2004 SUBMISSION FOR DIGEST OF
ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTSDepartment of Information Technology
At a Glance
ROCK REGAN, Chief Information Officer
Established
-
1997
Statutory
authority -
CGS Sec. 4d
Central office - 101 East River Drive,
East Hartford, CTonnecticut 06108
Number
of employees -
304
Recurring
operating expenses –
General Fund - $7.8 Millionmillion
Technical Services Revolving
Fund - – $60.9 million
Customer Relations Division, Operations Division, CT Connecticut Commission for Educational Technology.
Mission
DOIT was created in 1997 to make the State of Connecticut a leader in the
effective use of information technology to improve government operations and
services. It is carrying out this
mission through consolidating state IT services and resources and developing enterprise-wide
solutions to meet the common
IT needs among more than 60 client agencies in the executive branch.
Highlights
2003-2004
Telecommunication
Contracts
DOIT completed multi-year
negotiations for new statewide telecommunications contracts covering more than 12 areas of telecommunications
services, from long
distance service to internetInternet access. Statewide, savings of up to 22 percent are expected to be
achieved.
Connecticut
Education Network
Progress continues on the
Connecticut Education Network initiative linking 1,100 K-12 schools, the
state’s 350 libraries, and over 100 college and university campuses. The network is now more than 40 percent complete,
extending to almost half of the state’s K-12 and higher education students,
and 15 library systems.
Dark Fiber
DOIT’s
innovative approach to networking through the utilization of "dark
fiber" has positioned the state for long-term cost savings and expanded
capacity. The completion of the
Metropolitan Area Network in Hartford now links state agencies in 14 locations
and provides the potential for agencies to run high bandwidth applications.
Spam Control and Virus
Protection
DOIT installed new systems which block more than 10,000 spam e-mails per day.
The agency is also reconfiguring the IT architecture to
accommodate the increased
level of Spam/ and Viruses by utilizing Content content Services services Sswitch. es. These
switches enable, through load balancing, continuity in spam and virus
protection through efficient, invisible distribution of work between
appliances.
National Recognition OBTS
Connecticut’s Offender Based Tracking System,
(OBTS), the nation's first statewide integration of offender data, received
national recognition at the 2004
Symposium on Integrated Justice Information Systems: Supporting the Homeland. The conference was
attended by more than 800 justice, public safety and homeland security
executives in Washington D.C.
OBTS
is currently being tested by hundreds of users across Connecticut. The system will be used by more than 17,000
law enforcement personnel by the end of 2004.
Health Insurance Portability
and Accountability Act Compliance
DOIT continues to oversee the state’s compliance with
the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) of 1996, which
establishes federal policy for security of electronic health care transmissions
and privacy protections for medical information and medical
records.
Expanded
E-Learning
DOIT
expanded online training offerings to provide agencies with on demand, low-cost
training in key areas.
Security
A
new, consolidated IT Security Unit was formed to focus on security staffing, procedures and
infrastructure. Security staffing was increased, and nearly 100 IT managers and professionals were trained in
IT security, including server, client, application and data security.
Statutory
Responsibility
DOIT was created to:
§
Make the State of Connecticut a leader in the effective
use of information technology.
§
Build
the statewide information infrastructure for state agencies and citizens.
§
Consolidate technologies and
IT Sservices.
§
Direct the development of IT
systems to meet the common business and technology needs of multiple state
agencies.
Office of the Chief Information Officer
The Office of the Chief Information Officer (CIO)
consists of the CIO, Chief of Staff, and Chief Technology Officer, and
strategic support divisions for agency operations, including Administration;
Legislative and Communications. A
cross-divisional team is led by the office focusing on security, disaster recovery, and operational continuity.
Division of
Customer Relations
Customer Relations provides support
for client agency needs, from the end user to agency planners, including the
Help Desk, End User Support, Customer Relations, and an Enterprise Program
Management Office to track and monitor all IT projects statewide.
Division of
Business Development
The Business Development Division
develops solutions to enterprise-wide needs, including application development
and maintenance.
Division of Operations
Focuses on infrastructure implementation and support
with an emphasis on common system management practices and consolidation. Provides
core computers, telecommunications and networking services to state agencies.
Improvements/Achievements
2003-04
Paperless
Procurement
A
new paperless procurement requisition system has been developed. The new system streamlines the procurement
process and features on-line requisition tracking. As a result, all agency requestors may see
where a particular requisition is in the approval process at any time. The system also features a date/time stamp
for requisitions as they flow through the process, thereby eliminating time
consuming inquiries, hand delivery of paperwork and faxing. Agency roll-outrollout and training
is being held during the summer and fall of 2004.
Paperless Telecommunication Billing
DOIT launched a paperless
telecommunication billing system with its 130 client
agencies. The launch of this system
eliminates the need to print and issue more
than one million pieces of paper bills to client agencies per year.
Expanded
E-Learning
Online
training offerings are being expanded to provide agencies with on- demand, low cost
training in key areas.
Health
Privacy Training
An
on-line
training program, named the
Learn Center, was developed by DOIT to train agency personnel in the
requirements of new federal health privacy regulations. It has enrolled 895 users. The highest volume agencies users using of this training
resource are the Department of Children and Families, the Department of Public
Health, the Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services, and the
University of Connecticut.
CORECore-CT
DOIT
continues to provide technical support for Core-CT - the overhaul of the
state’s core financial systems and human resource
systems. DOIT is co-leading this initiative along with the
Office of the State Comptroller, the Department of Administrative Services, and
the Office of Policy and Management.
Core-CT also established anAn Enterprise Data
Warehouse was established
to (EPM) that enabled enable agency ad hoc reporting. , and disaster recovery and business continuity procedures for Core-CT are on schedule to be
operational by 2005.
DOIT is co-leading this
initiative along with the Office of the State Comptroller, the Department of
Administrative Services, and the Office of Policy and Management. Disaster
Recovery and Business Continuity Procedures for Core-CT are on schedule for
operation by 2005.
Data Storage
A
new data storage contract was awarded to expand storage capacity and lower
costs for agencies for a full
range of electronic storage needs including data files, images, video, maps,
and other types of electronic media.
As
a result, DOIT’s overall data storage capacity has increased fivefold, ( from 11 to 55 terabytes) , within a three
monththree-month
period in 2004.
Plans have been developed to match growth
requirements with a "just in time" capacity acquisition to take
advantage of industry cost reductions that have historically occurred and are
likely to continue.
Healthcare Record Security
DOIT is developing federally mandated policies and
technical solutions for the protection of healthcare records with initial
policies completed by September 2004.
Areas of focus include risk management, incident response and reporting,
and authorized access to electronic information.
Intrusion Detection
DOIT standardized processes and
increased the effectiveness of agency intrusion detection capabilities to
further protect the State’s network, computer, and information
assets.
Computer Investigations
DOIT facilitated and led numerous computer related investigations throughout the executive
branch. DOIT used government- approved procedures to
execute forensics and evidence collection.
Connecticut Justice
Information System Program
Security Infrastructure
The IT Security Unit is leading and making
recommendations for the security infrastructure design and policy development
for the Connecticut Justice Information System Program.
Information Protection Plan
An information protection plan
(IPP) is being developed for a more consistent execution of information
security tasks. The IPP consists of risk management,
security awareness, policy administration, audits and assessments, security
tools,
and security operations.
New
Internet Filtering Solution
A new internetInternet filtering solution is being deployed
to provide increased protection and flexibility for users. It also offers expanding reporting capabilityies. and includes a new “delegated administration”
feature that enables agencies to tailor the
level of filtering to their specific needs. DOIT, and plus five of the largerr state agencies, will be using the system initially, with a goal of
enterprise-wide deployment. The system’s
new “delegated administration” feature enables
agencies to tailor the level of filtering to their specific needs.
Portal
Project
In 2003, DOIT launched CT.gov, the new state internetInternet portal . designed to allow users to get quickly to the
information they need. To
date, DOIT has migrated 29 agencies to the portal with twelve 12 added between August
2003 and August 2004.
TTwo of the state’s largest agencies – the
Department of Revenue Services and the Department of Transportation – were
successfully migrated, with more than 13,000 files. Ten agencies with more than 58,000 files, are currently
in the conversion process.
Help
Desk
DOIT’s Help Desk improvement
efforts have resulted in new procedures to improve customer service and
increase efficiency. The new web site
for the Help Desk features online service request forms, an incident reporting system, a
self-serve, “Help Yourself” section, and other features designed to improve
customer service and problem resolution.
A new system upgrade is
currently being tested to further improve service, including an expansion of
options for customers to submit assistance requests. The Help Desk
processes more than 30,000 phone calls and e-mails per year. New
enhancements will increase electronic submission usage and expedite processing
of requests.
Student
Information Management System
A new system is now operational to record and
report grades, schedules, attendance, course offerings and other data required
to operate a school system. This system is running at the Department of
Education’s central office and is being deployed to
17 regional vocational-technical schools which enroll 11,000 students.
Computerized Centralized Voter Registration System
The Centralized Voter Registration System became
operational in most of the state’s municipalities in 2003. System performanceThe system enables on-site
verification of voter registration and prevents fraudulent dual registration in
different municipalities. The system
was successfully used during the 2004 primaries without incident.
Concord Upgrade
An upgrade of the Concord Business Registration System
at the Office of the Secretary of the State is underway to reduce backlog,
processing, and
image retrieval time.
ITAS Rollout
DOIT continues to work with DRS on
its multi-year initiative to modernize and improve the efficiency of systems used
to to carry out the
Agency's core business functions, including processing and collection of over $nine9.0 billion
in state revenue. Modernizing
the systems, –one of which is more than 23
years old and increasingly difficult to maintain, - will
reduce performance costs and improve efficiency in collecting revenue due to
the state.
Connecticut Education
Network
DOIT,
in conjunction with the University of Connecticut, became a founding member of
the North East Research and Education Network (NEREN), one of the nation’s
first Regional Optical Research and Education Networks.
NEREN was endorsed by the five New England Governors and
four Eastern Canadian premiers in a unanimous 2003 resolution indicating its
importance to the region’s economic development and educational
competitiveness. NEREN will connect CEN
member schools to international resources.
Help Desk
Help Desk Overhaul has resulted in new procedures
to improve customer service and increase efficiency. New web site for the Help Desk features online service request
forms, incident reporting system, a self-serve, “Help Yourself” section, and
other features designed to improve customer service and problem resolution.
A new system upgrade is currently being tested to
further improve service, including an expansion of options for customers to
submit assistance requests. The Help
Desk processes more than 1,000 e-mail requests per year, and 10,000 phone calls
per year. New enhancements will
increase electronic submission usage and expedite processing of requests.
Blackberry
Blackberry wireless handheld services are now
offered to state agencies. Blackberry services allow users to remotely access,
among other things, their e-mail and schedules.
Technical
Architecture
DOIT continues to update technical
architecture documents to ensure a current set of standards governing all
categories of technology.
In
2003-2004, the Enterprise Application Integration Domain was formed to promote
better integration of applications.
This domain will essentially replace the middleware and
e-‑government
domains. It will also provide a set of
standards and guidelines that address the entire product development cycle.
The
Platform Architecture was also updated with an addition of standards for
“VMware” and the Storage Area Network (SAN).
VMWare
VMware
systems were deployed to optimize utilization of computing, storage and
networking equipment, including the ability to consolidate servers and improve and lower the cost of Disaster Recovery capability.
Traction Teamware
Traction teamware Teamware was deployed to
enable members of a project to collaborate and share commentary in a
documented, threaded, instantaneous manner.
Traction Teamware is used for draft policy dissemination, security
bulletins and other areas where real-time, interagency dialog is essential for
sound decision
makingdecision-making
and information dissemination.
Traction Teamware increases efficiency by reducing
the time and effort required in collecting and disseminating discussion on a
topic.
Tumbleweed
Secure File Transport and Messaging
DOIT completed “Total Acceptance Testing” of a new
system to enable secure transport of files and messages. The system is now being used by the
Department of Children and Families, and a pilot is beginning at the Department
of Social Services. More than 12,000
users are planned to be able to use this system across state government.
SSL
Virtual Private Network Upgrade
DOIT
completed research for new technology to replace
existing virtual private network technology (VPN). VPN
enables more than 2,000
users to remotely access DOIT’s enterprise network. The new technology is more user friendly, web-based, and does not
require client software to be installed on a user’s remote computer. Beta testing begins in October 2004.
RLAN
ADSL
This
new network connection service is
now being offered to improve network connectivity from small remote locations
to DOIT. A test of this service will be
launched at the Department of Mental Retardation for connections between DOIT
and 6six remote locations. The plan calls for eventual deployment to 130
locations. This new service offers more
bandwidth and costs approximately 75 percent less than the T-1 frame/relay lines
currently in use.
Terminal
Service Technology
DOIT
continues to expand the ability to deliver services to desktop computers
statewide from one central location using new terminal services technology.
EE-mail
The
gradual statewide deployment of a uniform e-mail system continues throughout
the executive branch. DOIT’s goal is to eventually replace
the variety of e-mail systems running throughout the executive branch with a
centralized uniform system.
eE-License license Management
System Project
The
upgrade of the Department of Consumer Protection’s e-license system is now
complete. This system is the state's
first full-scale program for renewing license applications online for
businesses and individuals. It handles
licensees
in 193 categories and offers consumers the ability to review
license status and other information.
Department of
Mental Retardation (DMR) Web-Enabled Registry
A web-based solution was deployed to enable entities
licensed or funded by DMR to ascertain whether a prospective new employee is in
the DMR Registry
registry of
individuals who have been terminated from employment for substantiated abuse or
neglect while employed at an agency, organization or as an individual that is
licensed or funded by DMR. This new
system decreases response times and improves access to critical information.
Student Information Management
System
A new system is now
operational to record and report grades, schedules, attendance, course
offerings and other data required to operate a school
system. This system is running at the
Department of Education Central Office.
In addition, several school databases have been converted. DOIT’s goal is to deploy the system to 17
vocational/technical schools which oversee 11,000 students. (WAITING FOR CONFIRMATION THAT THIS SYSTEM HAS BEEN
DEPLOYED TO THE VO-TECHS – CALL INTO LOIS BRYANT)
COLLECT System Upgrade
Major progress has been made on the upgrade of the
COLLECT system, a central database of data used by more than 15,000 federal,
state and local law enforcement agents and officers. The upgraded system is on schedule to be fully deployed in
2005.
DOIT completed the architecture design and installation
of more than 30 servers to accommodate the upgraded COLLECT system.
To enable seamless communication with FBI and law
enforcement nationwide, message switch implementation will became become operational in
November 2004.
Connecticut is now using XML and Websphere MQ
to conforming
to new federal standards concerning a standard language for national law
enforcement communication and data exchange.
Connecticut is now the third state in the nation to
do so.