Senate Committee on Business, Labor and Technology (04/15/2009)

Final
STAFF SUMMARY OF MEETING

SENATE COMMITTEE ON BUSINESS, LABOR AND TECHNOLOGY

Date:	04/15/2009	ATTENDANCE

Time:	01:35 PM to 02:19 PM	Foster	X
		Harvey	X
Place:	SCR 354	Mitchell	E
		Scheffel	*
This Meeting was called to order by		Tochtrop	X
	Senator Veiga	Heath	X
		Veiga	X
This Report was prepared by
	Hillary Smith
		X = Present, E = Excused, A = Absent, * = Present after roll call

Bills Addressed:		Action Taken:
SB09-255		Amended, Referred to the Committee of the Whole

01:35 PM -- Senate Bill 09-255

Senator Cadman presented Senate Bill 09-255. The bill creates the Colorado Shared Services Authority to provide services to eligible public sector entities, including state agencies, on a fee-for-service basis. Among other things, the authority is charged with developing a shared services delivery model and Colorado economic development initiative. Shared services could include payroll, human resources, financial reporting, law enforcement (such as 911), utility billing, data center hosting, and electronic mail.

The Governor's Office of Information Technology (OIT) is required to enter into contracts with the authority to implement shared services for state agencies. Local governments, including counties, municipalities, school districts, and special districts may contract with the authority.

The authority is established as a political subdivision of the state, but is not an agency of state government or subject to direction by any state agency. It can contract with any public or private parties and may take advantage of any existing governmental price agreements. It may also issue bonds payable from revenue generated by fees charged for services. Such bonds would be a debt of the authority, but not of the state or any local government.

Senator Cadman discussed the state management of information technology and responded to questions from Senator Foster regarding how the bill will affect emergency technologies.

The following individuals testified regarding the bill:

01:41 PM -- Mike Locatis, Director of the Governor's Office of Information Technology (OIT) and State Chief Information Officer (CIO), testified in favor of the bill. He described his professional background. He stated that OIT supports the bill because it will allow local governments to leverage economies of scale. Mr. Locatis responded to questions from Senator Heath regarding whether other states have attempted to implement similar programs. Senator Heath asked additional questions concerning the cost savings possible under the bill. Conversation continued between Senator Heath and Mr. Locatis regarding benefits to local governments under the bill.

01:47 PM

Mr. Locatis responded to questions from Senator Foster regarding whether possible contracts were already being considered. Senator Foster said she is concerned that the City and County of Denver has no knowledge of the bill. Mr. Locatis described conversations that were had with the City and County of Denver. Discussion continued between Senator Foster and Mr. Locatis. Mr. Locatis noted that the system will be permissive rather than mandatory. Senator Foster asked how the authority would remedy the problem of different technological systems not being able to communicate with each other. Discussion continued. In response to questions concerning the Columbine killings in 1999, Mr. Locatis described technological advancements in emergency communications, such as the Digital Trunked Radio System. Mr. Locatis added that Colorado is a leader in emergency communications and responded to further questions from members of the committee.

01:56 PM

Senator Foster described the technological problems individuals face when trying to access their unemployment insurance (UI) benefits. Senator Cadman addressed Senator Foster's concerns about the UI benefit system, and stated that OIT and others have worked very hard to make improvements to the system. Senator Veiga asked how OIT anticipates it will cover the expenses of the authority. Mr. Locatis stated that the initial start-up costs would be the result of early public-private partnerships, and noted that the authority is "fee-for-service," so it will create a sustainable revenue stream and will not need appropriations from the General Fund. Senator Cadman made additional remarks.

01:59 PM

Senator Foster stated that local jurisdictions will have to pay the price for "sweat equity," even if it is voluntary. She described her concerns about payment to the board members. Senator Cadman clarified that the board is a non-compensated board.

02:01 PM -- Curlie Matthews, CIO for Colorado Springs, testified in favor of the bill. He described the benefits the bill will bring to cities such as Colorado Springs. He described operations that will become easier upon passage of the bill and noted the importance of cost sharings provided in the bill.

02:04 PM -- Bill Miller, CIO for El Paso County, testified in favor of the bill. He described previous city-state partnerships and discussed the benefits for the county under the bill, such as the increased availability of a disaster recovery program.

02:07 PM

Senator Cadman made closing remarks and distributed prepared Amendment L.001 (Attachment A) to the committee. He described the amendment. Senator Scheffel asked for clarification regarding why the private sector is not able to offer a shared services authority. Senator Cadman stated that intergovernmental agreements are very difficult to set up. He said that the authority will become the link between governments and will allow for economies of scale that had not been possible before. He described relevant developments with the Statewide Internet Portal Authority (SIPA). Responding to a question from Senator Scheffel regarding whether the authority would take over functions of private companies, Senator Cadman said the authority allows local governments to set up a cooperative, and added that the point is to find shared needs and goals.

02:12 PM

Mr. Locatis returned to the table to address questions relating to disaster recovery. In response to questions related to the private sector, Mr. Locatis noted that the private sector is always there, it is just up to government to aggregate demand and negotiate the contracts.

02:15 PM

Senator Cadman responded to questions from Senator Heath regarding possible opposition to the bill. Senator Cadman stated that the bill will make things more efficient, and added that when the government is saving money through the use of economies of scale, the private sector is doing more business. Senator Cadman responded to further questions from Senator Heath regarding the risks associated with setting up the authority.


BILL:	SB09-255
TIME:	02:18:22 PM
MOVED:	Heath
MOTION:	Moved to refer Senate Bill 09-255, as amended, to the Committee of the Whole. The motion passed on a 6-0 roll call vote, with one member excused.
SECONDED:
		VOTE
	Foster	Yes
	Harvey	Yes
	Mitchell	Excused
	Scheffel	Yes
	Tochtrop	Yes
	Heath	Yes
	Veiga	Yes

Final YES: 6 NO: 0 EXC: 1 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS


BILL:	SB09-255
TIME:	02:18:17 PM
MOVED:	Heath
MOTION:	Moved prepared Amendment L.001 (Attachment A). The motion passed without objection.
SECONDED:
		VOTE
	Foster
	Harvey
	Mitchell	Excused
	Scheffel
	Tochtrop
	Heath
	Veiga

Not Final YES: 0 NO: 0 EXC: 1 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: Pass Without Objection

02:19 AM

The committee adjourned.