When Robert McFarland became the Department of Veterans Affairs' chief information officer, he asked, "Where's the budget?" The response was one of the biggest surprises of his professional life.

Contrary to what the former Dell executive had experienced in the private sector, the VA's CIO had no control over the VA's $1.2 billion information technology budget. Spending was decentralized, and no one was watching the entire picture to monitor how efficiently the IT department made investments.

"When it's been distributed in the past, it has been harder to track," McFarland said. "It was difficult to account for what you spend and what you've been authorized to spend."

All that changed last fall when VA Secretary James Nicholson decided to centralize budget authority at the CIO's office. At the same time, Congress approved a measure to put the power of the purse in McFarland's hands, and President Bush signed it into law.

"The department has annually spent billions of dollars without accountability or measurable performance outcomes on IT modernization," said Rep. Steve Buyer (R-Ind.), chairman of the House Veterans Affairs' Committee and the measure's sponsor.

The Clinger-Cohen Act of 1996 established a CIO office at every federal agency but didn't include a specific provision for who controls the money. The reason was simple, according to sources who helped draft the legislation. Federal chief financial officers opposed giving the spending power to CIOs. This impasse has weakened the office at many federal agencies.

"Congress would have loved to add more authorities -- including budget authority -- for the CIOs," said Drew Crockett, deputy communications director for the Government Reform Committee. "However, since Clinger-Cohen was such a huge burden to pass, members at the time never thought they could get more. Budget authority for CIOs has been discussed on and off for years, and we continue to explore ways to expand the CIO function."

Although some federal agencies provide spending controls at the CIO level, many do not. This hodgepodge of policies has created a variety of difficulties for CIOs.

"Of course, it helps to have budget authority," wrote Vance Hitch, the Justice Department's CIO, in an e-mail. "It is an important factor in impacting IT initiatives. It allows you to have more direct influence and control over the success of the initiatives."