Cruz's Bipartisan SHARE IT Act Passes Senate, Aims to Reduce Redundancy

Senator Ted Cruz's bipartisan Source Code Harmonization And Reuse in Information Technology (SHARE IT) Act has passed the upper chamber and will make its way to President Joe Biden's (D) desk. The bill, which was introduced alongside U.S. Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman Gary Peters (D-MI), would require government agencies to share custom-developed source code, avoiding a multiplicity of government contracts to develop them for differing agencies.

Upon the SHARE IT Act's passage, the Texas senator shared that it is curbing duplicative spending and providing transparency within the government.

"American taxpayers deserve government efficiency wherever possible. Congress should take advantage of every opportunity to reduce duplicative spending and boost government transparency in procurement," said Sen. Cruz. "I am proud to have worked with Chairman Peters and Rep. Langworthy to advance the SHARE IT Act and bring greater fiscal responsibility and accountability to the federal government’s information technology needs.”

Furthermore, Sen. Peters said that this bill would improve the government's capabilities and save taxpayers money.

“By facilitating custom code sharing among federal agencies, we can significantly cut costs for taxpayers, enhance the efficiency of government services, boost security and foster software innovation," said Sen. Peters. "This bipartisan legislation enhances the federal government’s digital capabilities and will benefit Americans as they access government services online. I am thankful for Senator Cruz’s leadership on this effort and am happy to see it heading to the President’s desk.”

Moreover, Representative Nick Langworthy (R-NY) brought the bill forth, and it passed in the House earlier this month, said the success of the legislation is a "win" for the American people.

“The SHARE IT Act’s passage in the Senate is a win for American taxpayers and the first step toward President Trump’s agenda of making our government more efficient and accountable," said Rep. Langworthy. "I want to thank Senator Ted Cruz for his leadership in championing this bipartisan effort in the Senate. By eliminating wasteful spending on redundant software and requiring agencies to share solutions, we’re streamlining our federal government while delivering real savings for the American people. I look forward to seeing this commonsense bill signed into law.”

The SHARE IT Act does not require any additional funding.