On February 17, President Obama signed the $787 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, also referred to as the stimulus package or Recovery Act, providing nearly $50 billion for IT projects. In a memo issued a day later, OMB provided agencies guidance on implementing the Act.
The IT initiatives specified in the Act include:
- $19
billion for electronic health records for funds that will provide
incentives for clinics, hospitals and private health care providers to
adopt electronic records
- $16.8 billion to the Energy Department for its energy-efficiency and renewable energy program
- $6 billion to expand broadband Internet access to rural and underserved areas
- $1 billion to TSA for airport explosives detections systems
- $1 billion to SSA to address backlog of disability and retirement claims
- $400 million to NASA to develop climate research missions and increase supercomputing capabilities
- $290 million to the State Department for an IT security upgrade
- $170 million to NOAA for climate modeling
- $160 million to Customs and Border Protection for nonintrusive inspection systems and tactical radios
- $150 million to NASA to research the NexGen air traffic control system.
The
62-page OMB memo addresses the requirements for agencies to provide
spending and performance data to Recovery.gov. Its stated purpose is
to:
- Answer questions and clarify issues related to the mechanisms of implementing the Recovery Act.
- Provide
initial clarification on what information will be reported on
Recovery.gov and what information will be required to be reported on
agency websites.
- Instruct agencies on initial steps which
must be taken to meet these reporting requirements, including
incorporation of recipient reporting requirements in award documents
and communications with funding recipients.
- Establish a common framework for agencies to manage the risks associated with implementing Recovery Act requirements.