In addition, according to FITARA, the Office of Electronic Government at  OMB was to:
Establish metrics applicable to the consolidation and optimization of  data centers (including server efficiency), ensure that agencies’  progress toward meeting government-wide data center consolidation  and optimization metrics is made publicly available, review agencies’  inventories and strategies to determine whether they are  comprehensive and complete, and monitor the implementation of  each agency’s strategy. This reduction in planned savings was the result of eight agencies  reporting less in planned cost savings and avoidances in their DCOI  strategic plans compared to the savings amounts previously reported to  us in November 2015. Given these findings, we recommended that OMB improve its oversight of  agencies’ DCOI strategic plans and their reporting of cost savings and  avoidances. As of March 2018, 29 of the 30  recommendations had not been fully addressed. Toward this end, the 24 agencies participating in DCOI collectively have  made progress on their data center closure efforts. Specifically, as of August 2017, 13  agencies reported that they had already met the goal of closing 25  percent of their tiered data centers, another 4 agencies reported that they  plan to meet the goal by the end of fiscal year 2018, and 5 agencies  reported that they do not currently plan to meet the goal. Further, as of August 2017, 7 agencies reported having already met the  goal for closing 60 percent of their non-tiered centers, 6 agencies  reported that they planned to meet the goal by the end of fiscal year  2018, and 10 agencies reported that they did not plan to meet the goal. As of August 2017, 20 agencies had reported through the integrated data  collection that they had achieved $1.04 billion in cost savings for fiscal  years 2016 and 2017, while 4 agencies reported that they had not  achieved any savings. Nevertheless, this total is  about $1.12 billion below OMB’s goal of $2.7 billion for DCOI savings. Figure 4 provides a comparison of the 24 agencies’ total reported savings  for fiscal years 2016 and 2017, and the planned savings through 2018,  against OMB’s DCOI savings goal for fiscal years 2016 through 2018. In addition, the 24 agencies reported that they have planned an additional  $0.58 billion in DCOI cost savings (for a total of $1.62 billion) through  fiscal year 2018. Pursuant to FITARA,  OMB’s August 2016 memorandum established a set of five data center  optimization metrics intended to measure agencies’ progress in the areas  of server utilization and automated monitoring, energy metering, power  usage effectiveness, facility utilization, and virtualization. As of August 2017, 22 of the 24 DCOI agencies continued to report  limited progress in meeting OMB’s fiscal year 2018 data center  optimization targets identified on the IT Dashboard. Six agencies met either one or two  targets, and 14 agencies reported meeting none of the targets. Of the  remaining agencies, 14 reported plans to meet some, but not all, of the  targets; 4 reported that they do not plan to meet any targets; and—as  already discussed—Education and HUD do not have a basis to report planned optimization milestones because they do not report having any  agency-owned data centers. However, only four agencies are planning to  meet all of their applicable targets. Appendix I: Objectives, Scope, and Methodology

Our objectives for this engagement were to: (1) review agencies’ data  center closures to date and plans for further closures, (2) evaluate  agencies’ progress in achieving data center consolidation savings and  describe plans for future savings, and (3) assess agencies’ progress  against the Office of Management and Budget’s (OMB) data center  optimization targets. To address the first objective, we obtained and analyzed August 2017  data center inventory documentation from the 24 departments and  agencies (agencies) that participate in OMB’s Data Center Optimization  Initiative (DCOI).
Why GAO Did This Study

In December 2014, Congress enacted federal IT acquisition reform legislation that included provisions related to ongoing federal data center consolidation efforts. OMB's Federal Chief Information Officer launched DCOI to build on prior data center consolidation efforts; improve federal data centers' performance; and establish goals for inventory closures, cost savings and avoidances, and optimization performance.
The 2014 legislation also included a provision for GAO to annually review agencies' data center inventories and strategies. Accordingly, GAO reviewed agencies' data center closures to date and plans for further closures; evaluated agencies' progress in achieving consolidation savings and described their plans for future savings; and assessed agencies' progress against OMB's data center optimization targets. To do so, GAO assessed the 24 DCOI agencies' data center inventories as of August 2017; reviewed their reported cost savings documentation; evaluated their data center optimization strategic plans; and assessed 22 agencies' progress against OMB's established optimization targets. Two agencies did not have a basis to report planned optimization milestones.
OMB and the 24 DCOI agencies provided mixed responses to GAO's findings on the progress made towards initiative goals. GAO continues to believe that implementation of the recommendations made previously will help the agencies meet OMB's targets for cost savings and optimization of performance.

What GAO Found

The 24 agencies participating in the Office of Management and Budget's (OMB) Data Center Optimization Initiative (DCOI) reported mixed progress toward achieving OMB's goals for closing data centers by September 2018. Over half of the agencies reported that they had either already met, or planned to meet, all of their OMB-assigned goals by the deadline. This would result in the closure of 7,221 of the 12,062 centers that agencies reported in August 2017. However, 4 agencies reported that they do not have plans to meet all of their assigned goals and 2 agencies are working with OMB to establish revised targets.
With regard to agencies' progress in achieving cost savings, 20 agencies reported, as of August 2017, that they had achieved $1.04 billion in cost savings for fiscal years 2016 and 2017. In addition, the agencies' DCOI strategic plans identify an additional $0.58 billion in planned savings—for a total of $1.62 billion for fiscal years 2016 through 2018. This total is approximately $1.12 billion less than OMB's DCOI savings goal of $2.7 billion (see figure). This shortfall is the result of 12 agencies reporting less in planned cost savings and avoidances in their DCOI strategic plans, as compared to the savings targets established for them by OMB.
The 24 agencies reported limited progress against OMB's five data center optimization targets for server utilization and automated monitoring, energy metering, power usage effectiveness, facility utilization, and virtualization. As of August 2017, 1 agency had met four targets, 1 agency had met three targets, 6 agencies had met either one or two targets, and 14 agencies reported meeting none of the targets. Further, as of August 2017, most agencies were not planning to meet OMB's fiscal year 2018 optimization targets. Specifically, 4 agencies reported plans to meet all of their applicable targets by the end of fiscal year 2018; 14 reported plans to meet some of the targets; and 4 reported that they do not plan to meet any targets.
In 2016 and 2017, GAO made a number of recommendations to OMB and the 24 DCOI agencies to help improve the reporting of data center-related cost savings and to achieve optimization targets. As of March 2018, 74 of these 81 recommendations had not been fully addressed.