Federal CIO Tony Scott plans to implement guidelines that work to help federal agencies develop a strategy for the consolidation and optimization of their data centers, Federal News Radio reported Friday.
Jason Miller writes that Scott told the station the Office of Management and Budget seeks a balance between decreased data center numbers and their utilization to facilitate cost savings and efficiencies.
“I think what we want to get across as we have this conversation around reducing overall IT costs [is] ‘what are the levers you have to exercise that can help you reduce costs?'” Scott said.
He noted that options include the use of cloud services and modernization of servers and other equipment.
Federal data centers increased from at least 9,000 in 2014 to approximately 11,700 this year, compared to 2,100 when OMB last established consolidation targets in 2011.
The Government Accountability Office and Congress have both called for another look into agency data center plans in line with the implementation of the Federal IT Acquisition Reform Act, the report said.
