GAO Report: FITARA Scorecard Effective in IT Modernization Tracking

The Government Accountability Office said the FITARA Scorecard is effective in helping public agencies modernize and improve the way they use information technology offerings.

According to a GAO report, the bi-annual scorecard serves as an effective tool for agencies to monitor IT-related issues. The federal oversight body added that it saw improvements in the incremental installment of functional IT services, direct reporting to the chief information officer, portfolio management savings and risk management practices.

While the overall performance for the second half of 2021 is good, GAO noted that multiple agencies failed in the requirement to pivot contracts to support modernized telecommunications, Nextgov reported.

The FITARA Scorecard is one of the features of the Federal Information Technology Acquisition Reform Act and was first adopted in 2015. It rates government agencies’ adoption of IT security and other aspects such as software licensing, IT upgrades and the use of cybersecurity tools.

When the first scorecard was released, most agencies received an overall rating of D, with some receiving a failing grade and other organizations receiving a grade of C. Only the Department of Defense and the General Services Administration received a grade of B in 2015.

The FITARA Scorecard in December 2021 revealed that no agency received a grade below C minus. The top two agencies in the December 2021 scorecard are the National Science Foundation and the U.S. Agency for International Development, which received a rating of A plus and A, respectively.