(4) Guidance.--
       ``(A) In general.--Not later than 180 days after enactment 
     of this Act, the Director shall issue guidance on 
     implementing the requirements of this subsection that shall, 
     at a minimum--
       ``(i) prescribe an appropriate format for list to be 
     provided under paragraph (1)(A);
       ``(ii) prescribe the information to be included in the 
     Legacy Federal IT Inventory required by paragraph (2);
       ``(iii) provide guidance on how an agency Chief Information 
     Officer should identify high-risk legacy information 
     technology systems that, at least, requires agency Chief 
     Information Officers, in coordination with other agency 
     stakeholders, to identify as a high risk legacy information 
     technology system any outdated or obsolete system of 
     information technology that is critical to the agency such 
     that the loss or degradation of the system would create a 
     security, operational, or privacy risk to the agency or would 
     otherwise impact the ability of the agency to perform the 
     mission of the agency, effectively deliver programs, or 
     conduct business; and
       ``(iv) provide guidance on how existing reporting 
     structures can be used to submit the Legacy Federal IT 
     inventory required by paragraph (2).
       ``(B) Updates.--The Director may update the guidance issued 
     under subparagraph (A) as the Director determines necessary.
       ``(5) Definitions.--In this subsection:
       ``(A) Agency chief information officer.--The term `agency 
     Chief Information Officer' means a Chief Information Officer 
     designated under section 3506(a)(2) of title 44, United 
     States Code.
       ``(B) Federal chief information officer.--The term `Federal 
     Chief Information Officer' means the Administrator of the 
     Office of Electronic Government.''; and
       (7) in subsection (g)(1), as so redesignated, by striking 
     ``On and after the date that is 2 years after the date on 
     which the Comptroller General of the United States issues the 
     third report required under subsection (b)(7)(B),'' and 
     inserting ``After December 31, 2031,''.


[[Page H3366]]


  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from 
South Carolina (Ms. Mace) and the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Raskin) 
each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from South Carolina.


                             General Leave

  Ms. MACE. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and 
include extraneous material on this measure.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentlewoman from South Carolina?
  There was no objection.
  Ms. MACE. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 5527.
  The Technology Modernization Fund, or the TMF, was established by the 
bipartisan, Republican-led Modernizing Government Technology Act of 
2017.
  The TMF was established because it can be difficult to plan and 
budget for Federal legacy IT upgrades through the annual appropriations 
cycle.
  The TMF addresses this problem by acting as a self-sustaining funding 
mechanism to assist agencies with legacy IT modernization projects that 
span multiple fiscal years.
  The Federal Government depends on IT systems for everything from 
national defense to the administration of benefits programs.
  Over the course of this Congress, the House Oversight Subcommittee on 
Cybersecurity, Information Technology, and Government Innovation has 
heard from current and former government officials about the risks and 
costs associated with Federal legacy IT systems.
  These risks include cyberattacks targeted toward highly vulnerable 
legacy systems that house sensitive public data. These half-century-old 
IT systems are prime targets for malicious actors and enemy nation-
states.
  My bill, the Modernizing Government Technology Reform Act, enhances 
the Technology Modernization Fund by ensuring a sustainable financing 
tool for fixing costly and risky legacy IT systems.
  The TMF has strayed from the original congressional intent 
established by the bipartisan law Congress passed. It does not 
consistently require agencies to repay their awards, an operational 
policy decision made by the administration which has put a strain on 
TMF's resources and hindered the fund's ability to help address future 
legacy IT modernization projects.
  With this legislation, we will refocus the TMF on the longstanding 
need to replace legacy IT systems and address our cybersecurity risks.
  The reforms made to the TMF by H.R. 5527 also prioritize fiscal 
responsibility and are common sense. Let's run through some of them 
quickly in the bill:
  This will require TMF awards to be reimbursed at a rate sufficient to 
keep the fund operational through 2031.
  It requires the TMF to recover all administrative costs that projects 
incur.
  It requires the TMF to suspend or terminate project funding if 
fraudulent or misleading statements were used to obtain funds.
  It provides agencies more flexibility to repay the TMF.
  It increases the visibility into TMF awards by requiring written 
agreements governing each award to be made publicly available.
  This legislation also requires each agency to conduct an inventory of 
its legacy IT systems, creating a new oversight tool to ensure the 
Federal Government is addressing the problem of legacy IT systems.
  Reforming the TMF is necessary to ensure it remains a sustainable, 
revolving fund that can be used to address the costly challenge of 
modernizing legacy IT into the future.
  This is smart and timely reform. This is a fair and balanced 
reauthorization.
  I am grateful to my colleagues Representatives Connolly and Khanna 
for their support and collaboration on this effort. I urge my 
colleagues to support this bipartisan legislation, and I reserve the 
balance of my time.
  Mr. RASKIN. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  I thank the distinguished gentlewoman from South Carolina for her 
great leadership on this as well as Mr. Connolly from Virginia for his 
very hard work on it, too.
  In this century, public confidence in the Federal Government depends 
on ensuring that our Federal information technology systems and 
websites are secure, safe, and effective. We invest more than $100 
billion every year in Federal IT needs. Outdated legacy IT systems and 
infrastructure are costly to maintain and very challenging to secure 
against the onslaught of cyberattacks by adversaries and criminal 
organizations. The constantly changing landscape of information 
technology requires resources if Federal agencies are going to be able 
to protect data privacy, complete their missions, and effectively serve 
our people.
  The Modernizing Government Technology Reform Act would ensure this 
important work continues smoothly by extending the Technology 
Modernization Fund's sunset from December 2025 to December 2031. It 
would also clarify the use of funds and maintain the repayment 
flexibility adopted by the Technology Modernization Fund, known as the 
TMF, in recent years while ensuring its solvency by setting minimum 
reimbursement requirements.
  Additionally, the bill sets requirements for regularly updated 
inventories and lists of legacy Federal IT systems and high-risk 
Federal IT systems, as well as of the legacy systems that present the 
greatest security, privacy, and operational risks.
  This timely and comprehensive picture of the Federal Government's 
most serious IT modernization needs will inform the ability of the TMF, 
the administration, and Congress to make the best investments.
  The TMF provides a self-sustaining funding model that has become an 
essential tool for Federal agencies to address these challenges. It 
supplies upfront funding for IT projects in exchange for future 
reimbursement once a project's cost savings are realized, allowing 
agencies the flexibility they need to address modernization needs 
outside of the traditional budget cycle.

  The TMF also instills accountability safeguards to ensure that 
taxpayers are getting strong returns on our investments. Projects are 
selected for funding after rigorous review by the TMF board of 
technology experts, and written funding agreements outline specific 
requirements and milestones that have to be met. Funds are distributed 
incrementally based on performance as assessed by quarterly reviews by 
the board, and technical experts provide hands-on support toward 
successful execution of the projects.
  Committee Democrats have supported robust oversight and funding for 
the TMF, including a historic $1 billion investment through the 
American Rescue Plan. With this infusion, high-priority projects were 
also allowed reduced repayment requirements, if warranted. Since the 
infusion of these moneys, the TMF has received more than 220 agency 
proposals requesting more than $3.5 billion, far outpacing our funding 
availability.
  To date, the TMF has provided over $900 million to 57 IT 
modernization projects across 32 agencies, and the Biden-Harris 
administration has embraced it as an indispensable tool to better serve 
the American people.
  For example, TMF funding is helping to digitize veterans' records, 
ensuring that more than 1 million people and their family members who 
reach out to the National Archives and Records Administration every 
year get timely access to the documents they need to verify their 
qualification for important lifesaving benefits.
  TMF funding is also expediting the speed and safety of food 
inspection at the USDA, leading to better meals for school kids and 
servicemembers alike. TMF funding also better secures all of our 
personal data at the Social Security Administration and the Department 
of Education.
  I thank Representatives Mace and Connolly for their great work on 
this important project. I urge my colleagues to support the bill, and I 
reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. MACE. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from New 
York (Mr. Langworthy).
  Mr. LANGWORTHY. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman from South 
Carolina for the time.
  I rise today in support of the Modernizing Government Technology 
Reform Act. It is no secret that America's cyber infrastructure is 
under constant

[[Page H3367]]

attack by our adversaries, including China, Russia, Iran, and North 
Korea.
  FBI Director Christopher Wray recently warned Americans of the cyber 
threat that China poses, declaring that China's hackers are preparing 
to wreak havoc and cause real-world harm to American citizens and 
communities.

                              {time}  1545

  Yet, despite warning after warning of the rising threats to our 
Nation's cyber infrastructure, our Federal agencies remain dangerously 
vulnerable to future, potentially devastating cyberattacks.
  Every year, the Federal Government spends over $100 billion on IT and 
cybersecurity. Nonetheless, 80 percent of this spending goes to 
operating and maintaining outdated, obsolete legacy systems. These 
aging systems not only waste taxpayer money but also leave us exposed 
to our enemies.
  These IT systems also require specific technical knowledge to operate 
and update, which creates enormous procurement and hiring challenges, 
leaving agencies scrambling to find vendors and employees with the 
necessary skills. In addition to the upfront costs associated with 
updating legacy IT, many of these systems continue to run with known 
security vulnerabilities and unsupported hardware or software. This is 
a ticking time bomb.
  In an effort to bring the Federal Government up to speed with the 
challenges of modern-day cyber threats, Congress established the 
technology modernization fund to help eliminate these vulnerabilities 
and provide funding to improve, retire, or replace antiquated Federal 
IT systems and strengthen our agencies' cyber defenses, all without 
additional expense to the American taxpayer.
  That is why reauthorizing and reforming the technology modernization 
fund is essential to our future success. Under this legislation, 
Federal agencies can continue the modernization process and adopt 
newer, safer technology in a rapidly advancing and increasingly 
dangerous world, all with greater congressional oversight to keep these 
efforts on track.
  As my colleagues have already mentioned, this bill also establishes a 
Federal legacy IT inventory, a new oversight tool that will enable 
Congress to evaluate agency and government-wide efforts to modernize 
legacy IT technology and ensure that such critical modernization 
efforts are being done the right way.
  Madam Speaker, our national security is at stake. We can't afford to 
become complacent while our adversaries plot against us.
  Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to take our cybersecurity 
seriously and support H.R. 5527.
  Mr. RASKIN. Madam Speaker, I have no further speakers. I yield myself 
such time as I may consume for the purpose of closing.
  Madam Speaker, I urge everybody to support this fine legislation, and 
I yield back the balance of my time.
  Ms. MACE. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume 
for the purpose of closing.
  Madam Speaker, H.R. 5527 helps ensure the TMF can continue to address 
the legacy IT modernization efforts reducing Federal cyber risk and 
inefficiencies in Government operations.
  Madam Speaker, I thank my colleagues, again, across the aisle for 
their support. I encourage all of my colleagues to support this very 
necessary legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. CONNOLLY. Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of the 
Modernizing Government Technology Reform Act (H.R. 5527) and thank 
Chairwoman Mace for partnering with me on this very important piece of 
legislation.
  In in 2017, Republican Representative Will Hurd and I coauthored the 
original MGT Act, which did two fundamental things.
  First, it authorized all CFO Act agencies to establish IT Working 
Capital Funds (WCF), which the Subcommittee has historically tracked 
through the FITARA Scorecard.
  Second, the bill established a centralized Technology Modernization 
Fund (TMF) and a governing board for the TMF.
  While we have never been able to get sufficient support for the TMF 
from our colleagues on the Appropriations Committee, the Biden 
Administration saw the value of the Fund when it requested $9 billion 
for the TMF as part of its COVID recovery plan.
  We were ultimately able to secure $1 billion in the American Rescue 
Plan Act (117-2).
  The TMF has used that funding to help bring agencies into the 21st 
century.
  Examples include digitizing the Department of Veterans Affairs' (VA) 
customer support and Better Veterans Benefits Management systems, 
modernizing the U.S. Office of Personnel Management's (OPM) website, 
and implementing a zero-trust architecture at the U.S. Agency for 
International Development (USAID).
  Building off the original MGT Act's success, the MGT Reform Act will 
extend the authorization for the TMF through 2031 and sustain this 
critical IT investment tool for federal agencies.
  The bill also directs agencies to create legacy federal IT 
inventories that includes information about each high-risk legacy 
information technology system used, operated, or maintained by an 
agency.
  This legacy federal IT inventory provision could be critical to 
finally retiring all unsupported and costly legacy systems from 
government use.
  We cannot afford to wait until we are in the midst of the next global 
disaster to modernize federal IT.
  I strongly urge my colleagues to vote yes on the passage of the 
Modernizing Governrnent Technology Reform Act.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentlewoman from South Carolina (Ms. Mace) that the House suspend the 
rules and pass the bill, H.R. 5527, 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.

                          ____________________