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Nebraska Information Technology Commission

Monday, November 6, 2000, 1:30-5:00 p.m.
State Capitol Building, Room 1507
Lincoln, Nebraska
APPROVED MINUTES

MEMBERS PRESENT
Lt. Governor Dave Maurstad,
State of Nebraska		 Gary Kuck,
President & CEO, Centurion International
Dr. Eric Brown,
Station Manager, KRVN Radio		 L. Merrill Bryan,
Senior Vice President, Information Technologies, Union Pacific
Dr. Doug Christensen,
Commissioner, Department of Education		 Dr. Dennis L. Smith,
President, University of Nebraska
Greg Adams,
Mayor, City of York		 Pamela Vanlandingham,
Senior Vice President, CSG Systems, Inc.
Hod Kosman,
President & CEO, Platte Valley Financial Services

CALL TO ORDER, ROLL CALL, & NOTICE OF MEETING

The chair, Lieutenant Governor David Maurstad, called the meeting to order at 1:35 p.m. Roll call was taken. A quorum existed to conduct official business. It was stated that the meeting notice and agenda were posted to the NITC website on October 20, 2000. The agenda was amended and posted to the NITC and Public Notice Calendar on October 26, 2000.

APPROVAL OF JUNE 22, 2000 MINUTES

Commissioner Adams moved to approve the minutes as presented. Commissioner Bryan seconded the motion. All were in favor. Motion was carried by voice vote.

PUBLIC COMMENT

There was no public comment.

COMMUNITY COUNCIL REPORT
Anne Byers, Community Information Technology Manager

Approval of Nominated Members (PDF 10k). The Community Council forwarded the following nominations on October 24, 2000 for approval by the NITC:

  • Chris Anderson, City Administrator, Ashland, Nebraska;
  • Max Thacker, Associate Director of Biomedical Communications, University of Nebraska Medical Center; and
  • Harold Krueger, Chief Executive Officer, Chadron Community Hospital, Chadron, Nebraska.

Commissioner Smith moved to approve the Community Council's nominations for new members. Commissioner Kuck seconded the motion. Roll call vote: Vanlandingham-Yes, Smith-Yes, Maurstad-Yes, Kuck-Yes, Kosman-Yes, Christensen-Yes, Bryan-Yes, Brown-Yes, and Adams-Yes. Motion was carried.

Update on Community Technology Fund.Ms. Byers reported that the Community Technology Fund Guidelines and the application form are available on the NITC web site. The Lieutenant Governor prepared a news release that went out on November 1st. There is approximately $270,000 available for grants. Pre-proposals for projects are due January 12, 2001. Completed applications are due February 16, 2001. Lieutenant Governor Maurstad thanked Ms. Byers on her assistance with several projects and presentations.

EDUCATION COUNCIL REPORT
Tom Rolfes, Education Information Technology Manager

Mr. Rolfes reported that the Council has continued to meet monthly. The Operations Work Group has focused on the NEB*SAT Policies and Procedures which should be ready for NITC review at the January meeting. The Training Advisory Work Group announced that minigrants are due on April 2, 2000.

Approval of Nominated Members (PDF 10k). The Education Council forwarded the following nominations on October 13, 2000 for approval by the NITC:

  • Joe LeDuc, Technology Specialist, Catholic Diocese of Lincoln (representing K-12 private and parochial schools)
  • Dr. Harvey Perlman, Interim Chancellor, University of Nebraska-Lincoln (representing the University of Nebraska)
  • Dr. Roger Koehler, President, Nebraska Methodist College (representing Independent Colleges and Universities); and
  • Al Schneider, Administrator, Educational Service Unit 5 (representing K-12 Educational Service Units).

Commissioner Kosman moved to approve the Education Council's nominees for new members. Commissioner Adams seconded the motion. Roll call vote: Adams-Yes, Vanlandingham-Yes, Brown-Yes, Smith-Yes, Bryan-Yes, Maurstad-Yes, Christensen-Yes, Kuck-Yes, and Kosman-Yes. Motion was carried.

Update on Excellence in Education Grant Review Procedures. Mr. Rolfes reported that staff met with representatives from the Excellence in Education. The NITC, Policy Research Office, and Excellence in Education Council staff agreed to amend the statutory language requiring review and recommendations by the NITC on grants involving technology. Technical reviews will still be required. The Office of the CIO/NITC will be doing I.T. grant technical reviews in December and February.

Update on Core Services & Infrastructure Review Procedures. Staff met with a task group of Educational Service Unit's network operations staff. The task group is working toward a single template that will be used for NITC and Universal Service Fund E-rate applications.

STATE GOVERNMENT COUNCIL REPORT
Steve Schafer, Chief Information Officer

Mr. Schafer reported that the Council's focus has been on the development of an E-government Strategic Plan and the prioritization of biennium budget requests.

Approval of Nominated Member (PDF 10k). The State Government Council forwarded the following nomination on October 12, 2000 for approval by the NITC:

  • Patrick C. Flanagan, Information Systems Manager, Mutual of Omaha (representing the private sector)

Commissioner Bryan moved to approve the State Government Council's nominee for a new member. Commissioner Christensen seconded the motion. Roll call vote: Brown-Yes, Smith-Yes, Adams-Yes, Vanlandingham-Yes, Maurstad-Yes, Bryan-Yes, Kuck-Yes, Kosman-Yes, and Christensen-Yes. Motion was carried.

Endorsement of the E-government Strategic Plan. Mr. Schafer reported that the State Government Council invited all agencies to a work session to discuss and begin the development of an e-government strategic plan. The State Government Council adopted it in draft form at their October 12, 2000 meeting. The draft document was sent to members of the NITC and the following feedback was incorporated:

  • Page 5, under 1-D. Agencies will re-examine the necessity for information on forms to be automated and the processes in which the information is used. Agencies should give highest priority to those transactions that affect the most people, involve high volume activities, or offer the most opportunity for saving costs through greater efficiencies.
  • Page 6, under 3-A. Explore feasibility of participating in purchasing consortia using electronic access.

Discussion and questions followed regarding the NIS (Nebraska Information System) Project. Concerns were expressed regarding funding for interfaces, privacy and security. Commissioners stated that these requirements and specifications are important to the development of the RFP. Mr. Schafer indicated that the Technical Panel will be involved in the development of the RFP and that both the Technical Panel and the NITC will be involved in reviewing the NIS implementation plan.

After endorsement of the E-government Strategic Plan agencies will begin to move forward on any initiatives. Lieutenant Governor Maurstad stated that speedier efforts are needed to better serve the customers. Commissioners requested updates and information on milestones as the plan progresses.

Commissioner Christensen moved to endorse the E-Government Strategic Plan. Commissioner Smith seconded the motion. Roll call vote: Bryan-Yes, Kosman-Yes, Brown-Yes, Smith-Yes, Adams-Yes, Christensen-Yes, Vanlandingham-Yes, Maurstad-Yes, and Kuck-Yes. Motion was carried.

TECHNICAL PANEL REPORT
Walter Weir, Chair, Technical Panel

Approval of Nominated Members. Mr. Weir requested that consideration of Technical Panel membership changes wait until the January meeting.

Mr. Weir reported that the Technical Panel has continued to meet monthly and has most recently been involved in biennium budget request reviews. The Work Groups have continued to meet on a regular basis. Commissioner Bryan was thanked for his assistance and input with the Security Work Group.

Update on TINA Project. In the absence of Brenda Decker, Mr. Winkle provided the update. The TINA Project Business Implementation Plan (attachment 5) was sent to the commissioners electronically for their review. Supporting documents and the inventory are on the TINA Web site. The timelines for the RFP and implementation have changed and are as follows:

  • 4/19/01 Final RFP draft approved
  • 4/30/01 RFP released
  • 6/29/01 Deadline for RFP to be received
  • 8/20/01 Announcement of Selection of Prime Contractor and initiation of negotiations,
  • 10/19/01 Finalize negotiations with Prime Contractor.
  • 12/3/01 Initial Implementation Phase of Network Installation Begins.

Mr. Winkle entertained questions regarding the prime contractor concept; aggregation of services; last mile; postalized rates; providing services to the private sector and municipalities; and findings and results of other states using the prime contractor. The Commissioners requested the following information:

  • A brief comprehensive summary of what TINA will and will not be able to do, who will benefit, etc.
  • A comprehensive map showing current state connections.

Update on Assistive Technology Contract Clause & Security Policy. Mr. Schafer informed the Commissioners that Christy Horn, University of Nebraska-Lincoln Compliance Officer, is chair of the Work Group. The Work Group is focusing on the technology access clause to be included in all contracts made by state agencies that involve the purchase of automated information systems. Per LB352, this must be in place by January 1, 2001. The Technical Panel will hold a public hearing on December 12th.

Security policies. Mr. Schafer reported that the Technical Panel has reviewed the draft Security Policies. State agencies were approached about the policies for their input and feedback. Feedback is being incorporated into the document and it will go back to the Technical Panel for approval. If approved and recommended by the Technical Panel, the draft Security Policies will be on the January meeting agenda for approval by the NITC.

STAFF REPORT
Michael Winkle, NITC Executive Director

Biennium Report to the Legislature was presented for consideration and adoption by the Commission. The proposed layout of the report summarized the major activities of the NITC over the past two years and how those activities related to statutory requirements.

Commissioner Adams moved to approve the proposed Biennium Report to the Legislature. Commissioner Smith seconded the motion. Roll call vote: Kosman-Yes, Brown-Yes, Smith-Yes, Adams-Yes, Vanlandingham-Yes, Kuck-Yes, Maurstad-Yes, Christensen-Yes, and Bryan-Yes. Motion was carried.

PROJECT STATUS REPORTS
Steve Schafer

Mr. Schafer distributed a current summary of project status reports that have been submitted. The summary includes milestones for some of the projects on GANTT charts. Presently, four agencies are submitting project status report on a total of eleven projects. Mr. Schafer has contacted other agencies to begin submitting reports. Questions from the Commissioners were entertained.

BIENNIUM BUDGET PROJECT PRIORITIZATION
Michael Winkle, NITC Executive Director

Staff, the councils and the Technical Panel were acknowledged for their work. Mr. Winkle provided a summary of the budget prioritization process. Staff, along with representatives from the Budget and the Legislative Fiscal offices developed the definition for "project" that was used in the process. The Education Council advanced a prioritized list of education projects. The State Government Council advanced a prioritized list of state agency projects. The Community Council provided recommendations regarding the lists of educational and state agency projects. A joint committee merged both lists into one prioritized list for the NITC approval. Three groups of projects were presented to the NITC and the following actions were taken:

Group 1: Prioritized list of project proposals including the project summaries that met the definition of "project" and were within the scope of the NITC statutory authority.

  1. #05-04, Supreme Court, Payment of Traffic Tickets by Internet
  2. #47-05, Nebraska Educational Telecommunications Comm. (NETC), Remote Control Software
  3. #09-01, Secretary of State, County Website Project 130,725
  4. #83-01, Nebraska Community College System, Serving the Needs of Rural Nebraska
  5. #47-11, NETC, Add DS-3, 45MB circuit connection at Grand Island and Kearney
  6. #47-12, NETC, Add additional DS-3, 45MB circuit connection into NET
  7. #47-13, NETC, Extend DS-3, 45MB to Scottsbluff
  8. #47-14, NETC, Add third CODEC at North Platte
  9. #21-02, Fire Marshal, Web Based Applications
  10. #05-03, Supreme Court, Productivity Enhancements
  11. #47-15, NETC, Add additional fiber optic channels between UNO & UNL/NET
  12. #47-16, NETC, Install NEB*SAT Network 3 Uplink dish at Valentine
  13. #05-05, Supreme Court, Move Training and Documentation Online

    14. #47-17, NETC, Install NEB*SAT Network 3 Uplink dish at WNCC

  14. #05-06, Probation Administration, Client/Server Web Enabled Project
  15. #47-18, NETC, Add second CODEC at Columbus
  16. #47-19, NETC, Add DS-3, 45 MB circuit connection at Wesleyan
  17. #05-02, Supreme Court, Courthouse Access to Court Information
  18. #34-01, Library Commission, Nebraska's e-Library: Content (Software portion of request.)
  19. #27-10, Dept. of Roads, Preparation for Migrating to PC/WEB Application Development
  20. #27-05, Dept. of Roads, Implement a Capital Facilities Management System
  21. #21 27-01, Dept. of Roads, Implementation of Selected Recommendations from the 'NDOR GIS Strategic Plan'
  22. #27-02, Dept. of Roads, Implementation of Selected Recommendations from the 'NDOR Document Management Strategic Plan
  23. #27-06, Dept. of Roads, Upgrade the Department's Equipment Management System
  24. #27-07, Dept. of Roads, Upgrade the Department's Highway Maintenance Management System
  25. #83-02, Mid-Plains Community College Area, MPCCA Distance Learning Outreach & Classrooms

Commissioners wanted the following points communicated as part of the report:

  • Project #83-01 cannot proceed with 47-11, 47-12, and 47-13. However, #47-11, #47-12 and #47-13 can be funded without #83-01.
  • The technical review for Project #83-02's listed weaknesses of collaboration

Commissioner Christensen moved to approve Group 1 prioritized list of projects for Legislative and Fiscal review with the addition of a column for the technical score. Commissioner Smith seconded the motion. Roll call vote: Kuck-Yes, Bryan-Yes, Vanlandingham-Yes, Christensen-Yes, Brown-Yes, Kosman-Yes, Adams-Yes, Maurstad-Yes, and Smith-Yes. Motion was carried.

Group 2: Non-prioritized list of operational expenditures. Projects did not meet the definition of "project".

Commissioner Bryan moved to take no action on Group 2 non-prioritized list of operational expenditures because the requests did not meet the definition of "project". Commissioner Vanlandingham seconded the motion. Roll call vote: Adams-Yes, Brown-Yes, Bryan-Yes, Christensen-Yes, Kosman-Yes, Kuck-Yes, Maurstad-Yes, Smith-Yes, and Vanlandingham-Yes. Motion was carried.

Group 3: Other informational technology investments that did not meet definition of "project" but were new programmatic requests.

Commissioner Christensen moved to take no action on Group 3 other technology investments because the requests did not meet the definition of "project" and were outside the scope of the NITC's statutory authority. Commissioner Adams seconded the motion. Roll call vote: Vanlandingham-Yes, Smith-Yes, Maurstad-Yes, Kuck-Yes, Kosman-Yes, Christensen-Yes, Bryan-Yes, Brown-Yes, and Adams-Yes. Motion was carried.

Commissioners are interested in receiving feedback regarding the process from the Joint Committee, Councils, and reviewers.

NEW BUSINESS

There was no new business.

NEXT MEETING DATE, LOCATION, AND TIME AND ADJOURNMENT

The next meeting of the Nebraska Information Technology Commission will be held at 1:30 p.m., Tuesday, January 23, 2001 in Omaha, Nebraska. The location will be announced at a later date.

Lieutenant Governor Maurstad adjourned the meeting at 4:05 p.m.

Minutes were taken by Lori Lopez Urdiales and reviewed by staff of the Office of the CIO/NITC.

Meeting Minutes

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