Big Ideas, No Budget? See This

Suppose the big boss loves your idea for a new information technology project, but doesn't have room in the budget for your initiative. Before you curse Congress or grumble about short-sighted management, check out a new report that explains how to get IT projects funded when budgets are tight.

The report, "Innovative Funding Approaches for Information Technology Initiatives," put together by the Federation of Government Information Processing Councils and the General Services Administration's Office of Governmentwide Policy, suggests several ways government innovators can find money for their pet projects in an age of fiscal responsibility. Some of its recommendations:

Share the budget burden by forming partnerships. Why keep a good idea to yourself when what works for your agency would likely work for others? Form interagency agreements to share staff and resources on IT projects, or partner with local and state governments. For example, electronic signature standards will benefit anyone hoping to do business on the Internet. So the Treasury Department's Financial Management Service, the Energy Department, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Census Bureau teamed up to split the costs of developing them.

Don't get stuck in an accounting rut. Agencies shouldn't limit a project to one funding method, the report says. Managers should open their minds to allowing a single project to be funded by some combination of appropriations, bonds, grants, contingency fees based on revenue, and contingency fees based on services.

Charge Fees.Dozens of agencies charge citizens for their services, and the Office of Management and Budget is encouraging agencies to create user fees wherever appropriate. A portion of fees the Immigration and Naturalization Service collects from travelers goes to IT support, the report notes.

Try special taxes and bonds. More appropriate for state and local governments, this option targets revenues for specific projects. The State of Nebraska, for instance, takes two cents of every dollar collected from the state's cigarette tax and applies that money to an Information Technology Infrastructure Fund. Much of the $12 million the fund will take in over four years will be used for year 2000 conversion.

Sell public assets or data. Sell old computer equipment to make money for new machines. Some states have also started selling data to bring in money. The GeorgiaNet Authority tailors state information to customers like lobbyists and associations, then charges an annual fee for its services. For example, lobbyists pay Georgia $50 a year for access to a special bill-searching application tailored to their needs.

Apply for a grant. Many state and local government projects are funded by federal grant money, but now there's a grant program for federal agencies themselves. The Government Information Technology Services Board's Technology Innovation Fund gives program managers start-up funds, with the hope that new programs will eventually become self-sustaining. The Innovations in American Government Awards, sponsored by the Ford Foundation, reward existing federal programs that demonstrate results. The IRS and the Food and Drug Administration won $100,000 awards last year from the Ford Foundation, while the Environmental Protection Agency and the Treasury Department each brought home $20,000.