NASCIO Honors Former Georgia CIO Calvin Rhodes with Meritorious Service Award

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Seattle, Wash., Wednesday, October 13, 2021 — The National Association of State Chief Information Officers (NASCIO) recognized Calvin Rhodes former chief information officer (CIO) for the State of Georgia, with the association’s Meritorious Service Award. NASCIO created the Meritorious Service Award several years ago, honoring leadership in state government and dedication to the advancement of NASCIO’s mission.

Calvin joined the Georgia Technology Authority in January 2011 to lead the state’s IT transformation and consolidation effort. The initiative has strengthened security, modernized infrastructure and networks, improved reliability, and increased transparency in the state’s IT enterprise. Calvin also was heavily involved in the creation of the Georgia Cyber Center; whose core mission is to develop the next generation cybersecurity workforce by delivering affordable and relevant cybersecurity training and education.

Calvin is also highly engaged with NASCIO; he is a frequent speaker and served on the Executive Committee between 2012-2016.

NASCIO Contact

Meredith Ward
Director of Policy and Research
National Association of State Chief Information Officers
859.514.9209
[email protected]

NASCIO Announces Recipients for 2021 NASCIO State IT Recognition Awards

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Seattle, Wash., Wednesday, October 13, 2021 —The National Association of State Chief Information Officers (NASCIO) has announced recipients for the 2021 NASCIO State IT Recognition Awards. This year 110 submissions were received from NASCIO member states and territories and over 60 NASCIO members served as volunteer judges.

The award nominations showcase the use of information technology to address critical business problems, more easily connect citizens to their government, improve business processes and create new opportunities that improve the lives of citizens. To ensure states have access to the innovations and leading practices of their peers, all award submissions have been added to NASCIO’s Awards Library.

NASCIO Awards Committee co-chairs, Nelson Moe, Chief Information Officer for the Commonwealth of Virginia, and James Weaver, Secretary of Technology and Chief Information Officer for the State of North Carolina, praised the recipients and all states who submitted a project: “We congratulate all of the recipients of this year’s awards and are delighted to recognize them with this high honor.”

Award recipients for the 2021 State IT Recognition Awards are:

Business Process Innovations
State of Georgia: Halt! Who goes there? Georgia DOL’s Identity Verification Project

Cross-Boundary Collaboration & Partnerships
State of Connecticut: Contact Tracing Innovation – ContaCT

Cybersecurity
State of Ohio: Bringing Power to the People: Self-service Tools & Account Transparency

Data Management, Analytics & Visualization
State of North Carolina: Bridging the Data Divide and Bringing Health Equity

Digital Government: Government to Business
State of Colorado: Simplifying Colorado’s Sales & Use Tax Filings

Digital Government: Government to Citizen
State of Louisiana: Virtualizing Disaster SNAP

Emerging & Innovative Technologies
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania: Pandemic Electronic Benefit Transfer Robotic Process Automation

Enterprise IT Management Initiatives
State of North Carolina: North Carolina is a Leader in the Nation for Next Gen 911

Information Communications Technology (ICT) Innovations
State of Colorado: Transforming Raw Data into Actionable Insight with Location Intelligence

State CIO Office Special Recognition
State of California: My Turn: California’s Front Door to Vaccine Access

To review these and other submissions, please visit NASCIO’s Awards Library: NASCIO.org/awards.

NASCIO Contact

Meredith Ward
Director of Policy and Research
National Association of State Chief Information Officers
859.514.9209
[email protected]

NASCIO Honors Three Public Servants with State Technology Innovator Award

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Seattle, Wash., Tuesday, October 12, 2021 —The National Association of State Chief Information Officers (NASCIO) presented the State Technology Innovator Award to three deserving public servants during the NASCIO 2021 Annual Conference. The NASCIO State Technology Innovator Award honors outstanding state government employees who have made contributions to advance state technology policy through the promotion of best practices, adoption of new technologies and advancements in service delivery. Nominations were gathered from NASCIO members and selected by the NASCIO Executive Committee.

The following are the recipients of the 2021 NASCIO State Technology Innovator Award:

Rick Klau
State Chief Technology Innovation Officer, California Department of Technology

Rick Klau got involved in state technology when he was in the private sector and volunteered to help California with its COVID-19 vaccination data efforts. His work so impressed State CIO Amy Tong that she asked if he would consider joining her team. Without hesitation, Rick became California’s Chief Technology Innovation Officer in early 2021. Rick has overseen the creation of a digital vaccination record for Californians and the Digital COVID-19 Vaccine Record Portal—a first of its kind service in California. Under Rick’s guidance, team building, leadership and advocacy, the portal was released in June 2021. The voluntary system gives every vaccinated Californian who wants one a digital version of their vaccine record that is also a SMART Health Card. With this ecard, California residents have an opt-in, secure and shareable digital copy of their COVID-19 vaccination record to use as they see fit. In just 12 days after its launch, the system delivered more than 1 million digital vaccine records to California residents.

Dale Richardson
Chief Operations Officer, Texas Department of Information Resources

Dale Richardson helped guide the Texas Department of Information Resources (DIR) response efforts through the COVID-19 pandemic and the Texas winter storm of 2021. Under Dale’s operational leadership, DIR ensured continuity of operations for Texas state agencies and institutions of higher education. When Texas organizations needed information technology services the most, Dale and his team managed the state’s data centers and statewide network without disruption. With pre-emptive preparation and planning, Dale’s team implemented a variety of expanded technology solutions and provided guidance for agency technology implementation in response to COVID-19. Additionally, Dale has implemented the Texas Data Center Services model to provide technology services and solutions to state agencies and local governments including private and public cloud
services, mainframe services and security operations services. In December 2020, DIR customers rated the services model with 100 percent customer satisfaction.

Julia Richman
Deputy Executive Director, Colorado Governor’s Office of Information Technology

Julia Richman joined the Colorado Governor’s Office of Information Technology (OIT) in February 2019, and was critical to the agency’s COVID-19 response efforts. She simultaneously helped to move both OIT employees to remote work as well as support the more than 32,000 state employees who began working remotely. Additionally, she served as OIT’s connection to the Governor’s Innovation Response Team. Within weeks of joining OIT, Julia assessed the agency’s operating model and determined that it was no longer optimal and needed updating. In August 2020, a two year program to reimagine information technology was launched under Julia’s leadership. As part of this program, several projects have already been completed including the vendor management project; a new, user-friendly service catalog; an IT service hub; and real-time billing. Finally, under Julia’s direction, an IT Rates and Services Board and an IT Strategy and Planning Board were established.

NASCIO Contact

Meredith Ward
Director of Policy and Research
National Association of State Chief Information Officers
859.514.9209
[email protected]

NASCIO Honors Texas State CISO Nancy Rainosek

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Seattle, Wash., Tuesday, October 12, 2021 — The National Association of State Chief Information Officers (NASCIO) has named Texas Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) Nancy Rainosek as the recipient of the 2021 Thomas M. Jarrett State Cybersecurity Leadership Award. This is the ninth year for the program, which was created to pay homage to Thomas M. Jarrett, past president of NASCIO (2004 – 2005), for his passion for cybersecurity. The award honors state CISOs for exceptional accomplishments in their field. This award evolved from the Thomas M. Jarrett Cybersecurity Scholarship, being renamed in 2020 to reflect the vital role state CISOs hold in state cybersecurity efforts and their deeper involvement with NASCIO.

Nancy was nominated by Texas Chief Information Officer and Executive Director of the Texas Department of Information Resources (DIR) Amanda Crawford who wrote, “Nancy brought a fresh vision and approach to the statewide CISO Role in Texas. Through her leadership, Texas state agencies, institutions of higher education and local government entities are more focused on cybersecurity and are better prepared to address cyber threats.”

Nancy’s award submission also highlighted her role in the ransomware attack on Texas municipalities in 2019—what would later be known as the largest coordinated ransomware attack against local governments in the United States at the time. Through a statewide cyber incident response plan, all affected local government entities were back up and running in five days – an unprecedented feat for the size of the attack.

NASCIO President and Commissioner and CIO for the State of New Hampshire Denis Goulet said, “The Texas cyber event in 2019 was the first of its kind and changed the game for state and local entities. Texas’ efforts, led by Nancy Rainosek, set the standard for how states can and will respond in the future.”

In addition to coordinating the response to the 2019 attack, Nancy has also implemented multi-factor authentication for state agencies, cybersecurity awareness training, phishing simulations, secure developer coding training, managed security services, elections security assessments for Texas counties and is in the planning phase of implementing endpoint detection and response for state agency endpoints. Nancy has also partnered with Texas high schools and the Texas Parent Teachers Association to get the next generation of cybersecurity professionals started. Finally, Nancy has also established the Texas Information Sharing and Analysis Organization which is a partnership between DIR and several Texas universities to share threat intelligence information and education with all Texas critical infrastructure organizations.

To view past recipients of the Thomas M. Jarrett State Cybersecurity Leadership Award, visit nascio.org/awards.

NASCIO Contact

Meredith Ward
Director of Policy and Research
National Association of State Chief Information Officers
859.514.9209
[email protected]

NASCIO and Accenture Release Report to Support State Government Cloud Initiatives

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Study highlights areas of progress and challenges as cloud computing spreads in state government

Seattle, Wash., October 11, 2021 – A new biennial study by the National Association of State Chief Information Officers (NASCIO) and Accenture focuses on increased interest and use of cloud computing in state government, state chief information officers’ perspectives on the current state of cloud adoption and provides an assessment tool to help guide advancements in states’ use of cloud.

The study notes that state governments are relatively new to the cloud market, with cloud first appearing on NASCIO’s State CIO Top Ten priorities list in 2010. Even with considerable uptake of cloud in state government over the past decade, CIOs point to major barriers slowing their move to cloud, including considerations around financial management and budgets, cybersecurity, procurement and workforce.

“We found state CIOs widely acknowledge benefits from shifting to the cloud, including potential cost savings, system flexibility, scalability, security and improved citizen experiences,” said Doug Robinson, NASCIO executive director. “And many of them want to more aggressively address perceived barriers that stand in the way of tapping more cloud power to advance digital and operational capabilities, so we offer this new report as a resource.”

Some of the key findings from the NASCIO/Accenture study include:
Many states still reliant on CapEx spending – 54% of CIOs reported that their state budget office prefers the best-suited funding model for cloud budgeting, OpEx (operating expenditure); 24% report a state budget preference for CapEx (capital expenditure budgeting), generally not conducive to effectively budgeting for cloud.

Continued heavy reliance on mainframe computers – 89% still have a mainframe computer, and 71% have not moved any mainframe applications to the cloud, a key step in enterprise cloud implementation.

Desired cloud offerings – CIOs flagged certain functionalities they would like to see more of in vendors’ cloud offerings, with integration, pricing and transparency topping the wish list.

“There is inevitably going to be continued strong uptake of cloud by state governments intent on making best use of their people and budgets and better serving their citizens,” said Ryan Oakes, who leads Accenture’s global public sector work. “With many states still early in their cloud journey, there are abundant opportunities for them to move forward in a more systematic and disciplined manner.”

The NASCIO/Accenture cloud study will be conducted on a biennial basis.

 

NASCIO Contact

Joe Dickie
Accenture
512.694.6422
[email protected]

Meredith Ward
National Association of State Chief Information Officers
859.514.9209
[email protected]

State CIOs Lead Digital Services Efforts to Improve Citizen Experience

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New Report Reveals Significant Lessons Learned During COVID-19 Pandemic

Seattle, Wash., October 11, 2021 – The ongoing response to and recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic have significantly accelerated digital transformation within state governments on numerous fronts and placed the state Chief Information Officer (CIO) at the center of much of this work, according to the 2021 State CIO Survey, Driving Digital Acceleration. The report examines key issues related to the impact of COVID-19 such as digital government, remote workforce models, cybersecurity and broadband networks.

The state CIO survey, which has been published annually for the last 12 years, includes responses from 49 state and territory CIOs and is the product of a partnership between the National Association of State Chief Information Officers (NASCIO), Grant Thornton LLC and CompTIA.

“State CIOs are well positioned to effectively shepherd their states toward and through significant digital evolution on several levels,” NASCIO Executive Director Doug Robinson commented. “State leaders will continue to look to state CIOs to leverage and build on the progress made over the past year.”

“For state CIOs, there is no returning to pre-pandemic business models,” said Graeme Finley, principal at Grant Thornton. “The pandemic highlighted the value of technology and how critical it is in the delivery of government services and to the productivity of state employees.”

“While 2021 was still very much dominated by a state’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the results of this survey revealed a strong desire for government technology leaders to embrace these challenges and look for opportunities to improve how state agencies interact
with and serve citizens and customers,” added Jordan Kroll, Director of Public Sector at CompTIA. “This ongoing focus on digital government, along with the shift to hybrid and remote work permanently, have fundamentally changed and elevated the role of state CIO.”

The 2021 State CIO Survey also highlights adoption of cloud, emerging technologies and legacy modernization within state government. The complete report, Driving Digital Acceleration, is available here.

NASCIO Contact

Meredith Ward
Director of Policy and Research
National Association of State Chief Information Officers
859.514.9209
[email protected]

NASCIO Observes Electronic Records Day

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Lexington, Ky., Friday, October 8, 2021 — Today, the National Association of State Chief Information Officers (NASCIO) is observing Electronic Records Day, sponsored by the Council of State Archivists (CoSA). Electronic Records Day is celebrated every year in October as an opportunity to share what states and organizations are doing to manage digital resources and preserve electronic records.

In recognition of Electronic Records Day, CoSA has worked to raise community awareness of digital records and of the need to manage and preserve them. CoSA reminds us that electronic records need regular attention and care in order to remain accessible. Join NASCIO and CoSA in raising awareness of digital records and the importance of their preservation.

For more information on Electronic Records Day and tips on managing e-records, visit CoSA’s website: www.statearchivists.org.

NASCIO Contact

Meredith Ward
Director of Policy and Research
National Association of State Chief Information Officers
859.514.9209
[email protected]

NASCIO Issues Primer on States’ Use of Low-Code / No-Code Software

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Lexington, Ky., Thursday, September 30, 2021 — The National Association of State Chief Information Officers (NASCIO) today released The Need for Speed: Why State CIOs are Turning to Low-Code and No-Code Software Development. The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the adoption of low-code / no-code software development by states by providing the business case for how this technology can be used. The publication, based on extensive interviews with both state chief information officers (CIOs) and NASCIO private sector members, outlines some of those use cases, the upsides, the downsides and strategies for success.

Denis Goulet, NASCIO President and Commissioner and CIO for the State of New Hampshire, commented, “State CIOs are constantly looking for ways to innovate and streamline operations in state government. Low-code / no-code platforms have proven themselves as a way to lower costs, fill gaps in the state IT workforce and respond to citizen needs much more quickly.”

To read the publication, visit NASCIO’s Resource Center.

 

NASCIO Contact

Meredith Ward
Director of Policy and Research
National Association of State Chief Information Officers
859.514.9209
[email protected]

NASCIO Makes the Case for Insight Enabling Analytics

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Lexington, Ky., Wednesday, September 8, 2021 — The National Association of State Chief Information Officers (NASCIO) today released Making the Case for Insight Enabling Analytics. As data analytics is playing an increasing role in service delivery for states, state chief information officers (CIOs) are often taking the lead in these efforts. The publication includes considerations for enabling data analytics and creating a data analytics ecosystem.

Denis Goulet, NASCIO President and Commissioner and CIO for the State of New Hampshire, commented, “Data analytics is on the CIO Top 10 for 2021 and has played an increasingly important role during the last few years. We expect it to become even more critical in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.”

The publication also includes recommended actions for states to use when enabling data analytics. To read the publication, visit NASCIO’s Resource Center.

 

NASCIO Contact

Meredith Ward
Director of Policy and Research
National Association of State Chief Information Officers
859.514.9209
[email protected]

NASCIO Announces Finalists for 2021 NASCIO State IT Recognition Awards

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Lexington, Ky., Tuesday, August 31, 2021 —The National Association of State Chief Information Officers (NASCIO) has selected 30 finalists across 10 categories for the State IT Recognition Awards. Projects and initiatives from NASCIO member states and territories were eligible for nomination. Over 60 NASCIO members served as volunteer judges to review the over 110 submissions, narrowing the nominees down to three finalists in each category. From these finalists, a recipient from each category will be announced during the NASCIO Annual Conference in October.

The award nominations showcase the use of information technology to address critical business problems, more easily connect citizens to their government, improve business processes and create new opportunities that improve the lives of citizens. To ensure states have access to the innovations and leading practices of their peers, all award submissions have been added to NASCIO’s Awards Library.

Award finalists for the 2021 State IT Recognition Awards are:

Business Process Innovations 
State of California: Less Clicks, More Care: Automating COVID-19 Testing & Results Letters
State of Georgia: Halt! Who goes there? Georgia DOL’s Identity Verification Project
Commonwealth of Virginia: The Virginia IT Agency’s Fast-Tracked Digital Transformation

Cross-Boundary Collaboration & Partnerships 
State of Connecticut: Contact Tracing Innovation – ContaCT
State of Illinois: Illinois Drive-up Wi-Fi Map
State of Nebraska: Bottling Lightning: IT “Happened in Nebraska”

Cybersecurity 
State of Minnesota: Securing State Payment Card Data for Minnesotans
State of North Carolina: NC’s Whole of State Approach to Cybersecurity: Working across the State to  Prepare, Prevent and Support
State of Ohio: Bringing Power to the People: Self-service Tools & Account Transparency

Data Management, Analytics & Visualization 
State of Georgia: From Here to Broadband Access: The Georgia Broadband Map
State of North Carolina: Bridging the Data Divide and Bringing Health Equity
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania: Opioid Open Data Dashboard Project

Digital Government: Government to Business 
State of Colorado: Simplifying Colorado’s Sales & Use Tax Filings
State of Michigan: Michigan Liquor Ordering (MILO)
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania: Construction Documentation System Version 3

Digital Government: Government to Citizen 
State of Louisiana: Virtualizing Disaster SNAP
State of Ohio: Advancing Ohio Data Transparency and Access
State of Tennessee: MyTN: Digitizing and Transforming the Citizen Experience with Tennessee

Emerging & Innovative Technologies  
State of Colorado: Bolstering Law Enforcement Safety with Colorado Digital ID
State of Minnesota: MNbenefits: Piloting Secure Self-Service for Minnesota’s Benefits
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania: Pandemic Electronic Benefit Transfer Robotic Process Automation

Enterprise IT Management Initiatives 
State of Indiana: Access Indiana: Building & Deploying the Next Generation Citizen & Business Authentication System
State of North Carolina: North Carolina is a Leader in the Nation for Next Gen 911
State of Tennessee: Tennessee’s IT Budget Transformation

Information Communications Technology (ICT) Innovations  
State of Colorado: Transforming Raw Data into Actionable Insight with Location Intelligence
State of Minnesota: Communicating P-EBT Benefits to Families When Schools Closed
State of North Carolina: Solving Claim Status Questions Through Automation: Unemployment Benefit Claim Status Solution

State CIO Office Special Recognition 
State of California: My Turn: California’s Front Door to Vaccine Access
State of Connecticut: Triumph Through Tragedy
State of Minnesota: Innovation Informs Minnesotans about COVID-19 Resources, Risks, and Guidance

NASCIO Contact
Emily Lane
Programs and Brand Director
National Association of State Chief Information Officers
859.514.9167