U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE

WASHINGTON : 

1 

39–010 

" ! SENATE 113TH CONGRESS

2d Session 

REPORT

2014

113–157 

Calendar No. 372 

THE FEDERAL DATA CENTER 

CONSOLIDATION ACT OF 2013 

R E P O R T 

OF THE

COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND 

GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS 

UNITED STATES SENATE 

TO ACCOMPANY

S. 1611 

TO REQUIRE CERTAIN AGENCIES TO CONDUCT ASSESSMENTS OF 

DATA CENTERS AND DEVELOP DATA CENTER CONSOLIDATION 

AND OPTIMIZATION PLANS 

MAY 6, 2014.—Ordered to be printed 


rfrederick on DSK7TPTVN1PROD with HEARINGcongress.#13
(II) 

COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS 

THOMAS R. CARPER, Delaware, Chairman 

CARL LEVIN, Michigan 

MARK L. PRYOR, Arkansas 

MARY L. LANDRIEU, Louisiana 

CLAIRE MCCASKILL, Missouri 

JON TESTER, Montana 

MARK BEGICH, Alaska 

TAMMY BALDWIN, Wisconsin 

HEIDI HEITKAMP, North Dakota 

TOM COBURN, Oklahoma 

JOHN MCCAIN, Arizona 

RON JOHNSON, Wisconsin 

ROB PORTMAN, Ohio 

RAND PAUL, Kentucky 

MICHAEL B. ENZI, Wyoming 

KELLY AYOTTE, New Hampshire 

GABRIELLE A. BATKIN, Staff Director 

JOHN P. KILVINGTON, Deputy Staff Director 

BETH M. GROSSMAN, Chief Counsel 

JONATHAN M. KRADEN, Senior Counsel 

KEITH B. ASHDOWN, Minority Staff Director 

CHRISTOPHER J. BARKLEY, Minority Deputy Staff Director 

ANDREW C. DOCKHAM, Minority Chief Counsel 

SEAN CASEY, Legislative Assistant, Office of Senator Coburn 

LAURA W. KILBRIDE, Chief Clerk 


rfrederick on DSK7TPTVN1PROD with HEARING
(III) 

CONTENTS 

Page 

I. Purpose and Summary .................................................................................. 1 

II. Background .................................................................................................... 1 

III. Legislative History ......................................................................................... 5 

IV. Section-by-Section Analysis of the Bill, as Reported .................................. 6 

V. Congressional Budget Office (CBO) Cost Estimate .................................... 7 

VI. Evaluation of Regulatory Impact .................................................................. 10 

VII. Changes in Existing Law .............................................................................. 10 


rfrederick on DSK7TPTVN1PROD with HEARING

rfrederick on DSK7TPTVN1PROD with HEARING
Calendar No. 372 

113TH CONGRESS SENATE REPORT " ! 2d Session 113–157 

THE FEDERAL DATA CENTER CONSOLIDATION 

ACT OF 2013 

MAY 6, 2014.—Ordered to be printed 

Mr. CARPER, from the Committee on Homeland Security and 

Governmental Affairs, submitted the following 

R E P O R T 

[To accompany S. 1611] 

The Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, 

to which was referred the bill (S. 1611) to require certain agencies 

to conduct assessments of data centers and develop data center 

consolidation and optimization plans, having considered the same, 

reports favorably thereon with an amendment in the nature of a 

substitute and recommends that the bill, as amended, do pass. 

I. PURPOSE AND SUMMARY

The Federal Data Center Consolidation Act of 2013 (S. 1611) 

builds on the Administration’s efforts to consolidate and streamline 

data centers—the facilities in which federal agencies house computer systems and related components—thereby saving the government money and making management of federal information technology (‘‘IT’’) resources more efficient. The bill does so by requiring 

agencies, among other things, to devise and implement plans to inventory and consolidate existing data centers and to report to the 

Office of Management and Budget (‘‘OMB’’) and Congress on the 

extent to which they are implementing those plans. It also directs 

the Government Accountability Office (‘‘GAO’’) to review and verify 

agencies’ data center consolidation efforts. 

II. BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION

A data center is a room or building that houses computer systems and associated components that are used for the storage, 


rfrederick on DSK7TPTVN1PROD with HEARING
2 

1The Office of Management and Budget’s (‘‘OMB’s’’) definition of a ‘‘data center’’ has evolved 

over the years. It most recently has settled on defining ‘‘data center’’ as ‘‘a closet, room, floor 

or building for the storage, management, and dissemination of data and information.’’ OMB’s 

guidance further explains that ‘‘such a repository houses computer systems and associated components, such as database, application, and storage systems and data stores. A data center generally includes redundant or backup power supplies, redundant data communications connections, environmental controls (air conditioning, fire suppression, etc.) and special security devices housed in leased (including by cloud providers), owned, collocated, or stand-alone facilities. 

This definition excludes facilities exclusively devoted to communications and network equipment 

(e.g., telephone exchanges and telecommunications rooms).’’ Office of Management and Budget 

Memorandum for Chief Information Officers, Implementation Guidance for the Federal Data 

Center Consolidation Initiative (March 19, 2012). 2 In July 2013, the Government Accountability Office reported that the number of agency-reported federal data centers stood at 6,836. Government Accountability Office, Information Technology: OMB and Agencies Need to More Effectively Implement Major Initiatives to Save Billions 

of Dollars, GAO–13–796T (July 2013). That is more than triple the number reported in 2010, 

when OMB first started counting, an increase resulting not so much from an actual growth in 

data centers, as from agencies’ growing familiarity with OMB’s requirements and OMB’s expansion of the definition of ‘‘data center.’’ 3 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, ENERGY STAR Program, Report to Congress on 

Server and Data Center Energy Efficiency at 25 (pursuant to Public Law 109–431) (August 2, 

2007). 4See Time Magazine, The Surprisingly Large Energy Footprint of the Digital Economy, April 

14, 2013 at http://science.time.com/2013/08/14/power-drain-the-digital-cloud-is-using-more-energy-than-you-think/. 5Government Accountability Office, Opportunities to Reduce Potential Duplication in Government Programs, Save Tax Dollars, and Enhance Revenue, 26–29, GAO–11–318SP (March 2011). 6Office of Management and Budget Memorandum for Chief Information Officers, Federal Data 

Center Consolidation Initiative (February 26, 2010). 

management, and dissemination of data and information.1 Over the 

years, the federal government’s demand for information technology 

has led to a dramatic rise in the number of federal data centers 

and an increase in operation costs. Since the 1990s, the number of 

data centers operated by the federal government has grown from 

several hundred to more than six thousand as of July 2013.2

Operating these data centers imposes significant costs on the federal government. The government has to purchase hardware, software, and the facilities in which to place them, and it has to pay 

people to run the machines in the centers. Moreover, the Environmental Protection Agency reported that in 2006 (the most recent 

year for which the information is available), federal servers and 

data centers accounted for approximately six billion kilowatts of 

electricity use, for a total annual electricity cost of about $450 million.3 These data centers typically run 24 hours a day, seven days 

a week, and require significant electricity to power the ‘‘always-on’’ 

equipment. In addition, data centers produce significant heat, requiring a substantial expenditure for energy to cool them.4 Furthermore, GAO has cited ‘‘the growth in the number of federal data 

centers, many offering similar services and resources’’ as a source 

of overlap and duplication (and therefore unnecessary expenditures) in the federal government.5

In 2010, OMB, through the Federal Chief Information Officer 

(‘‘Federal CIO’’), launched the Federal Data Center Consolidation 

Initiative (‘‘Consolidation Initiative’’ or ‘‘Initiative’’) to consolidate 

redundant federal data centers and achieve cost savings. The goals 

of the initiative were to: promote the use of green IT by reducing 

the overall energy and real estate footprint of government data 

centers; reduce the cost of data center hardware, software, and operations; increase the overall IT security posture of the government; and shift IT investments to more efficient computing platforms and technologies.6


rfrederick on DSK7TPTVN1PROD with HEARING
3 

7The 24 agencies on the CIO Council are: Department of Agriculture; Department of Commerce; Department of Defense; Department of Education; Department of Energy; Department 

of Health and Human Services; Department of Homeland Security; Department of Housing and 

Urban Development; Department of the Interior; Department of Justice; Department of Labor; 

Department of State; Department of Transportation; Department of the Treasury; Department 

of Veterans Affairs; Environmental Protection Agency; General Services Administration; National Aeronautics and Space Administration; National Science Foundation; Nuclear Regulatory 

Commission; Office of Personnel Management; Small Business Administration; Social Security 

Administration; and United States Agency for International Development. 8See Fiscal Year 2012 Budget of the U.S. Government, page 29 (http://www.whitehouse.gov/ 

sites/default/files/omb/budget/fy2012/assets/budget.pdf) and Fiscal Year 2013 Budget of the U.S. 

Government, page 43 (http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/omb/budget/fy2013/assets/ 

budget.pdf). 9See Government Accountability Office, Opportunities to Reduce Potential Duplication in Government Programs, Save Tax Dollars, and Enhance Revenue, 26-29, GAO–11–318SP (March 

2011). 10Government Accountability Office, Data Center Consolidation: Agencies Need to Complete 

Inventories and Plans to Achieve Expected Savings, 8–19, GAO–11–565 (July 2011). 11 Id. at 19–23. 

Under the Consolidation Initiative, OMB required the 24 departments and agencies on the Chief Information Officers Council 7 to 

submit an inventory of each agency’s data centers and a plan for 

consolidating them. Agencies were then required to annually update their asset inventory and report on the progress made toward 

implementing the agency consolidation plan. OMB set a target goal 

of closing 40 percent of the federal data centers agencies had identified, and it estimated saving between $3 and $5 billion—both by 

the end of 2015.8

Government Accountability Office reviews of the Initiative 

At the request of this Committee, GAO conducted several reviews 

of the progress that OMB and agencies have made under the Initiative. GAO’s ongoing work on the Consolidation Initiative has 

confirmed two things. First, data center consolidation is an economical way to achieve more efficient IT operations, as well as cost 

savings or cost avoidance.9 Second, significant work must still be 

done before agencies realize the full benefits of consolidation. 

GAO’s first report, issued in July 2011, assessed the completeness of each agency’s first submission of data center consolidation 

documents. GAO found that, at that time, only one agency out of 

24 had submitted a complete data center asset inventory and no 

agency had submitted a complete consolidation plan.10 In addition, 

GAO reported on some of the challenges that agencies faced when 

trying to implement the Consolidation Initiative. Some agencies 

told GAO that they had experienced operational challenges in 

maintaining services during consolidation, while other agencies reported cultural challenges in trying to consolidate in a decentralized organizational structure.11 GAO recommended that OMB, the 

Federal CIO, and the agencies each take steps to ensure that agencies improve and complete their data center inventories and consolidation plans. 

A year later, in July 2012, GAO reported on agencies’ second 

submission of data center consolidation documents. These submissions demonstrated that the Consolidation Initiative could potentially save the government billions of dollars. GAO found that nineteen agencies reported anticipating a combined total of more than 

$2.4 billion in cost savings and more than $820 million in cost 


rfrederick on DSK7TPTVN1PROD with HEARING
4 

12Government Accountability Office, Data Center Consolidation: Agencies Making Progress on 

Efforts, but Inventories and Plans Need to be Completed, 12, GAO–12–742 (July 2012). GAO 

noted that actual savings could reach even higher, because fourteen of the agencies provided 

incomplete projections, one agency does not expect to accrue net savings until 2017, and three 

agencies did not provide any estimated cost savings at all. 13 Id. 14Government Accountability Office, Data Center Consolidation: Strengthened Oversight Needed to Achieve Cost Savings Goal 14, GAO-13-378 (April 2013). 15 Id. at 10. 

avoidances between 2011 and 2015.12 However, GAO’s review also 

found that there were still large gaps in agency inventories and 

plans. For example, only three agencies had submitted a complete 

inventory and only one agency had submitted a complete consolidation plan.13

GAO’s next report on the Consolidation Initiative, issued in April 

2013, once again evaluated agency progress in consolidating data 

centers. GAO expressed frustration over the failure to track cost 

savings associated with the Consolidation Initiative, stating, ‘‘the 

lack of initiative-wide cost savings data makes it unclear whether 

agencies will be able to achieve OMB’s projected savings of $3 billion by the end of 2015.’’ 14 GAO also found that OMB had not 

measured agencies’ progress toward OMB’s cost savings goal of $3 

billion, because OMB had not determined a consistent and repeatable method for tracking cost savings. GAO further stated that 

until OMB begins tracking and reporting on performance measures 

such as cost savings, OMB would be limited in its ability to oversee 

agencies’ progress towards key initiative goals.15

The Federal Data Center Consolidation Act of 2013 

When OMB launched the Consolidation Initiative in 2010, it 

sought to have agencies free up resources to better support mission-critical activities, reduce the overall energy and real estate 

footprint of federal data centers, and improve the overall IT security posture of the government. Furthermore, in shutting redundant and underutilized data centers, the Administration sought to 

reduce the duplicative infrastructure that breeds wasteful IT. 

These are all worthwhile goals, and the Committee strongly supports them. However, GAO’s reports on progress under the Consolidation Initiative demonstrate that there is much that still needs to 

be done for the Initiative to reach its full potential. 

The Federal Data Center Consolidation Act of 2013 helps ensure 

that there is a continued emphasis placed on consolidating and optimizing agency data centers and that agencies see the Consolidation Initiative through to its conclusion. S. 1611 codifies and builds 

upon many of the Administration’s own requirements in several 

important ways. 

First, the bill requires the 24 agencies included in the current 

Consolidation Initiative to submit annual reports to OMB that include: comprehensive data center inventories; multi-year strategies 

to consolidate data centers and make the servers and other equipment housed in them more efficient and cost-effective; a timeline 

for agency activities under the Initiative; and year-by-year calculations of investment and cost savings. The bill then requires agencies to implement their data center strategies and provide quarterly updates to OMB on their progress under the Initiative. These 

annual reports and quarterly updates to OMB will facilitate increased oversight by OMB and Congress, assist agency decision 


rfrederick on DSK7TPTVN1PROD with HEARING
5 

16The Administrator for the Office of E-Government and Information Technology at OMB is 

a statutorily defined position. Currently, one person is serving as both the Federal CIO and the 

Administrator for the Office of E-Government and Information Technology. 17Government Accountability Office, Data Center Consolidation: Strengthened Oversight Needed to Achieve Cost Savings Goal 14, GAO–13–378 (April 2013). 

making, and ultimately improve operational efficiency at federal 

agencies. 

Second, the bill requires the Administrator for the Office of EGovernment and Information Technology at OMB 16 to establish 

performance metrics (including cost metrics), provide annual updates on the cumulative cost savings of the Initiative, review agency data center inventories, and review and monitor the implementation of agency data center strategies. GAO has repeatedly recommended that, in order for the Initiative to reach its full potential, OMB must take steps to ensure that agencies are completing 

data center inventories, implementing consolidation strategies, and 

better tracking cost savings.17 By specifically laying out the Administrator’s duties, S. 1611 ensures that OMB’s responsibilities are 

clear in this area. 

Third, the bill requires GAO to annually review and report on 

the Consolidation Initiative. While federal agencies have generally 

improved their data center inventories, much work still remains to 

be done to ensure that agencies have the most accurate information 

possible when assessing and altering their inventories. To ensure 

sustained progress towards the goals of the Initiative, S. 1611 includes provisions to hold federal agencies accountable by requiring 

GAO to conduct annual reviews of the quality and completeness of 

agency data center inventories and consolidation strategies. 

III. LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

On May 25, 2011, the Committee held a hearing entitled ‘‘How 

to Save Taxpayer Dollars: Case Studies of Duplication in the Federal Government.’’ One of the case studies examined at the hearing 

was the Consolidation Initiative’s effort to reduce unnecessary federal data centers. 

On June 11, 2013, the Committee held a hearing entitled ‘‘Reducing Duplication and Improving Outcomes in Federal Information 

Technology.’’ During the hearing, several critical IT areas were 

identified as offering potential opportunities to reduce duplication 

and the cost of government operations, including reducing the number of underutilized federal data centers. 

On October 30, 2013, Senators Bennet, Coburn, and Ayotte introduced S. 1611, the Federal Data Center Consolidation Act of 2013, 

and the bill was referred to the Senate Committee on Homeland 

Security and Governmental Affairs. 

The Committee considered the bill at a business meeting on November 6, 2013. Senator Carper offered a substitute amendment 

making technical corrections, and providing that the relevant Congressional Committees be provided a statement of explanation for 

any waiver of the requirements of the Act granted by the Director 

of National Intelligence for any element of the Intelligence Community. The Committee adopted the substitute amendment and ordered the underlying bill reported favorably, both by voice vote. 

Members present for the vote on the amendment and on the bill 


rfrederick on DSK7TPTVN1PROD with HEARING
6 

18See 31 U.S.C. § 901(b). These 24 agencies are known as the ‘‘Chief Financial Officer’’ or 

‘‘CFO’’ agencies, a reference to Public Law 101–576, the Chief Financial Officers Act of 1990. 

were Senators Carper, Levin, McCaskill, Tester, Begich, Baldwin, 

Johnson, Portman and Ayotte. 

IV. SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS OF THE BILL, AS REPORTED

Section 1: Short title 

The short title of the bill is the ‘‘Federal Data Center Consolidation Act of 2013.’’ 

Section 2: Federal Data Center Consolidation Initiative (FDCCI) 

Section 2(a): Definitions 

Section 2(a) defines four terms. First, the term ‘‘Administrator’’ 

means the Administrator for the Office of E-Government and Information Technology within OMB. Second, ‘‘Covered Agency’’ is defined to include all 24 agencies that were included in the original 

Consolidation Initiative.18 Third, the term ‘‘FDCCI’’ means the Federal Data Center Consolidation Initiative that was first started by 

OMB in February 2010, or any successor to the Initiative. Finally, 

‘‘Government-Wide Data Center Consolidation and Optimization 

Metrics’’ are the metrics that are established by the Administrator 

under section (b)(2)(g) of this Act. 

Subsection 2(b): Federal Data Center consolidation inventories and 

strategies 

Subsection 2(b)(1)(A) establishes annual data center consolidation reporting requirements for covered agencies, as defined in Section 2(a). The bill requires those agencies to submit annually to 

OMB a data center inventory and a multi-year strategy to consolidate their data centers and make the servers and other equipment 

housed in them more efficient and cost-effective. The strategy shall 

include performance metrics, a consolidation timeline, and cost savings estimates. 

Subsection 2(b)(1)(B) makes clear that OMB may allow agencies 

to submit information through existing reporting structures, and 

2(b)(1)(C) requires an agency Chief Information Officer to submit 

to the Administrator, and make publicly available, an annual statement that the agency has complied with the requirements of this 

Act. Subsection 2(b)(1)(D) then requires agencies to implement the 

consolidation strategies submitted to OMB and provide quarterly 

updates to OMB on the implementation process. Finally, 2(b)(1)(E) 

contains a rule of construction to make it clear that nothing in this 

Act limits the reporting of information by agencies to OMB or Congress. 

Subsection 2(b)(2) lays out the responsibilities of the Administrator for the Office of E-Government and Information Technology 

under this Act. These responsibilities include: establishing deadlines for annual reporting by agencies and requirements that agencies must meet to be considered in compliance with the Act, ensuring that information relating to agency progress towards meeting 

the goals of the Consolidation Initiative is made available to the 

public, reviewing the inventories and strategies submitted pursuant to this Act, monitoring the implementation of agency strateVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:35 May 09, 2014 Jkt 039006 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\SR157.XXX SR157

rfrederick on DSK7TPTVN1PROD with HEARING
7 

19The Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (‘‘FedRAMP’’) is a governmentwide program that provides a standardized approach to security assessment, authorization, and 

continuous monitoring for cloud products and services. See http://cloud.cio.gov/fedramp. 

gies, updating the cost savings realized through the Consolidation 

Initiative, and creating government-wide data center consolidation 

and optimization metrics. 

Subsection 2(b)(3) requires the Administrator to develop a costsavings goal for the Initiative, with a year-by-year breakdown of 

anticipated savings. OMB must make this information publicly 

available and submit annual updates to Congress on cost savings 

realized and the completeness or incompleteness of each agency’s 

data center inventories and consolidation strategies. 

Subsection 2(b)(4) requires GAO to review annually the quality 

and completeness of each agency’s asset inventory and consolidation strategy. 

Subsection 2(c): Ensuring cybersecurity standards for data center 

consolidation and cloud computing 

This subsection establishes that data center consolidation must 

be done in accordance with federal guidelines on cloud computing 

security, including the Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program 19 and guidance published by the National Institute 

of Standards and Technology. This subsection also includes a rule 

of construction that makes it clear that OMB has the ability to update and modify federal guidelines on cloud computing security. 

Subsection 2(d): Waiver of disclosure requirements 

This subsection authorizes the Director of National Intelligence 

(‘‘DNI’’) to waive the applicability of the requirements of the Act to 

an element (or component of an element) of the intelligence community if the DNI determines that such waiver is in the interest 

of national security. It requires the DNI, within 30 days of making 

such a determination, to file a statement describing the waiver and 

the reasons for the waiver to the Senate Homeland Security and 

Governmental Affairs Committee, the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, and the Senate and House Intelligence Committees. 

Subsection 2(e): Sunset 

This subsection sunsets the legislation on October 1, 2018. 

V. CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE (CBO) COST ESTIMATE

DECEMBER 6, 2013. 

Hon. TOM CARPER, 

Chairman, Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. 

DEAR MR. CHAIRMAN: The Congressional Budget Office has prepared the enclosed cost estimate for S. 1611, the Federal Data Center Consolidation Act of 2013. 

If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be pleased 

to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Matthew Pickford. 

Sincerely, 

DOUGLAS W. ELMENDORF. 

Enclosure. 


rfrederick on DSK7TPTVN1PROD with HEARING
8 

S. 1611—Federal Data Center Consolidation Act of 2013 

Summary: S. 1611 would require agencies to submit to the Office 

of Management and Budget (OMB) long-term plans for phasing out 

unnecessary data centers and optimizing performance at the remaining facilities (a data center is a facility used to house computer systems and associated components). Agencies would prepare 

comprehensive inventories of their information technology equipment as part of those plans. Agencies also would be required to 

prepare estimates of the savings that would be realized from consolidating data centers. Finally, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) would report annually to the Congress on the implementation of the legislation. 

Assuming appropriation of the necessary amounts, CBO estimates that implementing S. 1611 would cost $22 million over the 

2014–2018 period. Although optimizing the use of federal data centers ultimately could reduce spending, CBO does not expect that 

there would be any significant savings from implementing this legislation for the next few years. Enacting the bill could affect direct 

spending by agencies not funded through annual appropriations; 

therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures apply. CBO estimates, however, that any net change in spending by those agencies would not 

be significant. Enacting the bill would not affect revenues. 

S. 1611 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA) 

and would not affect the budgets of state, local, or tribal governments. 

Estimated cost to the Federal Government: The estimated budgetary impact of S. 1611 is shown in the following table. The costs 

of this legislation fall within budget function 800 (general government) and all other budget functions that include expenditures for 

information technology. 

By fiscal year, in millions of dollars— 

2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2014– 

2018 

CHANGES IN SPENDING SUBJECT TO APPROPRIATION 

Estimated Authorization Level ...................................................... 2 5 5 5 5 22 

Estimated Outlays ........................................................................ 2 5 5 5 5 22 

Basis of estimate: For this estimate, CBO assumes that the bill 

will be enacted in 2014, that the necessary amounts will be provided each year, and that spending will follow historical patterns 

for similar management initiatives. 

Most provisions of S. 1611 would expand on the Administration’s 

current efforts to consolidate data centers. In 2010, OMB instructed federal agencies to develop consolidation plans as part of 

the Federal Data Center Consolidation Initiative (FDCCI). The 

goals of the initiative are to realize savings from purchasing fewer 

computer hardware and software products, reduce energy use, and 

lease less real estate. Each agency is required to identify a senior 

manager to lead the consolidation efforts, produce an inventory, 

and plan for future consolidations. The initiative also encourages 

the use of cloud computing. Recently, OMB integrated FDCCI with 

its PortfolioStat initiative, which is reviewing all information technology investments. 


rfrederick on DSK7TPTVN1PROD with HEARING
9 

S. 1611 would require the 24 participating agencies to submit 

comprehensive inventories of their IT facilities to OMB as well as 

long-term plans for phasing out some data centers and optimizing 

performance at the remaining facilities. Agencies also would be required to submit estimates of cost savings from those consolidations. Finally, GAO would be required to annually review and 

verify agency efforts and report to the Congress on its findings. 

Costs to implement the bill would vary by agency and depend on 

how much work had been previously completed and how much additional reporting and oversight would be required. GAO has reported that many agencies have not followed the FDCCI, completed 

their data center inventory or consolidation plan, or identified any 

cost savings from the centers they have closed. Based on information from selected agencies, OMB, and GAO studies and reports on 

similar efforts, CBO expects that the administrative workload of 

most agencies would increase by a few hundred thousand dollars 

annually under this bill. Thus, we estimate that implementing S. 

1611 governmentwide and completing the necessary GAO reports 

would cost about $5 million a year, assuming appropriation of the 

necessary amounts. 

Information from GAO and OMB indicates that the federal government operates more than 3,000 data centers. Those centers 

spend significant amounts for computer hardware, software, facility 

leases, and electricity. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that in total the federal government spends $450 million just 

for electricity to operate such centers. The Administration is already attempting to reduce unnecessary costs of those operations. 

Through the data consolidation initiative, OMB’s goal is to close 

about 1,200 data centers by 2015 and lower operating costs substantially. Nonetheless, the activities required by S. 1611 could 

eventually contribute to the cost savings if federal agencies further 

consolidated data centers and made more efficient use of a smaller 

number of facilities. However, CBO expects that any such savings 

over the next five years would not be significant. 

Pay-As-You-Go considerations: The Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act 

of 2010 establishes budget-reporting and enforcement procedures 

for legislation affecting direct spending or revenues. Enacting the 

bill could affect direct spending by agencies not funded through annual appropriations; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures apply. 

CBO estimates, however, that any net change in spending by those 

agencies would not be significant. Enacting the bill would not affect 

revenues. 

Intergovernmental and private-sector impact: S. 1611 contains no 

intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in UMRA 

and would not affect the budgets of state, local, or tribal governments. 

Estimate prepared by: Federal Costs: Matthew Pickford; Impact 

on State, Local, and Tribal Governments: Michael Kulas; Impact on 

the Private Sector: Paige Piper/Bach. 

Estimate approved by: Theresa Gullo, Deputy Assistant Director 

for Budget Analysis. 


rfrederick on DSK7TPTVN1PROD with HEARING
10 

VI. EVALUATION OF REGULATORY IMPACT

Pursuant to the requirements of paragraph 11(b) of rule XXVI of 

the Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee has considered 

the regulatory impact of this bill. 

The Committee agrees with the Congressional Budget Office that 

the bill contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates 

as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and would impose no costs on state, local, or tribal governments, or private entities. The enactment of this legislation would not have significant 

regulatory impact. 

VII. CHANGES IN EXISTING STATUTE MADE BY THE BILL, AS REPORTED

In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the Standing 

Rules of the Senate, the Committee states that there are no 

changes in existing law made by the bill, as reported. 

Æ 


rfrederick on DSK7TPTVN1PROD with HEARING