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Honor State Government IT Innovation – Submit a Nomination for NASCIO's 2012 Recognition Award

It's time to showcase your state's technology innovation and leadership. Don't miss out on the chance to submit a nomination and possibly be recognized at a national level at the 2012 Annual Conference in San Diego.

NASCIO's State IT Recognition Awards will honor outstanding state IT projects that exemplify best practices, support public policy goals of state leaders, assist government officials in innovatively executing their duties and provide cost-effective services to citizens. NASCIO state and territory members may submit one project in each of the ten categories. Projects are judged on innovation, significance and overall benefit. Two finalists and one award recipient will be named for each category.

The deadline for submissions is June 4, 2012. For details on the awards program, including the categories and eligibility, visit www.nascio.org/awards/2012awards/index.cfm.

MIDYEAR CONFERENCE UPDATES

Registration Deadline – April 30
The last day to register online for the Midyear Conference is April 30. Register now before it's too late at www.nascio.org/events/2012midyear/.

Mobile Conference Program
Are you registered for the Midyear Conference? Bookmark the conference mobile site and have conference information at your fingertips. The mobile site is available at nascio.org/mobile.


Midyear Conference Sponsor Resource Center
The Midyear Conference sponsors provide a wealth of resources to state members in the Sponsor Resource Center, available at www.nascio.org/events/2012Midyear/src.cfm. Simply click on a sponsor logo to see what that company is presenting, or look up information by topic. The resource center is easily searchable by keyword, so you can find exactly the right information. NASCIO would like to thank our sponsors for their continued support.

State Members: May 8 is Your Day
NASCIO's Midyear Conference will feature a full day of content for state registrants only on Tuesday, May 8. The morning kicks off with a special breakfast for deputy state CIOs and other state staff, followed by the Public Sector Leadership Forum (9:00 to 11:30 am) and the State Member Lunch and Discussion Forum (12:00 to 3:00 pm). Engage in business briefings at the State Member Business Meeting (3:30 to 5:00 pm) and network with your colleagues at the private State Member Networking Reception (5:00 to 6:00 pm). All of these events are exclusively for state registrants.

State CIOs: Increase Your Contacts and Public Policy Awareness at NASCIO's D.C. Fly-In
NASCIO's D.C. Fly-In, scheduled for Wednesday, May 9, will include briefings and roundtable discussions with congressional staff, federal agency officials and NASCIO strategic partners, and the second annual State-Federal CIO Meeting, a unique opportunity for state CIOs to network with counterparts at specific federal agencies. State CIO Fly-In attendees will participate in a classified cyber security briefing with the Department of Homeland Security.

The Fly-In, which is incorporated into the Midyear Conference, is a key part of NASCIO's advocacy and government affairs outreach, designed to establish and strengthen relationships at the federal and strategic partner level. The Fly-In provides an opportunity to reinforce recognition of NASCIO as the primary resource for policy makers on state information technology policy and implementation.

NASCIO's goal is to deliver the association's collective message on priority policy issues such as cyber security, IT funding reform, information sharing, health care IT, privacy and telecommunications reform. Briefings will allow members to learn what policymakers and strategic partners are thinking regarding critical IT issues. For more information and the general Fly-In schedule, visit http://www.nascio.org/events/2012Midyear/fly-in.cfm

The Fly-In is open to state CIOs, state policy leaders and other state registrants as space is available, but pre-registration is required to participate. Register now for the 2012 NASCIO Midyear Conference and Fly-In.

Give Back to Baltimore
Make a difference in Baltimore by helping NASCIO raise $1,500 for technology certification testing for students at Digital Harbor High School. Rising seniors have the opportunity to sit for industry-level, technology certification testing required for further education; however, the cost of the tests is not covered by the school. You can help by donating any amount, from $5 to $100, or more. We are more than half way to our goal.

Additional details about the program, as well as a contribution form, are available at www.nascio.org/events/2012midyear/GiveBack.cfm.

Seeking CEOs for the NASCIO 2012 Annual Conference

Corporate members, here is the opportunity for your CEO to participate in the Corporate VIP Panel at the 2012 NASCIO Annual Conference in San Diego, Calif. Nominations for the VIP panel, "Navigating Towards Success Through Data and Analytics," are now open.

We are looking executives from NASCIO member companies that have a defined strategy around business intelligence and business analytics that can share advice, lessons learned, what missteps to avoid, workforce development, business process transformation, predictive modeling and appropriate technology investment.

Submission Guidelines

• Include 500 word submission with:
  • Concepts and ideas your CEO will bring to the discussion
  • Why the committee should select your CEO
  • Your CEO's unique perspective
• Submit brief bio of CEO
• Send responses to akeller@amrms.com by May 15, 2012

Stay Connected in the NASCIO Community

Are you new to NASCIO? The NASCIO Community is a great way to stay informed and connected with fellow members. Visit the following link to create your profile and start engaging in discussions on hot topics, participate in committee work, download NASCIO resources, create or read blogs, and much more. www.nascio.org/community.nascio.org/nascio_community_splash.cfm.

Congratulations to the top five most engaged members in the NASCIO Community this month:

• Dirk Huggett, State of North Dakota
• Tim Brett, Deltek
• Justin Dew, ActivIdentity
• Sanjeev "Sonny" Bhagowalia, State of Hawai'i
• Robert Myles, Symantec

Recognition Awards Spotlight

This month, the spotlight is on the State of Michigan, which was recognized in the category Fast Track Solutions in the 2011 NASCIO State IT Recognition Awards.

Spotlight Project: MiCloud Automated Hosting Service


"This award is very gratifying to the MiCloud team, as the quality and value of our efforts is being recognized by our peers in the state IT community," said Bob McDonough, chief cloud architect for the Michigan Department of Technology, Management and Budget. "We are very pleased to receive the first-ever award in the Fast Track Solutions category, especially given the excellent array of finalists. NASCIO's recognition will help us extend the benefits of MiCloud across jurisdictions, to serve an even greater population of citizens."

Events of Interest

Geospatial Information and Technology Association (GITA) Thought Leader Symposium
May 16-18, Keystone, Colo.
The GITA symposium offers a unique educational format designed to maximize personal engagement and educational takeaways. The format includes three basic components: presentation of a key technology or topic by an acknowledged subject matter expert, a case study or best practice example of the technology by a practitioner who has actually implemented it, and facilitated discussion involving the presenters. Learn more at http://gita.org/event-site/.

iHT² Health IT Summit
June 12-13, Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
Register for the iHT² Health IT Summit and hear from national thought leaders on proven strategies for aligning IT strategies with business strategies as well as discovering best practices for securing ePHI, HIE models and implementing mobile health initiatives. Learn more at http://ihealthtran.com/fortlauderdalehome.html.

Watch on Washington

FY13 Appropriations Moves Forward

The FY13 appropriations season began in both chambers on April 16. Both chambers need to pass 12 appropriations measures prior to the new fiscal budget year, which begins October 1. The House and Senate Appropriations Subcommittees began editing the FY13 appropriations bills under strict guidelines to keep federal spending flat. The appropriators began with the Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee, the Housing and Urban Development Appropriations Subcommittee and the House Energy and Water Appropriations Subcommittee. It is unlikely that Congress can clear all the appropriations bills, since it is an election year. They will need to pass a continuing resolution to keep the government operational and finish enacting the budget in a lame duck session.

Comments Due on OMB Notice to Reform Cost Principles

The Department of Commerce National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), is seeking comments on the proposed collection of information for the State Broadband Data and Development Grant Program Progress Report (PPR). After reviewing performance progress reports, NTIA has identified a need to revise the existing PPR format by revising and adding questions to improve clarity, reduce the frequency that some information is reported, and delete certain items that are not necessary for effective performance monitoring. NTIA is inviting the general public and federal agencies to comment on the proposed revision by June 18, 2012. Send comments to Jennifer Jessup at jjessup@doc.gov.

House Voted on DATA Act

On April 25, the House passed the DATA Act (HR 2146), sponsored by House Oversight and Government Reform Chairman Darrell Issa (R-CA). This act will establish accountability and transparency in federal spending by establishing a Federal Accountability and Spending Transparency Commission to oversee and track all federal funding, including grants, contracts and loans. The new commission, which will replace the Recovery Accountability and Transparency Board created after the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, would operate a single, comprehensive website to track federal agency spending. The five member commission will be appointed by the President with the advice and consent of the Senate and will carry on the work of the current Recovery Accountability and Transparency Board, including the development of data standards for recipient and Federal agency reporting. For the next seven years, $51,000,000 per year has been appropriated to fund this new commission.

Although the House tried to accommodate many changes suggested by a coalition of state associations that included NASCIO, a funding provision for state and local governments was not included, nor was the notion of a phased implementation. The massive reporting requirements and oversight would be an enormous undertaking for state and local governments particularly without any additional funding and at a time of fiscal strain. The National Governors Association issued a statement opposing the legislation, calling it an unfunded mandate, because it would require new grant reporting standards without any new funding for states to implement the provisions. Senator Mark Warner (D-VA) has introduced the companion measure (S 1222) in the Senate. It is unclear about whether the Senate will pass the legislation.

Cyber Week Declared by Congress

The week of April 23 was declared "cyber week" and the House considered four cybersecurity bills aimed at defending computer networks. All cybersecurity bills were considered under suspension of rules, except for the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act of 2011 (CISPA/HR 3523). Cyber-attacks on the federal government soared 680 percent in six years, according to a recent report released by the Government Accountability Office (GAO). HR 4257, introduced by Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA), would update FISMA, which governs the defenses of the federal government's computer networks. Two bills, introduced by Reps. Michael McCaul (R-TX) and Ralph M. Hall (R-TX), would seek to bolster computer research and development. HR 3834 (Hall) would address general information technology while HR 2096 (McCaul) would focus more on defenses against threats.

HR 3523, the CISPA legislation sponsored by Rep. Mike Rogers (R-MI), would improve threat information sharing between the federal government and businesses that own the most vital and threatened computer networks. This bill is the most controversial of the cyber bills introduced, with opponents claiming the bill would enable the government to spy on web users. Despite amendments that added additional protections, the bill continued to draw opposition from some civil liberties and privacy groups. The House leadership dropped HR 3674, sponsored by Rep. Dan Lungren (R-CA), which would clarify the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) cybersecurity role and seek to improve information sharing. Many are hoping that the House's movement on legislation would spur the Senate to act on the comprehensive cybersecurity measure (S. 4301) introduced by Sens. Lieberman and Collins. Cybersecurity is one of NASCIO's top advocacy priorities for the upcoming 2012 DC Fly-in.

CIO Transitions

Read the latest state CIO transitions – Click here.

Meet our newest members:

• AirWatch (Corporate Member)
• Asysco, Inc. (Corporate Member)
• Level 3 Communications (Corporate Member)

Committee & Work Group Updates

The Health Care Working Group reviewed changes to the newly released Medicaid Information Technology Architecture (MITA) 3.0 Framework. The working group is finalizing and approving the draft MITA 3.0 guidance and anticipates releasing the issue brief in late May.

The IT Procurement Modernization Committee is developing a series of short issue briefs that will seek to identify problems and potential solutions that states run into during IT procurement and contracting. The committee also plans to explore the topic of performance bonds in conjunction with TechAmerica.

The Security and Privacy Committee has partnered with the Enterprise Architecture and Governance Committee on a cloud computing security brief, a fourth in the Capitals in the Cloud series. The joined committees plan to release the brief prior to the Midyear Conference. The committees are also hosting an all-states call May 2 at 3:00 pm Eastern to provide an overview of the Department of Homeland Security's Nationwide Cyber Security Review (NCSR) summary report. Contact Charles Robb at crobb@amrms.com or Eric Sweden at esweden@amrms.com with questions.

The Social Media Forum charter concluded earlier this month but it is expected that a re-charter request will be considered by the NASCIO Executive Committee.

NASCIO: Making Connections

NASCIO and Harvard University hosted a workshop at the Harvard Faculty Club on March 29-30. The workshop expanded on the research completed last year on mobilizing support for the CIO agenda. The meeting focused on the relationship between the CIO and budget director. The following state members participated in the symposium: Dugan Petty (Oregon CIO), Brenda Decker (Nebraska CIO), John Letchford (Massachusetts CIO), Jack Landers (Rhode Island CIO), and David Gustafson (Nevada CIO). Doug Robinson, NASCIO executive director, also participated in this event.

Mark Your Calendar

Upcoming NASCIO Committee Calls and Meetings

• State Digital Identity Working Group – Thursday, April 26, at 3:00 pm Eastern
• Executive Committee – Monday, May 7, 8:00 am – 5:30 pm Eastern (onsite at the Midyear Conference, Baltimore, Md.)
• Corporate Leadership Council – Wednesday, May 9, 3:30-5:30 pm Eastern (onsite at the Midyear Conference, Baltimore, Md.)
• Security and Privacy Committee – Tuesday, May 15, at 1:00 pm Eastern
• State IT Procurement Modernization Committee – Wednesday, May 16, at 2:00 pm Eastern
• Social Media Forum – Tuesday, May 22, at 2:00 pm Eastern
• Health Care Working Group – Wednesday, May 30, at 3:00 pm Eastern
• State Digital Identity Working Group – Thursday, May 31, at 3:00 pm Eastern
• Awards Committee – Thursday, June 14, at 2:00 pm Eastern

Corporate Member Partner Profiles

Informative Graphics

Quest Software

Vion Corporation

In This Issue

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