Technology Modernization Fund: Small Savings Achieved So ...

Overview

The GAO found that the Technology Modernization Fund (TMF) has invested in dozens of projects to modernize federal IT but has realized only modest cost savings so far, with much larger savings expected in future years. From fiscal years 2018 through 2025 the Technology Modernization Board invested about $1.03 billion in 68 unclassified projects; as of June 2025, 24 projects expected about $1.06 billion in total savings but only 11 had collectively realized about $13.5 million to date. Many projects either expect their savings in fiscal year 2027 or later or do not expect cost savings and instead target other benefits such as security risk reduction. Procurements supporting TMF projects have largely used full and open competition per the Competition in Contracting Act of 1984, though agencies documented exceptions where they did not. OMB guidance directs that TMF project proposals include reliable estimates of project-related cost savings, and GAO evaluated realized versus expected savings using OMB’s 10 percent variance threshold — important context for contractors preparing proposals and capture materials. Action is needed now to monitor upcoming solicitations, prepare defensible cost-savings and value narratives, and ensure procurement and proposal documentation will stand up to GAO/OMB review.

Immediate Actions (This Week)

[ ] Monitor official TMF communications and the GAO report details; flag any solicitations or agency notices referencing TMF projects.
[ ] Review your recent past performance and program delivery records to identify concrete, verifiable metrics (dollars saved, cost-avoidance, migration cost reductions, security risk mitigations) you can cite in proposals.
[ ] Prepare a reusable template for OMB-style cost-savings estimates and for documenting assumptions and methodology that can be adapted to multiple TMF-aligned opportunities.

Short-Term Actions (30 Days)

[ ] Build capture briefs for active TMF project areas your firm can support, emphasizing measurable savings and non-cost benefits (security, risk reduction, operational resiliency).
[ ] Assemble an audit-ready procurement and competition file showing how you will support full and open competition requirements or, if pursuing an exception, what documentation will be needed from the agency.

Long-Term Actions (90+ Days)

[ ] Invest in delivery and migration practices that reduce the risk of cost overruns (e.g., migration cost controls, phased deployments) so realized savings better match estimates.
[ ] Maintain a rolling tracker of realized versus projected savings for any awarded TMF-related work to support OMB/GAO variance reviews and to strengthen future proposals.

Compliance Checklist

[ ] Confirm proposal-level cost-savings estimates follow OMB guidance to applicants for TMF funds — source and template: TBD pending source review.
[ ] Track realized versus expected savings and document variances relative to OMB’s 10 percent variance threshold for reporting and audit readiness.
[ ] Ensure procurement approaches align with the Competition in Contracting Act of 1984; prepare to support full and open competition documentation or documented authorized exceptions.
[ ] Maintain audit-ready records of contract actions, statements of work, and technical performance metrics to respond to GAO inquiries.

Resources

Competition in Contracting Act of 1984 — source: TBD pending source review
OMB guidance to TMF applicants — source: TBD pending source review
GAO report contact (from the summary): Carol C. Harris — [email protected]
Internal reference: Secure Operations Guide (/insights/secure-operations-guide)
Related guides: CMMC (Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification) Compliance Guide (/insights/cmmc-compliance-guide), CUI (Controlled Unclassified Information)-Safe CRM Guide (/insights/cui-safe-crm-guide)

How Cabrillo Club Automates This

Cabrillo Signals War Room — Already detected this event and delivered this briefing within minutes. War Room continuously monitors federal reports, GAO publications, OMB guidance, and TMF-related notices so your team receives near-real-time alerts about updates to TMF investments, GAO findings, or changes in procurement behavior tied to these projects. Use War Room alerts to trigger capture reviews and assign owners immediately.

Cabrillo Signals Match Engine — The Match Engine will automatically rescore your opportunity pipeline when this TMF event changes the competitive landscape. It reprioritizes opportunities based on updated relevance signals (e.g., TMF funding patterns, realization timelines) and surfaces opportunities where your past performance and savings evidence best align with agency needs.

Cabrillo Signals Intelligence Hub — Use the Intelligence Hub to track affected agencies, contract vehicles, and project portfolios tied to TMF activity. Configure saved searches and alerts to notify capture teams when follow-on solicitations, amendments, or award actions that match this TMF profile appear on public sources. The Hub centralizes source documents and acquisition histories into a single workspace for rapid analysis.

Proposal Studio (Proposal OS) — Proposal Studio generates first-draft technical approaches and builds compliance matrices keyed to OMB-style cost-savings evidence. It pulls from your win-theme library and past performance records to produce defensible cost-savings narratives and a repeatable methodology you can reuse across TMF-aligned bids. Use Proposal OS to accelerate bid/no-bid decisions and draft the sections reviewers will scrutinize for OMB/GAO variance.

Proposal Studio Workflow Tracker — The Workflow Tracker enforces a 9-gate capture process from opportunity identification through post-submission. It automates routing for procurement and legal reviews, tracks supplier certifications and required documentation for competitive procurements, and generates audit-ready submission packages that make it easier to demonstrate compliance with the Competition in Contracting Act of 1984 and to support any GAO follow-up.

Explore these features in your Cabrillo dashboard to convert this TMF event into prioritized opportunities and to harden your cost-savings narratives and compliance posture.