Transportation Department CIO set to depart in September

The top IT leader at the Department of Transportation is resigning, FedScoop was the first to report last week. Pavan Pidugu, the DOT’s chief digital and information officer, was sworn in February 2025 after serving as the CTO for the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration for nearly five years. His last day will be Sept. 4. Under Pidugu’s leadership, the agency underwent a restructuring of its technology department. The agency also migrated to Google Workspace, becoming the first cabinet-level agency to fully transition using the General Services Administration’s OneGov deal. A DOT spokesperson told FedScoop in May that the Federal Aviation Administration was gearing up to migrate later this year. In total, more than 50,000 employees across the agency will have access. Pidugu’s resignation comes amid a wave of technology leader departures, including federal CIO Greg Barbaccia, whose last day will be at the end of August. Interior Department CIO Paul “Macca” McInerny left the agency last week.

The Technology Modernization Fund is open for proposals and prioritizing faster permitting technology and artificial intelligence adoption projects, its acting director said Thursday. Jessie Posilkin said the TMF is “being explicit” about its desire for Council on Environmental Quality-supported projects to speed and scale permitting, and to advance USAi adoption in agencies facing capability and infrastructure gaps preventing responsible use. Posilkin said in a LinkedIn post: “TMF was made for moments like this, where agencies can’t afford to wait on budget and procurement cycles. I’m excited we’re still poised to help agencies meet a critical moment of opportunity – and a bipartisan one, at that!” Last month, Posilkin said the fund had $200 million left, pending potential reauthorization for fiscal 2027. But that might not stretch as far as it would have in the past, even with 100% of agencies repaying TMF loans, as the “scale and scope of government technology challenges are only going up” because of AI, Posilkin said at the time. The current version of the fiscal 2027 Financial Services and General Government appropriations bill authorizes $5 million for the fund, but has not yet received a floor vote in either chamber. Agencies can submit a project proposal until July 24, but Posilkin encouraged them to move quickly so the small TMF team can review proposals expeditiously. She said: “This call is moving fast, partly out of necessity. We have a very narrow window between now and September 30, when our authorization to make new investments ends (absent congressional action, of course…). With more time, we could do even more — but we’ll meet as much of the agency need as we can, while we can.”

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