OMB to verify, validate 25 e-gov projects

The Office of Management and Budget will hire a contractor by the end of the month to make sure all 25 e-government projects comply with federal laws and regulations, a senior administration official said.

"We will determine what gaps, if any, each project has, and we will fill them," said Karen Evans, OMB's administrator for e-government and IT.

The contract for independent verification and validation services will be awarded by the General Services Administration through the Federal Supply Service schedules, and will be a one-year, firm fixed-price task order.

The contractor will assess all Quicksilver initiatives to ensure they meet security, privacy, Section 508 accessibility and enterprise architecture standards. The contract can be expanded to delve deeper into each area, such as how the project meets the accessibility needs of a blind or deaf person.

This will be the second contract that OMB, through GSA, has awarded for work on the e-government projects. Last month, the administration hired Edelman Public Relations to develop marketing plans for 10 initiatives.

Evans also said four e-government projects are finalizing interagency fee-for-service agreements. This will replace the pass-the-hat method agencies have used to fund the e-government initiatives for the past three years.

Agency managing partners of the E-Training, Geospatial One-Stop, Grants.gov and Recruitment One-Stop projects will submit their plans to OMB by the end of the month.

"Agencies will know what they will be getting for their money," Evans said. "There may be a basic operation and maintenance fee every agency involved in the project will pay, and then there may be a premium charge to agencies that want service above and beyond the basic services. It is like basic cable and premium cable." *

Jason Miller is a staff writer with Government Computer News. He can be reached at jmiller@

postnewsweektech.com.