[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 211 (Monday, December 15, 2025)]
[House]
[Pages H5862-H5864]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
STRENGTHENING AGENCY MANAGEMENT AND OVERSIGHT OF SOFTWARE ASSETS ACT
Mr. TIMMONS. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the
bill (H.R. 5457) to improve the visibility, accountability, and
oversight of agency software asset management practices, and for other
purposes, as amended.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 5457
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 ``Strengthening Agency
Management and Oversight of Software Assets Act''.
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Administrator.--The term ``Administrator'' means the
Administrator of General Services.
(2) Agency.--The term ``agency'' has the meaning given that
term in section 3502 of title 44, United States Code, except
that such term does not include an element of the
intelligence community.
(3) Cloud computing.--The term ``cloud computing'' has the
meaning given the term in Special Publication 800-145 of the
National Institute of Standards and Technology, or any
successor document.
(4) Cloud service provider.--The term ``cloud service
provider'' has the meaning given the term in section 3607(b)
of title 44, United States Code.
(5) Comprehensive assessment.--The term ``comprehensive
assessment'' means a comprehensive assessment conducted
pursuant to section 3(a).
(6) Director.--The term ``Director'' means the Director of
the Office of Management and Budget.
(7) Intelligence community.--The term ``intelligence
community'' has the meaning given the term in section 3 of
the National Security Act of 1947 (50 U.S.C. 3003).
(8) Plan.--The term ``plan'' means the plan developed by a
Chief Information Officer, or equivalent official, pursuant
to section 4(a).
(9) Software entitlement.--The term ``software
entitlement'' means any software that--
(A) has been purchased, leased, or licensed by or billed to
an agency under any contract or other business arrangement;
and
(B) is subject to use limitations.
(10) Software inventory.--The term ``software inventory''
means the software inventory of an agency required pursuant
to--
(A) section 2(b)(2)(A) of the Making Electronic Government
Accountable By Yielding Tangible Efficiencies Act of 2016 (40
U.S.C. 11302 note; Public Law 114-210); or
(B) subsequent guidance issued by the Director pursuant to
that Act.
SEC. 3. SOFTWARE INVENTORY UPDATE AND EXPANSION.
(a) In General.--As soon as practicable, and not later than
18 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Chief
Information Officer of each agency, in consultation with the
Chief Financial Officer, the Chief Acquisition Officer, the
Chief Data Officer, and General Counsel of the agency, or the
equivalent officials of the agency, shall complete a
comprehensive assessment of the software paid for by, in use
at, or deployed throughout the agency, which shall include--
(1) the current software inventory of the agency, including
software entitlements, contracts and other agreements or
arrangements of the agency, and a list of the largest
software entitlements of the agency separated by provider and
category of software;
(2) a comprehensive, detailed accounting of--
(A) any software used by or deployed within the agency,
including software developed or built by the agency, or by
another agency for use by the agency, including shared
services, as of the date of the comprehensive assessment,
including, to the extent identifiable, the contracts and
other agreements or arrangements used by the agency to
acquire, build, deploy, or use such software;
(B) information and data on software entitlements, which
shall include information on any additional fees or costs,
including fees or costs for the use of cloud services, that
are not included in the initial costs of the contract,
agreement, or arrangement--
(i) for which the agency pays;
(ii) that are not deployed or in use by the agency; and
(iii) that are billed to the agency under any contract or
business arrangement that creates duplication, or are
otherwise determined to be unnecessary by the Chief
Information Officer of the agency, or the equivalent
official, in the deployment or use by the agency; and
(C) the extent--
(i) to which any software paid for, in use, or deployed
throughout the agency is interoperable; and
(ii) of the efforts of the agency to improve
interoperability of software assets throughout the agency
enterprise;
(3) a categorization of software entitlements of the agency
by cost, volume, and type of software;
(4) a list of any provisions in the software entitlements
of the agency that may restrict how the software can be
deployed, accessed, or used, including any such restrictions
on desktop or server hardware, through a cloud service
provider, or on data ownership or access; and
(5) an analysis addressing--
(A) the accuracy and completeness of the comprehensive
assessment;
(B) agency management of and compliance with all contracts
or other agreements or arrangements that include or reference
software entitlements or software management within the
agency;
(C) the extent to which the agency accurately captures the
total cost of software entitlements and related costs,
including the
[[Page H5863]]
total cost of upgrades over the life of a contract, cloud
usage costs, and any other cost associated with the
maintenance or servicing of contracts; and
(D) compliance with software license management policies of
the agency.
(b) Contract Support.--
(1) Authority.--The head of an agency may enter into 1 or
more contracts to support the requirements of subsection (a).
(2) No conflict of interest.--Contracts under paragraph (1)
shall not include contractors with organizational conflicts
of interest, within the meaning given that term under subpart
9.5 of the Federal Acquisition Regulation.
(3) Operational independence.--Over the course of a
comprehensive assessment, contractors hired pursuant to
paragraph (1) shall maintain operational independence from
the integration, management, and operations of the software
inventory and software entitlements of the agency.
(c) Submission.--On the date on which the Chief Information
Officer, Chief Financial Officer, Chief Acquisition Officer,
the Chief Data Officer, and General Counsel of an agency, or
the equivalent officials of the agency, complete the
comprehensive assessment, the Chief Information Officer shall
submit the comprehensive assessment to the head of the
agency.
(d) Subsequent Submission.--Not later than 30 days after
the date on which the head of an agency receives the
comprehensive assessment under subsection (c), the head of
the agency shall submit the comprehensive assessment to--
(1) the Director;
(2) the Administrator;
(3) the Comptroller General of the United States;
(4) the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs of the Senate; and
(5) the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform of the
House of Representatives.
(e) Consultation.--In order to ensure the utility and
standardization of the comprehensive assessment of each
agency, including to support the development of each plan and
the report required under section 4(e)(2), the Director, in
consultation with the Administrator, shall share information,
best practices, and recommendations relating to the
activities performed in the course of a comprehensive
assessment of an agency.
(f) Intelligence Community.--For each element of the
intelligence community, a comprehensive assessment described
under subsection (a) shall be--
(1) conducted separately;
(2) performed only by an entity designated by the head of
the element of the intelligence community, in accordance with
appropriate applicable laws;
(3) performed in such a manner as to ensure appropriate
protection of information which, if disclosed, may adversely
affect national security; and
(4) submitted in summary form, not later than 30 days after
the date on which the head of the element of the intelligence
community receives the assessment, by the head of the element
of the intelligence community to--
(A) the Director;
(B) the Select Committee on Intelligence of the Senate; and
(C) the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence of the
House of Representatives.
SEC. 4. SOFTWARE MODERNIZATION PLANNING AT AGENCIES.
(a) In General.--The Chief Information Officer of each
agency, in consultation with the Chief Financial Officer, the
Chief Acquisition Officer, the Chief Data Officer, and the
General Counsel of the agency, or the equivalent officials of
the agency, shall use the information developed pursuant to
the comprehensive assessment of the agency to develop a plan
for the agency--
(1) to consolidate software entitlements of the agency;
(2) to ensure that, in order to improve the performance of,
and reduce unnecessary costs to, the agency, the Chief
Information Officer, Chief Data Officer, and Chief
Acquisition Officer of the agency, or the equivalent
officers, develop criteria and procedures for how the agency
will adopt cost-effective acquisition strategies, including
enterprise licensing, across the agency that reduce costs,
eliminate excess licenses, and improve performance; and
(3) to restrict the ability of a bureau, program,
component, or operational entity within the agency to
acquire, use, develop, or otherwise leverage any software
entitlement (or portion thereof) without the approval of the
Chief Information Officer of the agency, in consultation with
the Chief Acquisition Officer of the agency, or the
equivalent officers of the agency.
(b) Plan Requirements.--The plan of an agency shall--
(1) include a detailed strategy for--
(A) the remediation of any software asset management
deficiencies found during the comprehensive assessment of the
agency;
(B) the ongoing maintenance of software asset management
upon the completion of the remediation;
(C) automation of software license management processes and
incorporation of discovery tools across the agency;
(D) ensuring that officers and employees of the agency are
adequately trained in the policies, procedures, rules,
regulations, and guidance relating to the software
acquisition and development of the agency before entering
into any agreement relating to any software entitlement (or
portion thereof) for the agency, including training on--
(i) negotiating options within contracts to address and
minimize provisions that restrict how the agency may deploy,
access, or use the software, including restrictions on
deployment, access, or use on desktop or server hardware and
restrictions on data ownership or access;
(ii) the differences between acquiring commercial software
products and services and acquiring or building custom
software; and
(iii) determining the costs of different types of licenses
and options for adjusting licenses to meet increasing or
decreasing demand; and
(E) maximizing the effectiveness of software deployed by
the agency, including, to the extent practicable, leveraging
technologies that--
(i) measure actual software usage via analytics that can
identify inefficiencies to assist in rationalizing software
spending;
(ii) allow for segmentation of the user base;
(iii) support effective governance and compliance in the
use of software; and
(iv) support interoperable capabilities between software;
(2) identify categories of software the agency could
prioritize for conversion to more cost-effective software
licenses, including enterprise licenses, as the software
entitlements, contracts, and other agreements or arrangements
come up for renewal or renegotiation;
(3) provide an estimate of the costs to move toward more
enterprise, open-source, or other licenses that do not
restrict the use of software by the agency, and the projected
cost savings, efficiency measures, and improvements to agency
performance throughout the total software lifecycle;
(4) identify potential mitigations to minimize software
license restrictions on how such software can be deployed,
accessed, or used, including any mitigations that would
minimize any such restrictions on desktop or server hardware,
through a cloud service provider, or on data ownership or
access;
(5) ensure that the purchase by the agency of any software
is based on publicly available criteria that are not unduly
structured to favor any specific vendor, unless prohibited by
law (including regulation);
(6) include any estimates for additional resources,
services, or support the agency may need to implement the
plan;
(7) provide information on the prevalence of software
products in use across multiple software categories; and
(8) include any additional information, data, or analysis
determined necessary by the Chief Information Officer, or
other equivalent official, of the agency.
(c) Support.--The Chief Information Officer, or other
equivalent official, of an agency may request support from
the Director and the Administrator for any analysis or
developmental needs to create the plan of the agency.
(d) Agency Submission.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 1 year after the date on
which the head of an agency submits the comprehensive
assessment pursuant to section 3(d), the head of the agency
shall submit to the Director, the Committee on Homeland
Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate, and the
Committee on Oversight and Government Reform of the House of
Representatives the plan of the agency.
(2) Intelligence community.--Not later than 1 year after
the date on which the head of an element of the intelligence
community submits the summary assessment pursuant to section
3(f)(4), the head of the element shall separately submit the
plan of the element to the Director, the Select Committee on
Intelligence of the Senate, and the Permanent Select
Committee on Intelligence of the House of Representatives.
(e) Consultation and Coordination.--The Director--
(1) in coordination with the Administrator, the Chief
Information Officers Council, the Chief Acquisition Officers
Council, the Chief Data Officers Council, the Chief Financial
Officers Council, and other government and industry
representatives identified by the Director, shall establish
processes, using existing reporting functions, as
appropriate, to identify, define, and harmonize common
definitions, terms and conditions, standardized requirements,
and other information and criteria to support agency heads in
developing and implementing the plans required by this
section; and
(2) in coordination with the Administrator, and not later
than 2 years after the date of enactment of this Act, submit
to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on Oversight and
Government Reform of the House of Representatives a report
detailing recommendations to leverage Government procurement
policies and practices with respect to software acquired by,
developed by, deployed within, or in use at 1 or more
agencies to--
(A) increase the interoperability of software licenses,
including software entitlements and software built by
Government agencies;
(B) consolidate licenses, as appropriate;
(C) reduce costs;
(D) improve performance; and
(E) modernize the management and oversight of software
entitlements and software built by Government agencies, as
identified through an analysis of agency plans.
[[Page H5864]]
SEC. 5. GAO REPORT.
Not later than 3 years after the date of enactment of this
Act, the Comptroller General of the United States shall
submit to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on Oversight and
Government Reform of the House of Representatives a report
on--
(1) Government-wide trends in agency software asset
management practices;
(2) comparisons of software asset management practices
among agencies;
(3) the establishment by the Director of processes to
identify, define, and harmonize common definitions, terms,
and conditions under section 4(e);
(4) agency compliance with the restrictions on contract
support under section 3(b); and
(5) other analyses of and findings regarding the plans of
agencies, as determined by the Comptroller General of the
United States.
SEC. 6. NO ADDITIONAL FUNDS.
No additional funds are authorized to be appropriated for
the purpose of carrying out this Act.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
South Carolina (Mr. Timmons) and the gentleman from Virginia (Mr.
Subramanyam) each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from South Carolina.
General Leave
Mr. TIMMONS. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members
may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks
and include extraneous materials on this measure.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from South Carolina?
There was no objection.
Mr. TIMMONS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, Federal agencies spend billions of dollars a year on
software licenses without a full understanding of what they are
purchasing and how it compares to what they are already paying for. The
result is wasteful spending on duplicative or unnecessary software
licenses.
H.R. 5457 requires Federal agencies to take an inventory of their
software licenses to better understand how it is used, who uses it, and
how many licenses go unused. The bill will also provide Congress with
better insights into how our Federal agencies purchase and use
software.
The text we are considering today is identical to the text we passed
out of the House by voice vote last Congress. This bill improves
government software purchasing without unduly limiting the procurement
options of Federal agencies.
It requires each agency to better manage its software and develop a
plan for addressing any costly, unnecessary licenses. This will reduce
wasteful spending and improve government efficiency.
Mr. Speaker, I thank Ms. Brown for bringing this important
legislation back to this Congress. I also thank Mr. Fallon and Ms. Mace
for their early and continued support of this bill.
I encourage my colleagues to support this bill, and I reserve the
balance of my time.
Mr. SUBRAMANYAM. Mr. Speaker, this is a great bill, and I support it.
I yield such time as she may consume to the gentlewoman from Ohio (Ms.
Brown), the sponsor of this legislation.
Ms. BROWN. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 5457, the
Strengthening Agency Management and Oversight of Software Assets Act.
The SAMOSA Act is a straightforward, good-government bill that has
strong bipartisan support from members of the Oversight Committee. I
reintroduced this legislation earlier this year with Congresswoman
Mace, the chair of the Oversight Committee's Subcommittee on
Cybersecurity, Information Technology, and Government Innovation;
Congressman Pat Fallon; and Congresswoman April McClain Delaney as co-
leads. I thank them for their support.
I will also take a moment to recognize the late Congressman Connolly,
who worked tirelessly on this legislation and who had introduced the
SAMOSA Act prior to his passing.
This is legislation that will improve the acquisition process for
Federal agencies, help the government better manage software needs, and
ultimately save taxpayer dollars.
{time} 1500
Agencies across the Federal Government spend around $33 billion in
taxpayer money on software every year, but right now, many agencies
don't actually have a list of what they own, what they are fully using,
or whether they are buying the same thing twice.
That doesn't make any sense, and this bill solves the problem.
This bill streamlines how agencies track, manage, and report their
software assets by requiring complete assessments on the software paid
for, used, or deployed at each agency.
It also requires agencies to submit these assessments to the Office
of Management and Budget, the General Services Administration, and
Congress so that Congress and these agencies can oversee spending and
contracting software practices.
By requiring agencies to do these assessments and review software
assets, this bill can improve planning for software management,
automate processes, train staff, and improve our cybersecurity.
Here is a key point: Industry experts estimate the bill could save up
to $750 million each year in taxpayer funding. This is real government
efficiency, and it is from legislation that has gone through committee
with support and input from both sides of the aisle.
As the legislative year comes to a close, let's pass the SAMOSA Act
and lower costs for taxpayers.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this bill.
Mr. TIMMONS. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. SUBRAMANYAM. Mr. Speaker, I urge support for this bill, and I
yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. TIMMONS. Mr. Speaker, I encourage my colleagues to support this
commonsense legislation that will reduce wasteful spending and improve
government efficiency.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from South Carolina (Mr. Timmons) that the House suspend the
rules and pass the bill, H.R. 5457, 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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