Top tech award award in government IT goes to Congressman Gerry Connolly

Congressman Gerry Connolly (D-VA) is this year’s recipient of the prestigious Eagle Award, the top tech award presented annually to one leader in government IT.

Connolly is just the second Member of Congress to ever receive the award given annually by Federal Computer Week (FCW).  At the 26th annual Fed 100 awards gala attended by hundreds of tech industry leaders, Connolly was presented with this year’s Eagle Award by his predecessor in Congress and a previous award winner, former House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Tom Davis.

The Eagle Award is given out annually to one leader in government and one leader in business.  Past winners include former Rep. Davis, former NSA Director Lt. Gen. Keith Alexander, former GSA Administrator Dan Tangherlini, former DHS CIO Richard Spires, and former Deputy Secretary of Defense William J. Lynn III.

The panel of judges for the award cited Connolly’s work to change the approach to government IT, his expertise and work in Congress on technology issues, and his success in passage of a sweeping IT acquisition reform bill.

Connolly, whose Federal Information Technology Acquisition and Reform Act (FITARA) was signed into law by the President in December, said at last night’s award ceremony, “It is vital that the federal government goes beyond thinking of technology as merely a commodity to be purchased.  FITARA is just the first step.”

The bipartisan Issa-Connolly FITARA is the first major rewrite of federal IT procurement in nearly 20 years and will streamline the way the federal government purchases technology and bring needed efficiencies to government procurement.

In recognizing the 11th CD Virginia Congressman’s achievements since coming to Congress, Federal Computer Week noted, “In his 14 years in local government, Connolly worked hard to change the approach to government IT, and that experience laid the foundation for his work in Congress.”

“Passing FITARA has been one of my most challenging, but proudest, achievements in Congress. I am humbled by this honor,”  Connolly said.

Congressman Elijah Cummings, Ranking Member of the House Oversight and Reform Committee, called Connolly “a true leader in efforts to improve the federal government’s acquisition and use of information technology.”

Congressman Connolly is a senior member of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee and is the Ranking Member of the Government Operations Subcommittee, which has broad jurisdiction over government policy for the federal workforce, federal agencies, federal procurement, and information policy. He has also twice been named a Fed 100 award recipient.