Summary: As a matter of public policy, the Government strives to obtain full competition on all procurements, and standards are one of the key ingredients for a meaningful level of competition. In the last few years automatic data processing (ADP) standards have been receiving increased attention, primarily because of the role they can play in increasing competition and in reducing conversion costs when changing vendors. Computer language standards are often sited as particularly important in reaching these goals. As a result of a weak Federal ADP Standards Program, competitive procurements of ADP by the Federal Government are at a very low level and conversion costs are high. The Executive Branch is now undertaking several initiatives to strengthen the Program. However, one problem is the difficulty of assuring an adequate level of user participation in the standards-making process. Active participation by users is critical to the successful and timely development of standards. To realize more fully the potential benefits that standards can provide, the following steps must be taken: (1) identify and develop specifications for language standards that will minimize conversion costs and increase competition; (2) develop ways and means for creating specifications and standards more swiftly without compromising quality and the achievement of user and manufacturer consensus; and (3) find ways to provide greater user participation and to assure that the standards requirements of small users are met.
