Bipartisan bill ends unnecessary spending on duplicative software used by federal agencies heads to President’s desk
Texas Insider Report: WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senate Commerce Committee Ranking Member Ted Cruz (R-Texas) issued the following statement after his bipartisan Source Code Harmonization And Reuse in Information Technology (SHARE IT) Act passed the Senate, and will head to President Biden’s desk for his signature. The SHARE IT Act, introduced with U.S. Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman Gary Peters (D-Mich.), would require government agencies to share custom-developed source code—thereby avoiding redundant government contracts to build software.
Rep. Nick Langworthy (R-N.Y.-23) introduced companion legislation in the House, which passed that chamber earlier this month.
Upon the passage of the SHARE IT Act in the Senate, Sen. Cruz said, “American taxpayers deserve government efficiency wherever possible. Congress should take advantage of every opportunity to reduce duplicative spending and boost government transparency in procurement. I am proud to have worked with Chairman Peters and Rep. Langworthy to advance the SHARE IT Act and bring greater fiscal responsibility and accountability to the federal government’s information technology needs.”
Sen. Peters said, “By facilitating custom code sharing among federal agencies, we can significantly cut costs for taxpayers, enhance the efficiency of government services, boost security and foster software innovation. This bipartisan legislation enhances the federal government’s digital capabilities and will benefit Americans as they access government services online. I am thankful for Senator Cruz’s leadership on this effort and am happy to see it heading to the President’s desk.”
Rep. Nick Langworthy said, “The SHARE IT Act’s passage in the Senate is a win for American taxpayers and the first step toward President Trump’s agenda of making our government more efficient and accountable. I want to thank Senator Ted Cruz for his leadership in championing this bipartisan effort in the Senate. By eliminating wasteful spending on redundant software and requiring agencies to share solutions, we’re streamlining our federal government while delivering real savings for the American people. I look forward to seeing this commonsense bill signed into law.”
Sen. Peters said, “By facilitating custom code sharing among federal agencies, we can significantly cut costs for taxpayers, enhance the efficiency of government services, boost security and foster software innovation. This bipartisan legislation enhances the federal government’s digital capabilities and will benefit Americans as they access government services online. I am thankful for Senator Cruz’s leadership on this effort and am happy to see it heading to the President’s desk.”
Rep. Nick Langworthy said, “The SHARE IT Act’s passage in the Senate is a win for American taxpayers and the first step toward President Trump’s agenda of making our government more efficient and accountable. I want to thank Senator Ted Cruz for his leadership in championing this bipartisan effort in the Senate. By eliminating wasteful spending on redundant software and requiring agencies to share solutions, we’re streamlining our federal government while delivering real savings for the American people. I look forward to seeing this commonsense bill signed into law.”
BACKGROUND
Currently, the federal government spends approximately $12 billion annually purchasing software, including “custom-developed” software for agencies, such as websites, analytical models, and apps. Despite the fact that much custom-developed code is not classified or sensitive, agencies generally do not make custom software available to one another, even though there is an existing website created for agencies to do so. This inefficiency results in duplicative government contracts and needless spending when agencies hire contractors to reproduce code that another agency has already procured.
The SHARE IT Act improves and updates federal source code policy by requiring agencies to publicly list custom code they make or buy and share this code with the rest of the government, and ensures transparency by requiring agencies to publicly list their custom code. The legislation contains exceptions for national security systems, classified code, or code whose disclosure would create an identifiable risk to individual privacy.
The SHARE IT Act requires no additional funding, as agencies already have the flexibility to share code via existing government infrastructure like code.gov, open-source tools like Git, or commercial platforms like GitHub or Bitbucket.
Currently, the federal government spends approximately $12 billion annually purchasing software, including “custom-developed” software for agencies, such as websites, analytical models, and apps. Despite the fact that much custom-developed code is not classified or sensitive, agencies generally do not make custom software available to one another, even though there is an existing website created for agencies to do so. This inefficiency results in duplicative government contracts and needless spending when agencies hire contractors to reproduce code that another agency has already procured.
The SHARE IT Act improves and updates federal source code policy by requiring agencies to publicly list custom code they make or buy and share this code with the rest of the government, and ensures transparency by requiring agencies to publicly list their custom code. The legislation contains exceptions for national security systems, classified code, or code whose disclosure would create an identifiable risk to individual privacy.
The SHARE IT Act requires no additional funding, as agencies already have the flexibility to share code via existing government infrastructure like code.gov, open-source tools like Git, or commercial platforms like GitHub or Bitbucket.
