(2019-06-17) Usds Budget Cut Forces Focus On Core Capabilities

USDS budget cut forces focus on core capabilities. The White House tech team that was formed to save HealthCare.gov in 2014 is returning to its roots as a 911 squad for government tech. That's the message coming out of a planned cut of about $6.75 million to the U.S. Digital Service funding level for fiscal year 2020 -- part of an overall $13.5 million reduction to the Information Technology Oversight and Reform budget sought by the administration.

USDS, home to a cadre of short-term hires from the tech world serving a maximum of four years, will still be there to put out fires at agencies with pressing problems. But agencies looking to onboard digital services specialists for the long term need to budget for that capability themselves.

USDS budgets have been declining in recent years. The program was funded at $17 million in 2018, and that is set to dip to about $13 million in 2019 under a mix of continuing resolutions and appropriations according to budget documents.

"In the interim, if there's some transition resource needed, it would be reimbursable. But it is not the same as the fee-for-service consulting model that 18F has," Weichert said.

The hope is that by putting a price tag on some of USDS services, that will encourage agencies to develop their own native digital service teams

That in turn will free up capacity so that more agencies can tap USDS personnel for their own needs.