Great Lakes Wire

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Three bipartisan bills authored by U.S. Senator Gary Peters (MI) to strengthen the federal government’s effectiveness and save taxpayer dollars have advanced in the Senate. The bills will strengthen the federal workforce and the delivery of government services, save taxpayer dollars by improving management of how the federal government purchases and uses software, and ensure that the federal government is responsibly using artificial intelligence (AI) to improve operations. The bills were approved by the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, where Peters serves as Chair. They now move to the full Senate for consideration.

“Federal workers across the nation need more support to deliver essential services and manage the technologies and software that they purchase to bolster efficiency,” said Senator Peters. “These bipartisan bills will ensure that federal agencies are able to effectively serve Americans and Michiganders for years to come.”

The Improving Government Efficiency and Workforce Development through Federal Executive Boards Act would authorize Federal Executive Boards (FEBs), which help improve collaboration among federal agency offices located outside of Washington. FEBs help coordinate federal emergency response activities at the local level and build partnerships between agencies and state and local entities to ensure federal programs are administered effectively. Currently, there are 28 FEB locations across the nation, including one in Michigan. The bill would enable FEBs to further support agency efforts to recruit and place students, veterans, and others into skills training opportunities like apprenticeships and paid internships at agency field offices, as well as ensure FEBs consider U.S. competitiveness and emerging technologies when they carry out their activities related to interagency collaboration and training the federal workforce.

The Strengthening Agency Management and Oversight of Software Assets Act would require agencies to conduct an independent, comprehensive assessment of their software licensing practices. This would be used by Congress, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), and the General Services Administration (GSA) to increase federal oversight of software contracts in order to streamline operations and reduce wasteful spending. The legislation builds on a law written by Peters to reduce duplicative software purchases called the MEGABYTE Act. Since being signed into law in 2016, this legislation has saved taxpayers more than $450 million.

The AI Leadership Training Act would create an AI training program for federal supervisors and management officials. The training program would help improve the federal workforce’s understanding of AI applications, and ensure that leaders who oversee the use of these tools understand how AI can be used to better serve the American public, while respecting privacy, civil rights and civil liberties. This legislation builds on a law written by Peters last Congress to require similar training for federal employees who are responsible for procuring AI technologies for federal agencies.

Peters led numerous efforts to ensure that taxpayer dollars are spent effectively and efficiently. His bipartisan bill directing the General Services Administration (GSA) to install the most cost effective and energy-efficient lighting in public buildings was signed into law. His bipartisan legislation to save taxpayer dollars by ensuring federal property and assets are disaster resilient was also signed into law.

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