Nextgov Launches Online Tool to Capture Public Comments on Federal IT Acquisition Reform Act (FITARA)

WASHINGTON, March 26, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Nextgov today launched an online tool that allows readers to comment on draft language of the Federal Information Technology Acquisition Reform Act (FITARA).

Passed unanimously by the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee on March 20^th, FITARA will next be considered by the full House. The Nextgov feedback tool, available at http://legislation.nextgov.com, allows the public to provide comments on the bill while its sponsors remain open to revisions.

Jointly sponsored by Oversight Chairman Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., and by Rep. Gerry Connolly, D-Va., ranking member of the committee's government operations panel, FITARA would reboot the way agencies purchase IT products and services.

"The IT Reform Act could save 10 times the $80 billion the government spends on IT annually by reducing government's reliance on outdated IT systems, by helping agencies make smarter decisions about new purchases and by raising the government's use of bulk purchasing and interoperable systems," stated Issa.

At the markup, Chairman Issa pledged to continue gathering public feedback on the legislation before it reaches the House floor, specifically leaving the door open to revising the language regarding open source software.

Nextgov, in cooperation with committee staff, has created a Web page where users can comment on the bill. To join the discussion on H.R. 1232, the Federal Information Technology Acquisition Reform Act, or suggest further revisions, visit http://legislation.nextgov.com/.

About Nextgov

As the technology division of Government Executive Media Group, Nextgov is the #1 federal IT website in overall traffic¹ and is visited daily by more federal managers than any other site dedicated to federal technology.² Coming off record traffic in 2012, Nextgov has continued to see explosive grow in early 2013, growing 47% year-to-date over 2012 levels.³ Nextgov was recently honored as a finalist for Best Web Site by the Jesse H. Neal Awards, the premier recognition program for business media. Visit Nextgov.com.

Contact: Will Colston 202.266.7423
               

¹ Omniture Reports, 2013, 1105 Media Kit, 2013; ²Market Connections, Inc., 2012; ³Omniture Reports, 2013.

SOURCE Nextgov