[T]he Department for Information and Innovation (DII) faces a $1 million reduction under a plan unveiled by Rep. Mitzi Johnson, D-South Hero.
Lawmakers have repeatedly questioned costs associated with information technology in the context of ongoing budget challenges.
Speaker of the House Shap Smith in an interview with VTDigger last month questioned whether DII is a core function of state government. “In a time where we’re having to make difficult decisions, I think we need to decide what it is the state needs to do and what it is that maybe the private sector can do.”
Senate President Pro Tem John Campbell, D-Windsor, told Seven Days last month that DII is considered by some to be “obstructionist.”
“What it comes down to is: I think DII has to be put under a microscope,” he said to Paul Heintz.
According to Richard Boes, chief information officer and commissioner of DII, the department is critical to the work of state agencies across the board.
“In order to provide a program or a service there are going to be some technology costs,” Boes said.
DII handles the basic technology services across the state government, according to Boes. The department is responsible for the telephone system in all state buildings, and it provides email for all state employees. If a state worker’s desktop breaks down, they can bring it to DII for repairs.
One of the top demands on DII funds is ensuring that state computers have licenses for software programs such as Microsoft Office and Adobe suites, Boes said.
The department also houses the mainframe that serves as the platform for programs run through the Department for Children and Families, the Department of Motor Vehicles, the Tax Department and more.
Information technology projects in general have generated skepticism from lawmakers of all political stripes this session, in large part because of disappointment with the state’s failed health care exchange website. A House bill, H.371, proposes to create a joint legislative technology oversight committee, and a separate Senate bill, S.129, makes a similar proposal, with the added stipulation that the governor would need to submit a consolidated funding plan for any new project.
The administration has asked for funding in the two year capital bill to pay for the construction and implementation of two new IT projects that would deal with Medicaid and benefits eligibility programs. The integrated eligibility system, could cost the state nearly $60 million.
Boes noted that, according to a legislation passed in 2012, DII has oversight of any project over $100,000.
In an effort to increase transparency, Boes said, DII budget documents for 2016 included internal service dollars — money that other departments spend to essentially purchase the services that DII provides. Those dollars are double-counted in the document, making the DII budget appear larger than it actually is.
Excluding the internal service dollars, the DII budget for FY2016 is actually $21,664,985 — a $200,000 decrease from last year, he said.
Boes has been in meetings to determine where the department may be able to save $1 million. The House Appropriations Committee will likely review the implications of the potential cuts this week.
“It’s too early to say how any of these numbers play out,” Boes said.
Rep. Peter Fagan, R-Rutland, oversees the DII portion of the budget for the House Appropriations Committee. Throughout the session, Fagan said he has heard many of his colleagues express frustration with DII. But Fagan says the department is critical to the function of state government.
“Everyone expects information to be readily available,” Fagan said, “and that’s DII’s job.”
The state needs to stay current with rapidly changing technology because many Vermonters primarily interact with state government through websites, he said.
“IT’s not cheap and it’s never going to be,” Fagan said.
CORRECTION: This article originally identified the mainframe that DII houses as ACCESS.
