U.S. Senators Gary Peters (D-MI), Chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, and Ted Cruz (R-TX) introduced bipartisan legislation to make the federal procurement process leaner and easier to navigate for agencies and their contractors. The bill would remove obstacles to acquiring products and services in a timely and cost-effective way, increase competition for contracts, and open additional opportunities for more businesses to enter federal contracting.
“Simplifying the federal buying process will boost government productivity and save taxpayer money,” said Senator Peters. “My legislation will guarantee that the best and most innovative businesses, including new and small businesses, can compete for federal contracts so that the federal government can keep pace and stay on the cutting edge as it serves the American people.”
“Increasing competition within the procurement process for emerging technologies is essential for encouraging innovation and ensuring taxpayers get the most for their money,” said Senator Cruz. “I am proud to work alongside Sen. Peters to introduce this bipartisan legislation to reduce barriers hindering government access to the best technologies at lower costs.”
The bipartisan Federal Improvement in Technology (FIT) Procurement Act will streamline the procurement process to enable more businesses to participate in federal contracting, which will offer greater competition and better deals for the federal government and taxpayers. The bill would require updates to federal procurement rules to eliminate obsolete, overly burdensome or restrictive requirements, simplify the bidding process for contractors, and expand use of procurement methods that allow agencies to quickly collaborate with the private sector on outcome-based solutions. This bill would also strengthen training for the federal acquisition workforce to ensure they are best prepared to manage the purchase of rapidly advancing technologies, such as artificial intelligence systems.
Below are statements in support of the senators’ legislation:
“The Federal Improvement in Technology (FIT) Procurement Act addresses many of the longstanding challenges faced by the U.S. government when purchasing commercial information technology. ITI thanks Chairman Peters and Senator Cruz for their leadership as this legislation will provide the U.S. government with much-needed flexibility when purchasing cloud computing, data center solutions and services, and other cutting-edge technologies, and leverages public-private partnerships to target barriers to entry in contracting and develop a skilled government acquisition workforce. ITI believes this legislation will positively impact the federal technology acquisition process for both today’s commercial solutions and the emerging technologies that will power government in the future,” said Megan Petersen, Vice President of Public Sector Policy and Counsel, Information Technology Industry Council (ITI).
“Two of our priorities are to help the government improve acquisition outcomes and to support innovation through contracts,” said David Berteau, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Professional Services Council. “This bill will improve those outcomes and expand access to more businesses with innovative solutions. Competition is the key to delivering successful federal IT contracting.”
