WASHINGTON—Today, the U.S. House Oversight Committee unanimously passed the bipartisan Strengthening Agency Management and Oversight of Software Assets Act (SAMOSA Act), sponsored by Reps. Matt Cartwright (D-PA) and Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) as H.R. 1695. NetChoice now encourages the full House of Representatives to take up this important bill.
The U.S. government has been wasting significant resources on a unsecure IT system due to the pernicious practice of “vendor lock” by a few incumbent software providers. These providers “lock” federal agencies into contracts which coercively discourages them not to switch providers with restrictive licenses, punitive audits, fixed fees and more.
“NetChoice applauds the House Oversight Committee for unanimously passing the SAMOSA Act today, and we commend Reps. Cartwright and Fitzpatrick for spearheading it,” said NetChoice President & CEO Steve DelBianco. “If passed this year, SAMOSA will be a huge win for both taxpayers and federal agencies.”
DelBianco continued: “Now, the full House of Representatives must do its part and affirm this important legislation. It will empower competition for contracts in the IT space and motivate companies to improve their product quality, security and value.”
A recent paper by IT procurement expert Michael Garland found that just a five percent decrease in vendor lock practices within agencies could save the federal government up to $750 million annually.
Sens. Gary Peters (D-MI) and Bill Cassidy (R-LA) also introduced a companion version of the SAMOSA Act in the Senate.
You can read more about the SAMOSA Act here.
Please contact press@netchoice.org with inquiries.