Florida eliminates Agency for State Technology in IT Governance Restructure

Florida will again change its IT governance structure, as Governor DeSantis finalized the decision to shift the Agency for State Technology to the Department of Management Services Telecommunications Division. This law, which was approved by the state legislature in May, will officially shutter the Agency and create the Division of State Technology, which will formally become active in July.

This shakeup of state IT in Florida marks the third time since 2005 has overhauled its IT governance. The former State Technology Office, created in 2001, was eliminated in 2005 after the legislature would not fund it. It was replaced by the Agency for Enterprise Information Technology, which was in place until 2012, when it also was abolished. The AST was created in 2014, after two years without a centralized IT office.

Not only does this law reorganize the state’s IT structure, it also pushes for a “cloud-first” approach to procurement, meaning they will consider technologies that do not require hardware maintenance or add strain to the state’s data center. It also will create a new Cybersecurity Task Force, which will be responsible for making recommendations on government-wide cybersecurity policies, with a focus on the state data center, emergency management, and the ability to respond to cyberattacks.

Source: StateScoop