1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Modernizing Government Technology Act of 2017 or the MGT Act . 2. Findings; purposes (a) Findings The Congress finds the following: (1) The Federal Government spends nearly 75 percent of its annual information technology funding on operating and maintaining existing legacy information technology systems. These systems can pose operational risks, including rising costs and inability to meet mission requirements. These systems also pose security risks, including the inability to use current security best practices, such as data encryption and multi-factor authentication, making these systems particularly vulnerable to malicious cyber activity. (2) In 2015, the Government Accountability Office designated improving the management of information technology acquisitions and operations to its biannual High Risk List and identified as a particular concern the increasing level of information technology spending on operations and maintenance, making less funding available for development or modernization. The Government Accountability Office also found that the Federal Government has spent billions on failed and poorly performing information technology investments due to a lack of effective oversight. (3) The Federal Government must modernize Federal information technology systems to mitigate existing operational and security risks. (4) The efficiencies, cost savings, and greater computing power offered by modernized solutions, such as cloud computing, have the potential to— (A) eliminate inappropriate duplication and reduce costs; (B) address the critical need for cybersecurity by design