Lawmakers Study Reform of Legislative Process

OKLAHOMA CITY – Jared Saxton, Managing Partner of BlueLid Technologies, gave Oklahoma lawmakers a lesson in technical legislative processes today.

Saxton spoke to the Oklahoma House of Representatives Government Modernization committee about the work of BlueLid Technologies on an XML-based legislative content system to replace an outdated system used by the Iowa Legislative Services Agency.

Iowa’s old content system had multiple problems, Saxton said. It was difficult to train staff on its use, to publish content, to generate tables and indexes and to implement new content projects, he said.

The XML-based LINC system created to replace it created production efficiencies and flexibility to get content out to the general public faster and in more forms. It was also more user-friendly for staff members.

State Rep. Jason Murphey, who requested the study and serves as chair of the committee, said the presentation was informative.

“Our informative technology staff have done an excellent job of supporting the work of state lawmakers,” said Murphey, R-Guthrie. “We’ve been increasingly paperless and more transparent. I think an XML-based system might be an additional tool to create greater efficiencies and greater transparency.”

Saxton said Iowa has spent about $5 million on the new system.

House Director of Information Technology T.J. Robinson said he also enjoyed the presentation.

“There are definite improvements that an XML-based system would bring to the technical side of the legislative process, but lawmakers will have to decide if the cost of these improvements are acceptable,” said Robinson.

Murphey said he will be looking deeper at the potential cost-savings created by the improvements.

IT Consolidation to Save Taxpayers $40 Million Annually

OKLAHOMA CITY – Oklahoma taxpayers are set to save $40 million during the current state budget year and each year thereafter, according to a recent report.
            
The Information Services Division of the state’s Office of Management and Enterprise Services released its fiscal year-end report detailing the savings from the recently enacted plan to consolidate state government information technology processes. The report shows savings estimates continuing to climb and demonstrates that approximately $40 million in annual savings has already been achieved even though many state agencies still have not been incorporated into the consolidation process.
            
The savings can be attributed in part to lower software costs due to the combining of the state agencies’ purchasing power and a 17 percent reduction in the number of IT positions needed to maintain the consolidated IT infrastructure. The plan also details additional levels of cost avoidance in addition to the $40 million in savings, including $1.8 million of potential cost avoidance after the centralized IT operation rectified software licensing-related liabilities previously incurred by state agencies.
            
When the Oklahoma Legislature passed the proposal, it required IT officials to realize a savings of at least 15 percent of the state’s IT spend. The report demonstrates that the consolidation has met this goal.
            
Last fall, Oklahoma Chief Information Officer Alex Pettit told the House Government Modernization Committee that the consolidation had allowed $30 million in annual savings. On the morning of Sept. 11, Pettit, will again testify before the committee and will inform members of the newest savings numbers. Pettit is expected to field questions on his department’s mitigation of legacy IT information security liabilities and the potential for additional savings as the consolidation continues.
            
“CIO Pettit is doing a fantastic job implementing this plan,” explained the consolidation’s legislative author, state Rep. David Derby, R-Owasso. “During the next legislative year, we are committed to continuing the passage of legislation that will enable these savings to continue.”
            

Rep. Jason Murphey
R-Guthrie

The IT consolidation provides a great example of a modernization reform that will save millions of dollars each year,” said House Modernization Committee Chair Jason Murphey, R-Guthrie. “The report demonstrates that the plan has been successful and it si now our job as policymakers to export the concept to other policy venues to ensure even more savings are realized.”
            
Pettit’s testimony is expected to take place at approximately 11 a.m. Sept. 11 in Committee Room 432A at the state Capitol building. The meeting is open and the public is encouraged to attend.

Conquer Math at the Khan Academy

OKLAHOMA CAPITOL - Could your child use a free, effective math tutor after the summer break? Then you should check out the Khan Academy - It’s online, free and amazing! 

The Khan Academy website has more than 3,300 videos on everything from arithmetic to physics, finance, and history and hundreds of skills to practice. You can also learn about the current debt and European economic crisis. There is something for everyone. 

The Khan Academy is on a mission to help you learn what you want, when you want, at your own pace.

The Khan Academy is a not-for-profit with the “goal of changing education for the better by providing a free world-class education for anyone anywhere.”

Students can make use of an extensive video library, interactive challenges, and assessments from any computer with access to the web.

Using the Khan Academy videos and exercises is fun - really! It makes learning fun, in part, because there is no pressure. You can learn at your own pace without a tutor looking over your shoulder or the time constraints of a classroom environment. You can watch a video over-and-over until you grasp a concept. The Khan Academy can help you catch-up and get ahead in math, science and many other subject areas.

The Khan Academy website boasts that it has delivered more than 178 million lessons. 

The Khan Academy covers:

Math
Arithmetic and Pre-algebra
Algebra
Geometry 
Trigonometry
Probability
Statistics
Precalculus
Differential Equations
Linear Algebra
Brain Teasers
VI Hart

Science
Biology
Chemistry
Organic Chemistry
Healthcare and Medicine
Physics
Cosmology and Astronomy
Computer Science
Brit Cruise
MIT+K12

Finance & Economy
Core Finance
Valuation and Investing
Venture Capital and Capital Markets
Credit Crisis
Paulson Bailout
Geithner Plan
Current Economics
Banking and Money
Currency
Microeconomics
Macroeconomics

Humanities
History
American Civics
Art History

Test Prep
SAT Math
GMAT
CAHSEE
California Standards Test
Competition Math
IIT JEE
Singapore Math

Related Talks and Interviews

Department of Education Details Data Pipeline Project

State Capitol - The State Department of Education today announced a new collaborative effort with the Office of State Finance’s Information Services Division (OSF/ISD), the Cooperative Council for Oklahoma School Administrators (CCOSA) and the Oklahoma State School Boards Association (OSSBA). 

The effort is called the Data Pipeline Project and is a new partnership with school districts. The goal of the project is to resolve data collection and reporting challenges districts face.

The Data Pipeline Project will result in local and state data systems that are less expensive, more efficient, produce better data and lead to better outcomes for students. 

The SDE issued a letter explaining the project along with additional documents detailing how districts may participate. Also included is information about the scope and timeline for the project.

• Data Pipeline Project Participation .pdf
• Data Pipeline Project Scope-Timeline.pdf
• Data Pipeline Project Letter 08102012.pdf

State Department of Education: There’s an App for that

Oklahoma City - In June the Oklahoma State Department of Education unveiled an app for smart phone users.  The app allows anyone to access OSDE resources at their fingertips. 

The Department has been a leader in innovative ways to keep the public better informed. Since taking office early last year State Superintendent Janet Barresi has updated the Department's website making it more user friendly.

Barresi has also started an iTunes U Library and a YouTube Channel.

The app connects users with:

• Staff directory with contact information

• Upcoming Events

• Breaking News & Information

• Regular address from Superintendent Janet Barresi

• Location information & parking information

• OSDE iTunes U library

• OSDE YouTube Channel

Recently Norman Public Schools created an app to provide timely and important information to parents and students. Other districts have since done likewise. 

These innovations are a commendable trend in education. They empower parents and students to be better informed education consumers.

AG Announces Inmate Information, Tracking for Crime Survivors, Families and Public

OKLAHOMA CITY — The Oklahoma Attorney General’s Office is providing inmate tracking information for Oklahomans and victims of crime through the Victim Information and Notification Everyday (VINE) program administered by the AG’s Victim Services Unit.

Oklahoma’s VINE program is a free and anonymous service that allows Oklahomans to register and be notified about changes in the status of Oklahoma inmates.

“By providing information on inmate status, we are increasing victim safety,” said Lesley March, chief of the AG’s Victim Services Unit. “Victims are no longer dependent upon the courthouse being open for them to be notified of the release of a potentially dangerous individual. Knowledge many times translates into power, and with victims of violent crimes, it may mean the difference between life and death.”

The service notifies participants with inmates’ current status information such as general release date, escape, returns from escape, death, out to court and unsupervised custody. VINE offers multiple ways to receive notifications.

The service is available 24 hours a day year-round. Operators who answer the toll-free number are available in English and Spanish to assist victims, their families and the public in registering for VINE. 

The program is provided in county jails and the Oklahoma Department of Corrections. VINE transfers data every 15 minutes from county jails, and DOC and probation and parole data is processed each evening.

To sign up for the VINE program, Oklahomans can log onto www.vinelink.com or call (877) OK4-VINE. 

Smart Use of Social Media by Emergency Agencies After East Coast Earthquake

The website for Government Technology magazine contains a story about the effective use of social media by local governments and emergency agencies following the east coast earthquake yesterday. 

"The emergency situation also demonstrated first responders’ and city officials’ sophisticated use of social media, especially Twitter. Many law enforcement agencies and emergency personnel began tweeting within minutes of the earthquake in order to disseminate information to the public."

The public also turned to social media:

"Initial reports also indicated that cell phone service was down or disrupted in many areas affected by the earthquake, and in turn the public turned to social media to get information."

Governor Fallin Leads Oklahoma Delegation to International Biosciences Conference

Governor Mary Fallin is leading nearly 70 delegates from the state’s biosciences industry this week at the BIO 2011 International Convention in Washington, D.C., an international biosciences industry event.

Governor Fallin will be joined by scientists, business leaders, educators and economic development officers from across the state. The governor will speak at a reception hosted by the Oklahoma delegation and will attend meetings to seek business connections to foster growth in the biosciences industry in Oklahoma.

“The Oklahoma biosciences industry has grown rapidly in recent years but there is room for more expansion and research in our state,” Fallin said. “Promoting Oklahoma’s biosciences industry at this international conference will help us attract new jobs and more investment to Oklahoma.”

According to the Greater Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce, the region’s bioscience employment grew 17.8 percent between 2001 and 2008, outpacing the 15.9 percent growth nationally. The industry continues to provide high-quality, high-wage jobs, with an average annual wage of nearly $50,000, more than $12,000 greater than the average private sector annual wage for greater Oklahoma City’s total private sector.

Between 15,000 and 17,000 attendees from across the globe are expected to attend this year’s BIO 2011 conference. The state will be featured in a 1,600-sq.-ft. Oklahoma Bioscience Pavilion which will be staffed by scientists and bioscience representatives who will answer questions from those who might be looking to do business in Oklahoma.

The marketing efforts at the conference will be under the banner of the Oklahoma Bioscience Association, an organization formed in 2008 to promote the growth of the Oklahoma bioscience industry through partnerships between Oklahoma’s bioscience companies, research institutions, scientists, economic development organizations and the business community.

Auditor & Inspector Gary Jones: “rapid progress” in closing audit backlog

By Patrick B. McGuigan at www.CapitolBeatOK.com (Published: 22-Jun-2011

Oklahoma Auditor and Inspector Gary Jones
was surprised, he says, at how far behind the office was on required audits of county governments when he took the helm on January 10.

“As policy, those audits are supposed to be done every year, and must, by statute, be done every other year. When I took office and worked with the staff to identify challenges, it became clear that some counties had not been audited since 2005,” he said in an interview Wednesday (June 22).

It was a challenge, he admits, “to figure out how to approach the backlog, do the audits right, yet get caught up. There are 77 counties, and the simplest way to put it is that we have to do at least two years of work in one year.”

The pace of work is summarized, he said, by comparing three months of productivity this year with that of 2010. The agency completed 78 audit reports in the first three months of 2010; it had finished 112 audits the same time period this year.

Jones is most concerned about special investigative audits -- which come at the request of the attorney general and local District Attorneys -- must be given priority. The long-anticipated investigatory look at the Broken Arrow public school system was finished this month. That audit was first requested in April 2009.

“I thought that kind of time gap was the exception, but learned it was the norm,” Jones told CapitolBeatOK.

State Superintendent Janet Barresi Announces IT Restructuring Plan

More than $4 Million in Savings Projected

State Superintendent Janet Barresi this week unveiled a comprehensive information technology restructuring plan in concert with the Office of State Finance projected to save the Oklahoma State Department of Education (OSDE) more than $4 million over the next six years and nearly $650,000 in fiscal year 2012.

“In this tight budget environment, we owe it to Oklahoma’s children and the state’s taxpayers to make every penny count,” said Superintendent Barresi. “Earlier this year, I unveiled a comprehensive policy platform to transform education in our state. The 3R Agenda will rethink, restructure and reform Oklahoma’s education system. Today’s announcement on our technology plan is a major part of the second ‘R,’ restructuring. We’re achieving cost savings right away, and operating this agency in the most efficient and effective manner possible.”

“As I’ve said before, much of our state government operates on eight-track technology in an iPod world,” said Governor Mary Fallin. “Our proposal to consolidate IT resources will lead to significant savings for Oklahoma taxpayers while allowing agencies to maintain and even improve the quality of services they provide to taxpayers. This is a great step forward as we work to make government more efficient and effective, and I commend Superintendent Barresi and the Department of Education for taking the lead in this effort.”

OK-WARN Provides Weather Alerts to Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Oklahomans

The State of Oklahoma web portal provides a service for deaf and hard-of-hearing people to receive timely notification of weather hazards in the state of Oklahoma.


OK-WARN is a customized database program that sends out critical weather information to alphanumeric pagers and e-mail addresses.


The program was created to help ease the fears of deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals who may have difficultly receiving life saving warnings.


When the National Weather Service issues a weather alert, the program will automatically send a message to all participating pages, so notification is nearly instant.


In addition to all that, the program also provides multiple data sources and attempts to deliver the critical message so you can be sure you'll never miss a warning.


You get only the warnings you request:

• Tornado Watch and Warning
• Severe Thunderstorm Watch and Warning
• Winter Storm Warning
• Winter Storm Watch
• Winter Weather Advisory
• Flash Flood Watch and Warning
• Civil Emergency Message
• Special/Significant Weather Statements
• Severe Weather Statements
• River Flood Warning
• Non-Precipitation Advisory

State of Oklahoma Announces Launch of OK.gov Twitter

Follow Oklahoma Government Tweets @okgov

OK.gov, Oklahoma’s official website, announced today the creation of an account on the popular social media platform Twitter at http://twitter.com/okgov. Through Twitter, OK.gov will be able to quickly and efficiently notify the public regarding state agency news, Oklahoma government online services, and information affecting Oklahoma citizens during weather related events.


“This is a great opportunity to allow the public to be connected to information regarding Oklahoma government and news from our state agencies,” says Alex Pettit, State Chief Inf
ormation Officer. “This form of technology allows people to become informed conveniently and in a timely manner.”

The announcement of an OK.gov Twitter account comes after the announcement that Oklahoma state and local government entities can now use the social media website Facebook. OK.gov plans to open a Facebook account in the near future.

“These two social media platforms provide Oklahomans an opportunity to keep up with developments in state government as the administration of Gov. Mary Fallin pursues a policy of transparency in government on many levels,” said Preston Doerflinger, director of the OSF and secretary of finance.

To follow OK.gov’s Twitter, visit http://twitter.com/okgov and select the “Follow” button. Once following, citizens will receive real-time access to tweets regarding state agency news and Oklahoma government.

Gov. Henry names Pettit new CIO

(Oklahoma City) Gov. Brad Henry announced today he has appointed Alex Pettit as the state’s new Chief Information Officer. Pettit, who has information systems experience in both the public and private sectors, will begin his duties on April 5.

A new law approved by the 2009 Legislature authorized the governor to appoint a chief information officer to oversee all state computer information and technology operations. Today’s announcement follows a national search for qualified candidates.

Legislation Streamlining Information Technology among State Agencies Passes House

OKLAHOMA CITY (May 20, 2009) – Legislation that will streamline state information technology services and purchases while also working to prevent technology security breaches passed the House today.

House Bill 1704 would create a Chief Information Officer (CIO), who would direct technology purchases for state agencies. The consolidation of technology contracts will help the state pool its purchasing power to help drive down costs and improve services.

Instead of each state agency having its own small information technology (IT) contract, this legislation would allow the state to better leverage its purchasing power by buying IT equipment in bulk for agencies that have similar needs.

Oklahoma is only one of four states in the country without a centralized technology officer.

Government Reform Will Protect Citizen Information

NewsOK link to press conference video

Channel 6 News Story

OKLAHOMA CITY – State lawmakers and technology security experts today said reforms advancing in the Legislature will increase protection of citizens’ private data and reduce its theft from government computers.

In addition, the reforms would increase efficiency and reduce waste during a tough budget year.

“Because of outmoded policies, we have an information bottleneck that drives up costs and delays service at state agencies,” said state Rep. Jason Nelson, R-Oklahoma City. “Our agencies use different programs and literally cannot share information electronically from one department to another. Instead, agencies pay someone to re-enter data into the computer system. There are state employees whose only job is to hand-type data that should be downloadable with a click. We’re paying for hours of labor on a job that should take five seconds.”

In recent months, several state computers containing citizens’ private information were either lost or stolen, including a flash driver from the Oklahoma Employment Security Commission and laptops from the Department of Human Services and the Oklahoma Housing Finance Agency.

“Because Oklahoma government continues to use an outdated information technology system that is spread across dozens of agencies, it is impossible to hold one person responsible for the data losses,” said state Rep. Jason Murphey, R-Guthrie. “The enactment of House Bill 1704 or Senate Bill 980 could not only save millions of dollars in leveraged IT purchases, but would put someone in charge of securing important data.”

Two bills introduced this session would streamline information technology services and increase data security in state government: House Bill 1704, by state Rep. David Derby, and Senate Bill 980, by Senate President Pro Tem Glenn Coffee and Murphey.

Both measures would create a Chief Information Officer for state government, who would direct technology purchases and security policies for all state agencies.

Oklahoma is only one of four states in the country without a centralized technology officer.

Dan Yost, chief technology officer for Stillwater-based computer security firm MyLaptopGPS, said the legislation is a step in the right direction.

“When agency policies are not consistent, it generates more loose ends throughout the system – and it only takes one loose end to breach 1 million Oklahomans’ private information, as we have already seen,” Yost said. “Giving one person oversight of the system is a good way to increase accountability and better secure data throughout all of state government. If nobody’s in charge, you’ve really got a problem.”

According to a recent report by the Ponemon Institute, the average cost of a stolen laptop is roughly $50,000 per computer. Other studies suggest the cost may be greater – a 2002 CSI/FBI Computer Crime and Security Survey put the cost at $89,000 per laptop and the 2003 ACCSS said the average value of data on a laptop is $250,000.

“Even the $50,000 ‘best case’ scenario is very bad,” Yost said. “Oklahoma government had to spend $200,000 in mailing costs just for notification letters after the theft of only two laptops. More costs for those incidents will likely be forthcoming.”

Yost noted that another laptop is stolen every 12 seconds, at least 2.6 million per year. A 2006 survey by The Ponemon Institute showed that 80 percent of government agencies surveyed reported losing data via laptop theft in last 12 months.

In addition to creating security problems, lawmakers said the current system wastes money.

“Right now, each agency has its own IT department and the state spends $340 million a year on IT not including personnel and salaries,” Murphey said. “The current configuration is an antiquated system that other states have abandoned.”

“There is no need for each state agency to have a separate technology department and director when those needs are often similar,” Derby said.

It is estimated that Oklahoma employs close to 1,500 state employees dedicated to information technology across various agencies.

Some of those jobs are hard to justify given technological advances.

Lawmakers are also working on broader reforms. House Speaker Chris Benge has also asked state Rep. John Wright to conduct a review of state information technology policies. “Clearly, the security of citizens’ personal data must be a top priority for state agencies,” said Wright, R-Broken Arrow.