Technological change happens faster today than in the past, and innovations can bring about great things. It’s no wonder, then, that government agencies are eager to acquire, develop and use new tech as soon as possible. But it’s not always easy for them to get their hands on emerging technologies. To change that, many agency modernization initiatives are putting a new emphasis on innovation.
One reason for the holdup is the requirements that public-sector organizations must meet. For instance, they must be sure of cloud security and unbiased datasets feeding AI. But agencies are increasingly unwilling to wait. Here’s a look at how five government organizations are forging ahead with emerging technology.
FedRAMP Prioritizes Emerging Tech
Since 2011, the Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP) has served as a standardized approach to ensuring that cloud technologies meet government requirements for security.
There’s just one problem: Its certification process is lengthy — up to two years long — and it frequently has a backlog. Those create delays in agencies’ ability to use new technology, but the General Services Administration (GSA), which oversees FedRAMP, is changing that.
In June 2024, it announced the Emerging Technology Prioritization Framework to accelerate the adoption of new tech, particularly high-demand generative AI (GenAI) solutions. “The framework is designed to expedite the inclusion of emerging technologies in the FedRAMP Marketplace, so agencies can more easily use modern tools to deliver on their missions,” according to FedRAMP.
Technology Modernization Fund Puts AI at Top of List
Also sitting under GSA’s umbrella, the Technology Modernization Fund (TMF) is designed to provide funding, technical assistance and oversight for government tech projects. Like FedRAMP, it requires a multi-step approval process that can hinder quick tech adoption.
In February 2024, the fund called for faster evaluation of project proposals that support government adoption of AI. For instance, proposals seeking $6 million or less and having a project timeline of no more than one and a half years will receive an expedited review process.
“Use of the TMF has the potential to accelerate AI usage in government and unlock the innovation that we know we are capable of delivering for the public,” said Clare Martorana, TMF Board Chair and Federal Chief Information Officer.
VA Accelerates Tech Adoption
The Veterans Affairs Department (VA) has taken a couple steps toward facilitating tech adoption. Since June 2024, a new Digital Health Office (DHO) has been handling many of its Veterans Health Administration’s (VHA) tech-focused components. It brings together VHA’s offices of connected care, population health and health informatics in addition to AI programs and staff.
Additionally, in July 2019, it established the National Center for Collaborative Healthcare Innovation in California’s Silicon Valley, a strategic choice to ease collaboration between VA and innovating companies. “The center is particularly exciting because it is uniquely designed as a catalyst to combine strengths from non-health care fields,” former VA Secretary Robert Wilkie said.
Virginia Seeks Continuous Innovation
Released in May 2023, Virginia’s technology strategy takes aim at continuous innovation. “The Commonwealth can realize more business and agency value from its technology investments and more effectively serve Virginians by breaking down operational silos, expanding reuse and best practices, and acting in a more unified way,” according to the document.
It has five objectives, including maximizing technology value, which calls on the state to “buy over build to speed IT delivery and maximize assets like [enterprise resource planning] to improve operational efficiency and data-sharing.”
Another goal is disciplined, innovative delivery. That means state agencies must accelerate “innovation by increasing opportunities for sharing ideas and fostering best practices across industry, academia, and the Commonwealth,” the strategy states.
Tennessee Pushes Hard on GenAI
The Tennessee Department of Finance and Administration issued its fiscal 2025 strategic plan in August 2024 with a focus on modernization and integrating emerging technologies. One of those is AI, with a focus on GenAI. The state established this year an enterprise Information Systems Council policy on GenAI for the executive branch, and a cross-branch group is working on developing an AI framework.
“While predictive-based AI has been used in the State for years, GenAI has the potential to automate tasks, analyze large datasets, and improve accuracy,” according to the plan. “However, its widespread use comes with risks that must be carefully managed to ensure data security, avoid bias and disinformation, maintain compliance, and avoid liabilities.”
This article appeared in our guide, “Agencies Draw a New Modernization Blueprint.” To learn more about how agencies are updating legacy systems, download it here: