VA CIO Says CIO Should Have More IT Budget Authority

In a time where budgets are flat or declining, Roger Baker, the chief information officer at the Veterans Affairs Department, says giving the agency chief information officers more say in financial decisions could be a way to create savings for the federal technology enterprise.

The suggestion comes from the only agency CIO that has been provided authority by Congress to unilaterally cancel information technology spending projects or shift funding. This power allows him to cancel about $700 million in IT spending during his first year in office.

His reach is now extending to launch a policy that would disallow personal desk-side printers throughout the department, which could save up to $100 million over several years according to the VA...