TMF to allocate $100M for high-impact customer experience improvement projects

OMB and GSA have designated $100 million of the Technology Modernization Fund for high-impact service providers with innovative projects that will improve customer experience.

Projects that span agencies; reduce wait times, paperwork and bureaucratic barriers; and improve essential capabilities and systems will be prioritized by the TMF Board.

The funding will be used to support aims executive order 12862, enacted by the Biden administration in December, which directed 17 agencies to work to adhere to 36 specific customer experience improvement commitments.

The TMF funds federal technology modernization projects and recently invested nearly $400 million of the $1 billion in American Rescue Plan Act money it received on 12 efforts, but the Customer Experience (CX) Executive Order issued in late 2021 has the board looking to invest specifically in high-impact service providers (HISPs).

“Government technology and websites can and must work better for the people and communities we serve,” said Robin Carnahan, General Services Administration administrator, in the Thursday announcement. “Targeted TMF funding focused on making their lives easier, when they need government services, is a no-brainer.”

The TMF Board will select projects backed by customer research and data; technology teams and systems ready to rapidly design, prototype and deploy digital tools and services based on human-centered design; and measurable goals. Projects must also address immediate security gaps.

Agencies considered HISPs — those that provide public-facing information, benefits, services and programs — have until August 1, 2022, to apply for expedited consideration for designated funds. After that, applications will be accepted on a rolling basis through Sept. 30, 2022.

The Office of Management and Budget and GSA collaborated on the TMF funding designation.

“The American people deserve a government that puts people at the center of everything it does,” said Clare Martorana, federal chief information officer and TMF Board chair, in a statement. “With this funding, we will deploy secure technology that reduces costs for agencies, eliminates burdens for the federal workforce and those it serves, and powers services that meet the public’s expectations.”