B2G Blog - Community Development

Deltek Pulse: general government services and education October review

Thu, 08 Nov 2012 16:24:00 -0400

As everyone gets back into the routine that fall brings, the uptick of procurement opportunities in October shows state and local governments are getting back to business as well. For most states and localities, budget season is around the corner, and many agencies have already submitted their budget requests, which will include funds for everything from routine IT software and services to major capital IT projects.

A total of 1,317 IT-related general government services solicitations were identified in October, and we’ve highlighted the top 10 most common procurement categories below:

Software – 195 solicitations
Telecom/IT Maintenance & Support Services – 204 solicitations
LAN/WAN Equipment – 95 solicitations
Telecom/IT Implementation Services – 73 solicitations
IT Consulting Services – 49 solicitations
Desktop/Tablet/Laptop Computers – 40 solicitations
ERP/Human Resources/Financial Systems – 35 solicitations
BI/Analytics Solutions – 6 solicitations
VOIP/ACD/IVR Telecom Systems – 14 solicitations
Content/Document Management Systems – 13 solicitations

Here is a look at current tracked general government IT opportunities:

The New York Office of General Services released a request for information (RFI) on October 4, seeking IT task order support services. The state is looking to transform its IT equipment repair process from a decentralized, ad-hoc model, to a structured, centralized and proactive system.

The city of Baton Rouge, La., released an RFI on October 29, seeking Internet bidding and reverse auction services. It is anticipated that information received in response to this RFI may be used to develop a future procurement.

The Texas Department of Information Resources (DIR) released a request for offers (RFO) on October 30, seeking cloud services. The cloud contracts awarded from this RFO will allow vendors to respond to statements of work (SOWs) from DIR customers (e.g. state agencies, localities, state universities, K-12 school districts) to perform services in the following categories: cloud infrastructure as a service (IaaS), cloud platform as a service (PaaS), cloud broker, and cloud assessment.

The New Jersey Office of Management and Budget is looking to replace its 30-year-old planning and budgeting system with a new budget preparation and monitoring system. The new budget system will integrate with the new comprehensive enhanced decision and information system of N.J. (EDISON), composed of ancillary and external decision-support systems throughout the state. The RFI responses for the replacement budget system were due by October 29.

Here is a look at current tracked education IT opportunities:

The North Carolina Department of Public Instruction (NC DPI) closed the bid for the N.C. Education Cloud project’s identity and access management system on October 5. NC DPI confirmed the following nine vendors submitted proposals: Deloitte & Touche, LLP; Verizon Business Network Services; IBM Corp.; Vexcel Corp.; Onwire Consulting Group, LLC; TechDemocracy, LLC; Identity Automation, LP; Tremolo Security, Inc.; and Mycroft Inc. A short list of finalists will be determined in early November 2012.

The Pennsylvania Department of Education released a procurement notice listing a need for help desk and LAN support servicesat local education agencies throughout the commonwealth. This is interesting in that only four other state agencies have put out or planned similar bids for help desk services in the past year: the Department of Labor and Industry, the Department of Environmental Protection, the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, and the Pennsylvania State Police.

Notable awards

Bay City, Mich., approved a contract for an advanced meter infrastructure system to multiple vendors on October 1: Elster (AMI provider), ElectSolve (MDM supplier), Badger Meters (Meters) and Katama Technologies Inc (project management services). The total budget for this project is $6.7 million.

The Los Angeles Community College District, the largest community college system in the nation, confirmed a partial award to Oracle for a student information system (SIS) valued at $12 million. The LA Community College District released an intent to award notice, naming Ciber, Inc as the selected vendor to perform implementation services for the new SIS, though the contract has yet to be finalized.

The city of Columbus, Ohio, has awarded a contract for applicant tracking and testing management software to NeoGov Inc. The contract was awarded for $121,000 over four years. After releasing an RFI in January 2011, the city opted to postpone the project for a year. Ultimately, the city decided to make an award based off the submitted RFI responses.

Trends in state and local IT procurement

California recently passed a bill to move IT procurement from the Department of General Services to the California Technology Agency. California will join at least seven other states that are planning or have recently undergone IT transformations/reorganizations that have affected oversight of IT procurements: Tennessee, Oklahoma, Connecticut, Hawaii, Arizona, New York, and North Carolina.

October’s market analysis

The State & Local Education Data Systems, 2012 report by Randi Powell was released on October 4. The report focuses on how the near completion of most statewide K-12 longitudinal data systems should not be ignored by vendors looking for long- and short-term opportunities related to student-teacher performance tracking. These data systems will initiate new tracking and data sharing both vertically (federal-state-local) and horizontally (interstate, interdistrict, and intradistrict).

The State of City & County IT, 2012 report by Chris Dixon was released on October 18. In this report, Deltek, in partnership with the Public Technology Institute (PTI), conducted a survey of city and county CIOs and IT directors. The survey covered organizational and fiscal issues, IT investment priorities in the coming year, and buyer perceptions of IT vendors. The 84 cities and counties that responded to the survey represent a significant and wide-ranging market sample, and an estimated $570 million in annual IT spending.

A free report on theTop State and Local Opportunities for FY 2013,by Derek Johnson, was released on October 28. The report details the year’s premier state and local-level general government opportunities. At the top of the list, $600 million in estimated contract dollars, with an additional $10 billion award to be shared by multiple, qualified firms. Learn how your company can make an informed bid for FY 2013 dollars. Included in the report are insights on estimated contract values, key points of contact, background information on projects, and related procurement timeframes.

What’s on tap for November?

Deltek will recognize American Education Week, November 11-17, with a week-long blog series highlighting our top education IT procurement opportunities, as well as education IT market reports and analysis.

Stay connected to Deltek’s General Government Services team via Twitter @GovWin_GenGov for real-time updates on trends, analysis and opportunities in the state and local IT market.

Deltek Pulse: General government services September review

Tue, 09 Oct 2012 12:44:00 -0400

Tracked opportunities by vertical segment and number of new solicitations released:

· Public Finance: 2

· E-government: 3

· Enterprise Resource Planning: 1

· Term Contracts: 1

· General Government Services: 6

· IT Consolidation: 1

Notable upcoming, current, and awarded projects:

On September 13, the city of Detroit released an RFP for human resource payroll and benefits hosted services. The city is seeking to upgrade its outdated system with an anticipated completion date of November 2013.

The Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) released an RFI for an instructional improvement system on September 7. The ISBE is seeking feedback regarding the RFI, not vendor solutions.

The state of Wisconsin, on behalf of the Department of Employee Trust Funds (ETF), released an RFP for data integrity consulting services on September 19. The consulting RFP is a smaller part of a much larger initiative for the transformation, integration and modernization of the retirement and benefits administration system. The department is interested in implementing a new solution to empower customers to become better educated about their benefits without reliance on ETF. The state estimates an RFP will be released for the project by summer 2013, with the solution implemented by fall 2013.

The Vermont Department of Education may release an RFP for an automated data store. Bids for a change management specialist and a technical lead/project manager have already been released to support the state's vertical reporting student information system. There is no estimated timeline for when the automated data store and the vertical reporting system bids will be released.

Denver Public Schools will be issuing a new RFP for an enterprise monitoring and management solution. The project, which was recently canceled, is estimated to be about $1 million, and the release date is unknown at the time.

The city of New Orleans included a need for an enterprise resource planning (ERP) system as well as a citywide data warehouse in its 2013-2017 capital improvement plan. The ERP system has been marked as high priority, and the data warehouse is ranked number five. While funding has not been established for either project, according to the Innovation and Information Technology Department (IT1), it is estimated that the ERP system will have a minimum value of $25 million, and the data warehouse project is estimated at $10 million.

The city of Chicago is currently reviewing proposals submitted in September for an aerial and underground communications cable contract estimated to be between $1 million and $5 million. Deltek will report on the award and bid tabulations once negotiations are finalized.

Miami-Dade County accepted proposals for an electronic bidding solution in September. The contract is estimated to be worth around $200,000. The opportunity has entered the cone of silence, and Deltek will report on an award once information becomes available.

The Massachusetts Operational Services Division (OSD) has begun making awards for the $750 million telecommunications network services project. Cellco Partnership (doing business as Verizon) and Galaxy Internet Services have been moved to fully awarded status. There are still many vendors under review, and the state will continue to make awards on a rolling basis.

Industry analysis

The number of tracked cloud computing solutions projects in the GovWinIQ database has increased over the past seven years. There are 125 state and local bids that have been released or are scheduled to be released in 2012, with an estimated total value of $438 million. An interesting point to note is that the estimated value of all active cloud bids in the database ($567 million) nearly matches the total combined value of awarded cloud bids procured in the past ($638 million).

California Assembly Bill 2508, sponsored by Assemblywoman Susan Bonilla, became a law on September 11, 2012. The law prohibits state agencies from awarding call center contractors whose employees reside outside the United States and the state of California. A similar federal bill in Congress is awaiting passage in the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation.

In 2010, the Illinois governor signed the Performance Evaluation Reform Act (PERA), requiring all school districts to change their performance evaluation standards for teachers and principals by September 1, 2012, and enact a new system by 2016. A 32-member Performance Evaluation Advisory Council (PEAC) was established to draft recommendations for the state’s performance evaluation system.

The Chicago Teachers Union went on strike after trying to negotiate public education reform with the Chicago government for nine months. The strike caused the city to go deeper in debt and debilitated efforts to improve IT education in the classroom.

The state of Maryland released an RFP seeking consultants to review the procurement process in Maryland. The governor has made it clear that this is a high priority for the state. The RFP lists several factors that have held back the procurement process, including “increasing complexity of procurement laws, increased reporting demands for agencies, insufficient training, growing vendor dissatisfaction, underutilization of technology and competing demands of numerous socioeconomic programs.”

Social media business opportunity growth in state and local government: The story in stats

Thu, 12 Jul 2012 21:13:00 -0400

Deltek recently published a report on social media use in state and local government (subscribers click here for free report download; non subscribers download for a fee). In that report, Deltek identifies several trends related to social media use in state and local government:

· Social media and mobile application use are growing in society.

· State and local government had significant growth in social media use from 2010 to present (Mossberger and Wu, 2012)

· 80 percent of State and local government employees see their agencies increasing social media use in the next 12-18 months (Market Connections, 2011)

Most notably, social media-related business opportunities have been increasing since 2008.

· 2012 has a robust number of social media business opportunities

· Initially, it looks like a drop off of 28.6 percent from 2011 to 2012.

· However, we only half way through 2012.

Since we are only half way through 2012, analyzing opportunities through the first 6 months of each year is a better comparison and illustrates a growth trend. For example, there is a 46 percent growth in opportunities in 2012, compared to the same point in 2011.

Comparing current opportunities (blue line) to January through June opportunities (orange line) demonstrates the continued growth of social media opportunities in 2012. Using the existing data to project future growth (green line) demonstrates the future projected strength of the market.

· Through the first half of 2012, more social media opportunities than first half of 2008, 2009, 2010, or 2011.

· 2012 is projected to have the most state and local government social media opportunities than any previous year.

Analyst’s Take

· Social media related business opportunities are projected to continue upward growth for the next several years prior to market saturation.

· Even after initial market saturation with current social media applications and technologies, implementation will open the door to innovation of new technologies and applications that will make social media functionality an essential component of most IT solutions.

· The paradigm shift presented by social media use in state and local government (see the Deltek report, here), will drive further innovation and social media integration.

· The combination of technology and government innovation will drive social media functionality in IT systems moving well beyond the initial market saturation and well into the foreseeable future.

Recommendations

· Get in on the ground floor now with developing social media technologies, functionality, and integration that government can use.

· Collaborate and partner with government to develop social media solutions.

· Integrate social media functionality into your current solutions.

· Integrate social media functionality into existing government enterprise systems.

· Develop mobile applications with social media features as an integrated part of current solutions.

· Look to integrate social media functionality.

· Make plans to grow your state and local government-related business.

Subscribers have access to the full article, here, including more detailed graphs and figures.

If you haven’t done so already, download the Deltek report on social media in state and local government, here

Read the previous blog on social media, here.

Read the previous blog on crowdsourcing data,here.

Follow me on Twitter @GovWinCCotner.

Deltek releases state and local government social media report

Fri, 29 Jun 2012 16:18:00 -0400

Social media is one of the hottest topics in both government and the government contracting community today. Since 2008, overall social media (SM) use and state and local adoption rates have been astronomical. SM is also presenting a new paradigm for service delivery and innovation in state and local government. SM platforms (including mobile applications) can be used for direct government/citizen engagements that are profoundly changing society.

Beyond the influence of direct engagement, these SM platforms and related mobile devices can aggregate crowdsourced data to inform decisions. In turn, these informed decisions can be used to innovate and improve government by delivering more efficient services (either directly or by augmentation). SM interactions (including data gathered to inform decisions and services) can lead to greater innovation, improved government accountability, and broader civic engagement.

For the government contractor community, this change presents a myriad of business opportunities:

· Working collaboratively with state and local government now to build short and long-term policy and related solutions; these solutions will be the foundation for future implementations.

· Creating new solutions that were previously unimagined.

· Adding value to existing vendor solutions through IT integration.

· Adding social media integration to existing state and local government IT systems, including at the enterprise level.

· Aggregating the big data of social media for government innovation.

· Creating purpose-built mobile solutions that integrate social media to improve government service delivery

Deltek has researched and tracked these state and local government opportunities with SM components since 2008, when they first appeared in solicitations. As expected, while initially slow, the number of opportunities has grown and remains relatively steady (Figure 1, below). Opportunities are also spread across each state and local government type. While the majority of opportunities reside with the states, some of the more cutting edge and interesting opportunities are in the localities. Looking forward, opportunities are projected to grow along with state and local government’s increased use and integration of SM technology.

Figure 1: Deltek Opportunity Analysis – Social Media

For more insight on the implications of social media on state and local business opportunities, read Deltek’s recently released report, here.

Subscribers also have access to this article in Analyst's Perspectives, here.

Read our recent blog on crowdsourcing, here.

Read our recent blog on social media, here.

Follow me on Twitter, here.

Good news: Updated state budget projections and business opportunities

Fri, 22 Jun 2012 14:38:00 -0400

The news for state government finance during the recession and slow recovery has been challenged, at best. States reported widespread problems meeting their budgetary obligations during the recession and enacted a variety of measures to remain solvent in the face of declining revenues. The bulk of the most challenging cuts came in 2011 and 2012, as states adjusted to winding down stimulus dollars. Figure 1 (below) illustrates the budget measures states took in efforts to balance their budgets.

Figure 1: State Strategies for Budget Balancing FY 2011-2012

The balancing strategies resulted in 2012 being one of the toughest fiscal years on record, with combined all funds budgets falling $42.1 billion (-2.4 percent) from 2011. It was the first all funds drop in state budgets since 1987 and dramatically juxtaposed to the $87.9 billion (+5.6 percent) overall state budget gains from FY 2010 to 2011. Putting the record 2012 state budget losses in prespective, the data includes the seminal 1987, 2000, and 2001 stock market losses and resulting economic declines (with 2012 still being the only overall loss).

Even with all of the recent negative press, there is excellent news for state government contractors in 2013 and beyond. Deltek’s annual state budget analysis shows that with state revenues on the rise, all funds budgets are set to rebound in 2013, increasing $20 billion (+1.21 percent) to $1.67 trillion overall.

Continuing the positive trend, Deltek’s updated state budget projections show great news for continued upward growth in state budgets moving beyond 2013. What we found is graphed below (see Figure 2).We call it the “Good-News Graph.”

Figure 2: State All Funds Budget 10-Year Projections

Analyzing Figure 2, from FY 1987 through FY 2010, the data is remarkably consistent with an average 6.24 percent compound annual growth rate (CAGR). However, as the recession took hold, growth rates slowed to 3.56 in 2011 and fell into the red for 2012. The budgetary growth from 2008-2011 in the face of recession and slow recovery was due to many factors, including: federal stimulus funding, increased health care costs (both for state workers and through the increased Medicaid rolls as the result of the recession), increased retirement/pension costs for state workers, and unemployment compensation.

Subscribers have access to the rest of the article, including additional projections about the state government market, here.

Or, download the associated free whitepaper, Good News: Improved State Budget Projections and Business Opportunities.

Florida's New COO Hits Reset Button, Seeks to Repair State's Reputation for IT Turmoil

Mon, 23 Apr 2012 08:48:00 -0400

Deltek was pleased to join TechAmerica for the 2012 edition of “The CIO Speaks: Tech Days in Tallahassee” event. In a format similar to other half-day Deltek state and local events, the morning featured a keynote address by the State of Florida’s new Chief Operating Officer (COO), David Wilkins. He also serves as the Secretary of the Department of Children and Families (DCF). His speech was preceded by a two-hour panel with several agency CIOs who shared their visions with the statewide vendor community.

Wilkins opened his remarks with some elaboration on how DCF intends to overhaul its child protection investigative process with significant use of IT to improve accountability. He is also looking to modernize the case management system, which is too burdensome in its requirements for manual data entry at all points. In regard to mental health services, he’s seeking to implement more management information to improve overall performance.

Gov. Rick Scott asked Wilkins to take his experience from DCF and apply it statewide as the state’s first COO. He is currently touring the agencies to determine what sorts of enterprise initiatives should be undertaken. A key question will be where to house certain initiatives and how to cost share and guarantee return on investment. Human resources systems and strategic sourcing are likely to be two of the highest priority initiatives. Real estate management is also a top target for streamlining.

As far as specific IT initiatives go, he is looking at desktop consolidation. CAD consolidation and fleet management are tier two targets for savings. They are working on the math to prove the savings in each of these cases and invite any assistance on that. Many of the existing systems can’t provide the data they need to get at basic costs metrics for existing processes.

For the complete analyst perspective, go here.

Shining a light on statewide child welfare programs

Mon, 02 Apr 2012 16:17:00 -0400

April doesn’t just bring showers, it also brings the observance child abuse prevention. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) Administration for Children and Families (ACF) Children’s Bureau, Office of Child Abuse and Neglect (OCAN), deemed April National Child Abuse Prevention Month in 1983. As such, Deltek’s Health Care and Social Services team saw this as the perfect opportunity to highlight child welfare reform initiatives occurring nationwide. Stay tuned for related blogs throughout the month!

To kick things off, we take a look at two states that have received their fair share of publicity in recent months: Oklahoma and Nebraska. Last week, Oklahoma released its improvement plan for the state’s child welfare program, the Pinnacle Plan. The five-year plan, which will launch in fiscal year (FY) 2013, addresses 15 distinct performance areas, or “Pinnacle Points,” that are in critical need of improvement. These points include reducing staff turnover, increasing permanency outcomes for all children in the state’s care, increasing accountability of all involved parties, and engaging parties outside of the Oklahoma Department of Human Services (OKDHS). Information technology upgrades to assist in addressing these points include the use of smartphones and/or tablets by state child welfare staff and a statewide matching solution for displaced children.

Nebraska legislators are now dealing with the aftermath of the unsuccessful and catastrophic attempt to privatize its child welfare program. While only one of the five original contracts remains active, the state is spending far more than its allocated budget to operate the program compared to its prior cost to privatize. According to an analysis performed by the Legislative Fiscal Office, the state spent an extra $542,929 in FY 2008-2009 to operate the program. This number jumped significantly to an alarming $22,472,951 in FY 2009-2010, and even higher in FY 2010-2011 to $27,244,348. Now that the program is back in the hands of the state (for the most part), it plans to hire more case workers and put more funding into foster care and other child welfare services that will directly benefit children and ease the workload of overrun caseworkers.

In this month’s future blogs, Deltek will take a closer look at the controversies surrounding Nebraska and Oklahoma’s child welfare programs, as well as highlight states that successfully transformed their child welfare programs to keep in line with advancing technologies and integrating human services programs and technology systems. Subscribers can check out the Child Welfare Vertical Profile for a closer look at child welfare programs on a state-by-state basis. Make sure to follow us on Twitter @GovWin_HHS LinkedIn to be the first to get updates on the latest from the Deltek Health Care and Social Services team!

The New Jersey comeback: reality or rhetoric?

Thu, 22 Mar 2012 11:23:00 -0400

Governor Chris Christie’s FY 2013 Budget Proposal’s optimistic, albeit tempered slogan, “continuing the New Jersey comeback,” shines light on future priorities of the third-year Republican governor. The use of such lofty phrases by politicians can seem trite or lacking in veracity; however, through Deltek’s in-depth budget analysis, it’s become clear that in terms of all-funds spending, this assertion is largely correct.

In March 2010, shortly after his election, Christie stood in the well of the New Jersey Assembly and declared that “time has run out” on the state’s extravagant spending habits. Christie stated, “The bill has come due,” and the tab was staggering. New Jersey faced an $11 billion budget deficit for FY 2011, with $121 billion in unfunded health benefits and pension liability. Meanwhile, state spending increased by 56 percent from 2001, and taxes at all levels had ballooned to the highest rates in the nation. The remedy for what Christie termed “a lack of discipline” was to implement dramatic cuts to the state budget; the rollbacks were so steep that detractors called them draconian. General-fund spending in FY 2011 decreased; however, there was an actual increase in all-funds spending from the previous fiscal year. Nevertheless, the rhetoric was cast, and the narrative in place for a dramatic course change and an equally impressive recovery.

Figure 1: New Jersey All Funds Budget FY 2011 - 2013

In Figure 1, above, the governor’s all-funds budget requests from FY 2011 to 2013 can be plotted as a serious, nearly 4 percent decrease over two years. Steep cuts at the beginning to accomplish ambitious goals outlined in the FY 2011 budget address tapered to a modest, less than 1 percent decrease from FY 2012 to 2013. Since Deltek’s analysis looks at the funding requested in the governor’s budget proposal, the figure below only represents the numbers from the initial budget request at the beginning of the process. As mentioned, the graph shows a slight decrease in total funds from FY 2012 to FY 2013; however, the actual funds appropriated by the legislature in the FY 2012 final budget were in fact less than the governor’s request and the numbers represented below. In reality, there was a 0.83 percent increase in funding from FY 2012 to FY 2013. Thus, the real story is a year of dramatic cuts, with a slight funding increase for FY 2013. The comeback in spending has begun, though modestly.

Subscribers have access to expanded analysis, data, and the full article, here.

Moving along the road to recovery: A glance at Pennsylvania?s FY 2013 budget

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 13:00:00 -0400

With a focus on turning the “road to recovery into the path to prosperity,” Pennsylvania Governor Tim Corbett introduced his proposed FY 2013 budget on February 7. Continuing efforts to decrease spending, this year’s budget cuts $20 million in general funding compared to FY 2012.

Core objectives of this year’s budget include streamlining government administration and operations; job creation; supporting human services; and enhancing education. These goals will be accomplished through the consolidation of departments; the rollout of Jobs First PA, a four-program initiative to improve the state’s employee market; enhanced program integrity efforts for welfare programs; and implementing performance measurement tools for all parties involved in providing basic education (preK-12).

Spending increases can be seen in the basic education, higher education, justice/public safety and public finance verticals, ranging from 0.30 percent to 37.52 percent. Health care, social services, transportation, economic development/regulation, natural resources/environment, general government and homeland security verticals will experience decreases ranging from 0.11 percent to nearly 7 percent. More drastic changes can be seen in information technology spending, in which every vertical will see a decrease in spending, ranging from less than 1 percent in homeland security to almost 71 percent in health care.

Analyst’s Take

With IT spending on the decline for FY 2013, it should not come as a surprise that there was little mention of large-scale IT projects in the budget. Instead, IT spending will go toward smaller-scale projects and making enhancements to existing systems. Vendors with efficiency-focused and cost-saving solutions will be well received by state program and procurement officials, particularly if these solutions can improve existing systems instead of replacing them.

That said, with the implementation of block grants for much of the funding for the Departments of Education and Public Welfare, IT spending may increase at the local level while it declines at the state level. Vendors should be prepared for increased collaboration with city- and county-level officials who may take the lead in implementing IT projects and procuring IT vendors.

The state has reauthorized capitals bonds for FY 2013, which contributes to the nearly 38 percent increase in spending for the public finance vertical. It is estimated that FY 2013 new project authorizations will amount to a total of about $1.2 billion, with higher-dollar projects planned for the urban mass transportation, higher education, and environmental protection and management program areas. The reauthorization of these bonds bodes well for the state’s economic health now and in the future.

From the FY 2013 budget, it appears that the commonwealth is making progress on the economic road to recovery. If the state is able to continue its commitment to creating jobs, reforming education and public welfare programs, and streamlining government operations, the economy and citizens will surely prosper.

GovWin subscribers have access to expanded analysis of Pennsylvania’s FY 2013 Executive Budget, including detailed budget data, available here.

'Authoritative Crowdsourcing' - L.A. County LMS

Tue, 24 Jan 2012 17:27:00 -0400

PTI recently hosted a presentation by Mark Greninger, Geographic Information Officer for the County of Los Angeles, who detailed the county’s implementation of a new land management system (LMS). On the surface this might not seem noteworthy. However, Mr. Greninger struck upon the profound notion of “authoritative crowdsourcing,” which holds tremendous value for vendors and government IT decision makers looking to find value from social media—in this case, a blogging tool transformed into a distributed GIS data collection point.

Read More
(Subscription to Deltek State & Local Industry Analysis required.)

Oklahoma Requests NCLB Waiver To Enhance Education System; To Develop Assessment/Evaluation Systems

Mon, 09 Jan 2012 12:30:00 -0400

In September 2011, the Obama Administration began an effort to offer more flexibility from federal education mandates in exchange for a commitment from states to adopt reforms that would enhance their overall student achievement.

After the announcement, 11 states formally submitted requests to the U.S. Department of Education for waivers from key provisions related to No Child Left Behind (NCLB), with numerous other states indicating they plan to apply for waivers at a later time next year.

In exchange for receiving waivers, these states must detail plans for meeting several goals, including developing academic standards that prepare students for college or a trade; creating statewide measures of student performance and plans for reforming schools that don’t meet requirements; and developing teacher and administrator evaluation systems tied to student performance.

Over the past few weeks, Deltek has highlighted several of the states which have submitted initial NCLB waiver requests, and this week turns the spotlight on the state of Oklahoma.

As part of its waiver request, Oklahoma disclosed two IT-specific initiatives, including a plan to 1) Develop and Administer Annual Statewide, Aligned, High-Quality Assessments that measure student growth (IT project A), and to 2) Develop and Adopt Guidelines for Local Teachers and Principal Evaluation and Support Systems (IT Project B).

In the request, Oklahoma said it may join a consortium of states in developing an Assessment System (see IT project A, above – there is no related Deltek tracked opportunity) which is designed to improve student achievement and school performance, close achievement gaps, and increase the quality of instruction for students.

The state said it will transform accountability by integrating state and federal accountability systems into one clearly defined, transparent system that will inform parents, districts, and community stakeholders as to the progress of their schools, including their celebrations and their challenges.

Oklahoma’s new accountability system will increase student achievement by differentiating proactive interventions and raising the bar for all students to be college, career and citizen ready; it will no longer be a system myopically focused on performance in math and reading, graduation rates, and implementation of reactive interventions.

Elsewhere, Oklahoma is nearing completion of the development of the State’s new Teacher and Leader Effectiveness Evaluation System (TLE) (see IT project B above – there is no related Deltek tracked opportunity).

The TLE will support all teachers and administrators towards continuous improvement of instructional practices and student outcomes, among other things.

By the 2013-2014 school year, each school district in the state must adopt a teacher and principal evaluation policy based on the statewide TLE system. Selected districts will begin implementing a pilot program for the 2012-2013 school year.

Kentucky Seeks to Improve Education Via Accountability and Teacher Evaluation Systems

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 14:04:00 -0400

In September, President Obama announced a plan to offer greater flexibility from federal education mandates in exchange for a commitment from states to boost overall student achievement. After the announcement, 11 states formally submitted to the U.S. Department of Education requests for waivers from key provisions of No Child Left Behind (NCLB).

In this installment, Deltek would like to focus on the state of Kentucky, and discuss its plans to:

Build district capacity to implement College and Career Readiness (CCR) standards;
Implement a variety of measures for state, district, educator, and student accountability focused on CCR;
Create a fair and equitable system for educator effectiveness; and
Set a standard for non-tested areas to ensure students experience a comprehensive 21^st century education, while eliminating barriers to student success.

As part of this, Deltek would like to discuss the various information technology (IT) initiatives associated with this waiver request.

In its request, Kentucky mentioned a few IT-specific initiatives, including a plan to develop and implement a state-based system of differentiated recognition, accountability, and support (IT Project A - there is no Deltek-tracked opportunity which is related), and a local teacher and principal evaluation and support system (IT Project B – there is Deltek-tracked opportunity which is related).

As part of its waiver request, Kentucky is seeking to create and develop a Recognition, Accountability and Support System (see IT Project A, above) which will improve student achievement and school performance, and increase the quality of education to students. The Recognition, Accountability and Support System is expected to be implemented no later than the 2012-2013 school year.

Kentucky is also working on a multi-phased project (which is underway) that will present an online technology platform. This system, known as Kentucky’s Continuous Instructional Improvement Technology System(CIITS), presents anytime, anywhere access to high-quality resources and professional development and serves as a model for dissemination of exemplar lessons, strategies and instructional materials. CIITS implementation began in 2011, and the system will be fully populated by December 2012. There is no Deltek-tracked opportunity which is related.

In another tech-related initiative, Kentucky is looking to Develop and Adopt Guidelines for Local Teacher and Principal Evaluation and Support Systems (see IT Project B, above). This system will be designed with the vision to have every student taught by an effective principal and every school led by an effective principal.

As part of this, the strategic plan of the Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) includes a specific goal to create a fair and equitable system to measure teacher and leader effectiveness. The system will consist of multiple measures including student growth, professional growth, artifacts, and evidences, student/parent voice, peer observations, teacher self-reflection and classroom observations.

Under this new system, KDE will develop a comprehensive monitoring system to support system implementation, data accuracy and integrity, as well as technical assistance to specific school districts. During the pilot year of implementation (2012), KDE will work with education partners and school districts to develop the monitoring system. The first year of accountability for the professional growth and evaluation system will be the 2013-2014 school year.

Good news details: All-state IT budget vertical analysis (2010-2013)

Thu, 22 Sep 2011 15:04:00 -0400

As part of our analysis of state IT budget data, Deltek has published vertical analyses and projections of health care, social services, justice, public safety, and homeland security. Also, we have published vertical IT budget analyses of some of the larger states (California, New York, Texas, Florida, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Massachusetts, Illinois, North Carolina, Michigan, and Virginia). However, we have yet to publish overarching analyses and projections of IT verticals across all states. In fact, even with all of our budget publications, we have yet to focus any articles in their entirety on state IT. As part of Deltek’s all-state budget analysis series, this article launches a sub-series of all-state IT budget vertical analysis and projection.

Previous analyses and projections (linked above) have demonstrated several key points. First, from FY 2009-2011, state budgets (all-funds, overall budgets) increased at an abnormal rate. Second, FY 2012 is the first projected overall state budget loss since Deltek began tracking in FY 1987. Third, and most promising for the business community, all indicators show that bloodletting should stop in FY 2013, with budgets flattening and then beginning an upward trend. With these key points on overall budgets in mind, the picture of overall all-state IT budgets becomes clearer. Importantly, IT budgets for FY 2012 show an increase of 3.12 percent. To be succinct, this is fantastic news for the IT vending community (see table 1).

Table 1: All State Budgets Vertical Comparison FY 2010-2013

Note: FY 2010 missing Arizona, Hawaii, Michigan, Nevada, and Ohio; FY 12 is missing Oklahoma; FY 13 includes data from 21 states (Arkansas, Connecticut, Florida, Hawaii, Indiana, Iowa, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, Texas, Washington, and Wisconsin). Subscribers have access to more complete data and analysis, here.

Analyst’s Take:

With some data missing from FY 2010 and FY 2013, making direct, year-to-year comparisons is difficult. The best year-to-year comparisons are from FY 2011 to FY 2012.
The best news for FY 2012 IT is an overall 3.12 percent growth rate. This is great news in an otherwise down budget year.
Similarly to overall budgets, the community development vertical is the smallest IT budgetary expenditure for all states in each of the fiscal years included (from 0.11 percent to 0.00 percent). It also shows the largest losses in FY 2012 (similarly to overall budgets). While community development funding can do wonders for future economic growth, it is clear that many states have reduced its importance in shorter-term economic planning.
Higher education is the biggest vertical decrease (-39.12 percent) for FY 2012. As states looked for any and all ways to save money, higher education was on the block in many budgets. It is likely that the decrease in higher education was seen as a trade-off between keeping other essential IT expenditures and reducing higher education IT functioning that may have been viewed as less critical.
General government services is the largest percentage of state IT budgets for each year included (from 41 to 51 percent). This is not surprising, since GovWin classifies many budgeted enterprise IT functions, management, and infrastructure costs as part of this vertical. Look for GovWin to provide more detail on this general government IT data moving forward.
Social services is the largest gainer (+87.48 percent) in FY 2011. Again, this is difficult to judge, as FY 2010 is missing some data. However, it is still important as states move toward creating and/or updating Medicaid management information systems (MMIS), WIC (Women, Infants, and Children program), and EBT (electronic benefit transfer) to improve service delivery and efficiency. As the state economies continued to struggle downward and public assistance rolls swooned in FY 2010 and 2011, it is also likely that states continued to prioritize IT spending to increase efficiency in social services.
Health care is the largest gainer (+34.01 percent) in FY 2012. This is no surprise, as there are many federal grant deadlines for health insurance exchanges (HIX) in 2011 and 2012. States will continue to update/create HIXs and MMISs as they race toward various federal deadlines. Look for IT spending to continue at significant levels through 2013/2014 as the ACA deadline approaches.

Final Analysis
While FY 2012 is generally a down year for state government budgets, states will still procure the goods and services they need. In terms of IT spending, the best news is that FY 2012 is projecting gains from 3.31 to 13.97 percent. Compared to the 3.18 percent overall budget losses projected for FY 2012, this is a good sign for an improved contracting environment moving forward. While the projected picture for FY 2013 and forward is still somewhat unclear, even with projected losses for the sample of states in table 2, all sources combined point to continued IT spending gains in FY 2013. So, while some vendors may be considering withdrawing from the state market as they are unable to weather the more-competitive recessionary market, many more will stay put. Vendors who remain will be very well-positioned for the coming recovery.

For subscribers, this article contains additional analysis of the 21 states with actual FY 2013 data, compared and contrasted to illustrate trends and projections, here.

Follow all of the GovWin State and Local Top Opportunities, Reports, and Podcasts, here.

Follow Chris Cotner on Twitter, here.

Good news details: All-state budget vertical analysis (2010-2013)

Wed, 21 Sep 2011 10:50:00 -0400

This article is part of the continuing "Good News" series with analysis and projections of state budgets. In particular, this article launches a new part of the series on all-state budget vertical analyses.

As part of our analysis of state budget data, Deltek previously published analyses and projections of the health care, social services, justice, public safety, and homeland security verticals. We also published vertical budget analyses on several larger states (California, New York, Texas, Florida, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Massachusetts, Illinois, North Carolina, Michigan, and Virginia). However, we have yet to publish overarching analyses and projections of verticals across all states. With this article, Deltek launches an all-state budget vertical analysis series.

Previous analyses and projections (linked above) have demonstrated several key points about state budgets and related business prospects. First, from FY 2009-2011, state budgets increased at an abnormal rate. Much of this increase can be attributed to key factors including expired stimulus funding, increased health care costs (both for state workers and Medicaid), increased retirement/pension costs for state workers, and increased unemployment compensation. Second, FY 2012 is the first projected overall state budget loss since Deltek began tracking in FY 1987. This loss is mostly due to expired stimulus funding and states’ revenues decreasing as the result of the recession and slower economic growth. With decreased revenues, many states had to slash budgets, including measures such as laying off state workers, increasing state employee contributions to health care and retirement, freezing or reducing state worker pay, consolidating agencies, implementing efficiency measures through IT, and cutting departments and programs deemed unnecessary in difficult economic times. Third, and most promising for the business community, all indicators show the bloodletting should stop in FY 2013, with budgets flattening and then beginning on an upward trend. These same key points bear out in this all-state vertical analysis (see table 1).

Table 1: All-State Budgets Vertical Comparison FY 2010-2013

Note: The data in table 1 for FY 2013 is not complete (it only includes data for 21 out of 50 states, plus D.C.). As a result, any direct comparisons and projections between FY 2013 and other states are limited. Subscribers have access to more detailed analysis, including states with FY 2013 budget data, here.

Analyst’s Take:

The community development vertical is the smallest budgetary expenditure for all states in each of the fiscal years included. It also shows the largest losses in FY 2012 and 2013. While community development funding can do wonders for future economic growth, it is clear that many states have reduced its importance in shorter term economic planning.

Economic development funding took a big hit in FY 2011. This may have been the result of delayed stimulus funding. It may have also been the result of increased funding to health care and education spending. However, this is an interesting budgetary priority considering many states have struggling economies.

Health care is the largest percentage of state budgets for each year. This is not surprising, as states continue to struggle with health care costs and look for ways to deliver services more efficiently through IT.

Public finance is the largest gainer in each year included. The vertical includes state financing, investments, insurance payments, and retirement systems. States are facing increased insurance premiums and retirement costs for employees, which is having an impact on this vertical. States are also looking to improve efficiency through IT (e.g., enterprise finance systems), which is also accounting for some of the budgetary growth.

Homeland security and public finance are the only verticals showing gains in FY 2012. Homeland security funding is relatively stable with slow growth rates supported by many associated federal programs.

Final Analysis

While FY 2012 is generally a down year for state budgets, states will still procure the goods and services they need. The 3.18 percent loss from FY 2011-2012, while significant as a loss, is not going to have a deep and lasting effect on state contractors. Quite the contrary, as contractors settle in to the reality of fewer contracts for this fiscal year, opportunities, contracts, old projects, and new projects should all improve in 2013. So, while some vendors may be considering withdrawing from the state market, many more will stay put. Vendors that remain will be very well-positioned for the coming recovery.

For subscribers, this article contains additional analysis of the 21 states with actual FY 2013 data, compared and contrasted to illustrate trends and projections, here.

Follow all of the GovWin State and Local Top Opportunities, Reports, and Podcasts, here.

Follow Chris Cotner on Twitter here.

Southern Illinois? groundbreaking 911 pilot

Mon, 29 Aug 2011 15:35:00 -0400

Southern Illinois is taking steps to increase the efficiency of emergency response in rural America. Several counties have been chosen to participate in a nationwide pilot program to test new initiatives and advancements for how dispatchers respond to 911 calls, text and picture messages, and streaming video. The counties of Southern Illinois' (CSI) 911 Association project will be a pilot program for how to develop and test a next generation 911 (NG911) system as a basis for a 911 network in rural America. The project is being funded through the National Emergency Number Association (NENA) along with a $600,000 federal grant. The project started out as a grassroots effort and has since expanded to include the 15-county consortium of CSI 911. Southern Illinois seems to be booming with technology projects. The region was also the recipient of a $45 million fiber optic network project through Clearwave Communications. This project involved the creation of a high-speed broadband network across a 23-county region to improve broadband access. Clearwave decided to partner with CSI 911 and contribute to the success of the pilot by procuring more than a million dollars as part of a multi-million dollar broadband initiative. By combining CSI 911 and Clearwave Communications, Southern Illinois will set the stage for technological growth for the rest of the nation to emulate. The project aims to spawn further development in the region where economic hardship is prevalent. Pilots can be a great success in tackling statewide public safety efforts. Washington County, Maine recently combined efforts to establish a pilot for a mobile broadband project to improve rural wireless connectivity. The pilot will serve as a research tool to create real-time connectivity to transmit public safety data. If the project demonstrates success at the county level, it will expand statewide and possibly nationally. Analyst's Take Pilot projects are important for generating support for larger-scale projects by combining planning, evaluation, cost analysis and implementation. These projects serve as a catalyst for initiatives nationwide. In rural areas like Southern Illinois, where connectivity is hindered and public safety can become jeopardized, a pilot serves a special purpose to improve public safety measures. In the case of CSI 911, new advancements in 911 technologies are needed to ensure emergency response is quick and efficient for people in need. Vendors should become aware of pilots in order to help win a favorable position when future projects arise. Pilot projects like CSI 911 can allow vendors to determine how improve their products to be a valuable competitor in the NG911 market and, in turn, get ahead of the game. It is also important to analyze which types of systems are feasible and which communities a system would benefit. Another valuable tool vendors should familiarize themselves with is the National 911 Assessment Guidelines which serve as a comprehensive benchmark for statewide 911 systems to track their progress as well as assist states with achieving the best results for 911 services.