Joint Committee Committee on Joint Technology Committee (09/30/2013)

Final
STAFF SUMMARY OF MEETING

COMMITTEE ON JOINT TECHNOLOGY COMMITTEE

Date:	09/30/2013	ATTENDANCE

Time:	09:07 AM to 11:58 AM	Guzman	X
		Hill	A
Place:	HCR 0112	Rankin	X
		Singer	X
This Meeting was called to order by		Newell	X
	Representative Tyler	Tyler	X

This Report was prepared by
	Jessika Shipley
		X = Present, E = Excused, A = Absent, * = Present after roll call

Bills Addressed:		Action Taken:
Introductions and Welcome Consideration of Replacement Appointment to the Colorado Voter Access and Modernized Elections Commission Discussion of CDC Letter Regarding IT Capital Budget Requests Presentation by OIT Other Business		Committee Discussion Only Representative Tyler Appointed to the Commission Committee Discussion Only Witness Testimony and/or Committee Discussion Only Committee Discussion Only

09:08 AM -- Introductions and Welcome

Representative Tyler made opening comments about the role of the committee. He stated that the committee will not be involved with procurement or vendors. He indicated that the internal customers of the committee include the members of the General Assembly and the Joint Budget Committee (JBC). He expressed his belief that some of the major IT systems in the state will require updating in the near future and it is under the purview of the Joint Technology Committee (JTC) to learn about those systems. He talked about his expectations for the interaction between the JTC and the Capital Development Committee (CDC). He discussed the services provided to the state by the Governor's Office of Information Technology (OIT).

09:13 AM

Senator Newell expressed her opinion that the JTC needs to decide how to interact with other entities. She talked about the recommendations she believes the committee should make to the JBC and the CDC.

09:14 AM -- Consideration of Replacement Appointment to the Colorado Voter Access and Modernized Elections Commission

Senator Newell nominated Representative Tyler to replace Senator Giron as the JTC's appointment to the Colorado Voter Access and Modernized Elections Commission.


BILL:	Consideration of Replacement
TIME:	09:15:47 AM
MOVED:	Newell
MOTION:	Nominate Representative Tyler to represent the JTC on the Colorado Voter Access and Modernized Elections Commission. The motion passed on a vote of 5-0, with 1 absent.
SECONDED:	Singer
		VOTE
	Guzman	Yes
	Hill	Absent
	Rankin	Yes
	Singer	Yes
	Newell	Yes
	Tyler	Yes

Final YES: 5 NO: 0 EXC: 0 ABS: 1 FINAL ACTION: PASS

09:17 AM -- Discussion of CDC Letter Regarding IT Capital Budget Requests

Representative Tyler asked if any members of the committee had a chance to read materials from the CDC regarding capital budget items related to IT for FY 2014-15 (Attachment A). He referred to his written notes, which were distributed to the committee (Attachment B). He discussed best practices in regards to business requirements and procedures for implementing new IT projects. Representative Singer expressed concern about whether cloud-based systems are more secure than more traditional systems. Representative Rankin raised the issue of the evolution of cloud-based system architecture and the interchangeability of state systems. He discussed his concerns about performance risk, scheduling, and project management. Senator Newell asked OIT to address contingency and maintenance rates for each project and whether they are determined project by project or according to a standard formula.

130930 AttachA.pdf

130930 AttachB.pdf

09:28 AM

Representative Tyler asked about the industry standard for contingency. He talked about the future costs of modification for enterprise software systems.

09:29 AM -- Presentation by OIT

Kristin Russell, Secretary of Technology and State Chief Information Officer, and Krista Welch, Chief of Staff for OIT, introduced themselves and their staff. Ms. Welch and Secretary Russell presented information using a Power Point presentation that was distributed to the committee (Attachment C). OIT employs 921 employees and supports 1,200 applications and 35,000 computers. Secretary Russell discussed the OIT organization chart and introduced the individuals in charge of each area of the organization. She spoke about OIT's organizational workflow, which includes planning, building, and running. She talked about OIT priorities and values and how those things are involved in the strategic planning process.

130930 AttachC.pdf

09:44 AM

Secretary Russell discussed the method by which OIT evaluates the performance of OIT related to its strategic plan, known as the balanced scorecard. She responded to questions from Representative Tyler about the areas measured by the balanced scorecard. She returned to her presentation with a discussion about FY 2012-13 accomplishments, which included focusing internally on improving service delivery; enhancing the quality of service for customers and end users; developing a service catalog that is the foundation of how OIT engages with customers, provides services, and effectively manages resources; and implementing a workforce strategy focused on recruiting, developing, and retaining IT talent. She responded to questions from Senator Newell with more information about the service catalog. Secretary Russell pointed out that the OIT only has responsibility for executive branch agencies, but they do work collaboratively with other agencies.

09:54 AM

Secretary Russell and the committee discussed the benefits of the balanced scorecard and how it can be used to improve the performance of OIT and its ability to provide excellent customer service. She spoke about communications strategies, leadership development, customer satisfaction, and employee-management relations and engagement. She moved onto a discussion of the awards and recognition received by OIT and about the financial performance of the organization in FY 2012-13. She addressed a chart that showed executive branch IT spending in FY 2012-13. She responded to questions from Senator Guzman about how cooperative the agencies are in the integration process.

10:06 AM

In response to questions from the committee, Secretary Russell discussed how Colorado compares to other states in terms of IT expenditures in the public sector. Colorado invested approximately 1 percent of its total budget on IT expenditures in FY 2012-13. Secretary Russell spoke about IT recruitment and job development.

10:17 AM

Secretary Russell responded to questions about the appropriations mechanism for OIT, which has not historically included operational costs for employees. The committee discussed employee retention rates and attrition at OIT, especially for high performers, and about IT jobs in general. The discussion included community and educational outreach efforts to engage individuals in IT professions.

10:28 AM

The discussion turned to the Colorado Information Marketplace (CIM), which was an effort by OIT to increase transparency and provide public access to various state data sets. Secretary Russell talked about WyCAN, which is a consortium for sharing cloud-based IT services across states. She responded to questions about how OIT handles the issue of contract reliability and data security over long periods of time. The committee discussed how data security is enhanced by cloud-based systems, especially in times of natural disasters. Secretary Russell told the committee about the state's transition to Google applications and spoke about Google's data redundancy abilities. She talked about the cost benefits of switching from dedicated hosting to a cloud-based environment. The committee discussed the shift of IT costs from capital expenses to operating expenses, which may help with the forecasting of future IT expenses.

10:47 AM

Secretary Russell turned to a discussion of the Colorado Benefits Management System (CBMS) and improvement plan performance measures. The committee had a lengthy discussion of the various improvements to CBMS.

11:05 AM

Secretary Russell spoke about the planned modernization of the Colorado Financial Reporting System (COFRS), which began in 2012. She discussed the use of off-the-shelf accounting software systems and redesigning processes rather than customizing software. She listed other key projects and accomplishments.

11:17 AM

Secretary Russell discussed OIT's plan for FY 2013-14 and addressed the agency's annual report and playbook (Attachments D and E respectively). She talked about ways OIT hopes to achieve more successful outcomes related to customer service, people, innovation, service excellence, information security, and trusted partnerships.

130930 AttachD.pdf

130930 AttachE.pdf

11:22 AM

Jonathan Trull, Chief Information Security Officer, responded to questions from Senator Newell about the relationship between the Legislative Emergency Preparedness, Response, and Recovery Committee and OIT. Representative Singer asked questions about the new adult protective services system that is going live in 2013, which will be completely decoupled from CBMS. The committee discussed the ways it can help OIT get the message to the public about improvements and accomplishments in state IT.

11:31 AM

Heather Kopp, deputy executive director of the Colorado Department of Revenue, discussed a catastrophic disk failure that occurred in May 2012, which resulted in the need to restore data. After that event, the department realized that not all data was properly backed up. She listed the types of data that were lost, including information related medical marijuana license applications, gaming applications, and driver's license revocation hearings. She spoke about the impact of the disk failure on the department's customers. She indicated that part of the department's future budget requests are devoted to making hardware and software systems stable and redundant. Michael Dillon, representing the OIT, indicated that it is the responsibility of OIT to ensure that proper backups are done and commented that there is the potential for other failures in other agencies. Secretary Russell stated that a study and inventory are currently in process of all IT applications in the state to determine whether proper backups and maintenance are happening.

11:41 AM

Mr. Dillon discussed lessons that were learned on the management process side from the Department of Revenue failure. He spoke about the aging infrastructure in the state and the proper funding model that would solve that problem. The committee discussed the causes of the failures. Senator Newell asked if there is anything the JTC can recommend to the JBC or if there are any legislative changes that are needed in order to assist OIT in ensuring that backups are adequate and robust.

11:52 AM

The committee discussed the funding mechanism for IT and how the JTC can provide assistance to the JBC in making funding decisions.

11:55 AM -- Other Business

Representative Tyler announced that the committee would meet again in November to discuss the IT capital budget requests in more detail.

11:56 AM

The committee adjourned.

jtc a.pdf

jtc b.pdf