Technology Modernization Fund awards over $70M to DOJ, GSA and Armed Forces Retirement Home
The Technology Modernization Fund announced several new investments Wednesday intended to enhance digital services and cybersecurity for the public.
The TMF’s targeted investments were awarded to the Department of Justice to improve antitrust enforcement through technology; the General Services Administration for the modernization of regulatory services; and the Armed Forces Retirement Home for upgraded digitization of electronic health record systems. In total, the fund awarded over $70 million to the three organizations for modernization and antitrust efforts, according to a press release from the GSA.
“The Technology Modernization Fund helps agencies accelerate the delivery of products and services that meet today’s expectations of an exceptional government experience,” Clare Martorana, federal CIO and TMF board chair, said in the release. “These TMF investments will strengthen cybersecurity, reduce burden for the federal workforce so they can focus on mission, and improve trust with the millions counting on the DOJ, GSA and the Armed Forces Retirement Home to deliver government services.”
Pointing to the shift in corporate settings to chat-based applications, DOJ reported that its Antitrust Division (ATR) is not able to keep up with changes without also improving its approach to working with datasets that include more than just email communications.
DOJ received $45.5 million in funds that will go toward updated review platforms, an improved internal IT service management, improving the case management system capabilities and simplifying the public complaints process.
“This effort will free up time from employees currently spent mitigating IT deficiencies to instead focus on the enforcement work they were hired to do,” ATR Executive Officer Walt Cain said in the release. “This will in turn make the agency and the federal government more efficient and effective in promoting and protecting a competitive economy.”
GSA, meanwhile, will use the TMF’s award of $19.7 million to upgrade the eRulemaking Program, Regulations.gov, which is reportedly in need of a modernized architecture to “better meet the needs of public and government users.”
The Armed Forces Retirement Home currently faces challenges with its existing electronic health records system, which lacks interoperability across agencies like the Department of Defense and the Department of Veterans Affairs, along with insurance providers. To remedy this, the retirement home will use $6 million in an effort to “revolutionize health care services” by implementing a “modernized” electronic records system that provides a more “integral and informative experience” for both family members and caregivers.
“This transformative project represents a significant milestone in our ongoing commitment to provide the highest quality health care to our residents,” AFRH Chief Operating Officer John RisCassi, said in the release. “By modernizing our EHR system, we’re not just upgrading technology, we’re enhancing the lives of some of our nation’s bravest heroes.”
