Last week, Gov. Jerry Brown signed into law a bill that will maintain the state CIO’s cabinet-level status even after the state Technology Agency is turned into a department, according to a press release.
AB 1498, a bill authored by Assemblymember Joan Buchanan, D-Alamo, is a gut an amend bill that also requests that the administration make a plan to move procurement responsibility for IT contracts from the Department of General Services to the Technology Agency. The Agency will be the Department of Technology within a new Government Operations Agency under Brown’s Reorganization Plan, which passed early this month.
Industry organization TechAmerica, which raised concerns during the Little Hoover Commission hearings about the Reorg Plan held in April, applauded the legislation’s passing.
"By making these important changes to government structure, the Governor and Legislature have shown their commitment to ensuring that California leads the nation in the use of technology to deliver more cost-effective and impactful services to citizens," said Kristine Berman, senior vice president of state government affairs at TechAmerica.
Other technology-related bills making their way through the process include:
SB 1006 (Committee on Budget and Fiscal Review) Grants IT and telecommunications contract negotiating authority to CTA, requires state agencies to have written permission by the CTA prior to procuring IT project oversight services and requires FISCal Project Office to report the Legislature by February 15 of year until the project is launched and a final report approved by the CTA.
Status: Approved by the governor on July 27.
AB 1708 (Gatto; D-Los Angeles): Vehicles: electronic verification of registration and insurance. Allows California drivers to show proof of insurance and auto registration on an electronic device.
Location: Re-referred to Senate Committee on Appropriations – Hearing Date: 08/06/2012.
AB 1732 (Campos; D- San Jose): Pupils: suspension or expulsion: bulling: impersonation. Specifies student conduct on social networking sites that constitutes bullying and can result in suspension or expulsion, including posting to or creating a burn page or creating a false page impersonating a student.
Status: Approved by the governor on July 23.
AB 1790 (Hagman; R-Chino Hills): Requires public school textbook publishers to provide content in eReader format for K-12 students.
Status: Ordered to inactive file.
AB 1791 (Buchanan; D-Alamo): Public contracts: state contracts: computer software. Requires state contractors and suppliers sign contracts certifying no unlawful use of computer software in business operations.
Status: Ordered to inactive file.
SB 1002 (Yee; D- San Mateo): Public Records: electronic format. Requires government agencies respond to requests for public documents with documents in searchable, sortable format.
Location: Re-referred to Assembly Appropriations Committee on 6/27/2012.
SB 1160 (Padilla; D-Pacoima): Communications: service interruptions. Restricts local government and agencies as well as communication providers’ abilities to interrupt or shutdown communications service without court review and allows public access to emergency 911 services and constitutionally protected expression.
Location: Assembly. Read second time and amended on 7/05/2012.
SB 1161 (Padilla; D-Pacoima): Communications: Voice over Internet protocol and Internet protocol enabled communications service. Prohibits Public Utilities Commission from regulating voice calls made through the Internet unless provided in the law.
Location: Re-referred to Assembly Appropriations Committee.
SB 1298 (Padilla; D-Pacoima): Vehicles: autonomous vehicles: safety and performance requirements. Authorizes the operation of autonomous vehicles by a licensed driver on public roads if safety conditions are met.
Location: Re-referred to Assembly Committee on Appropriations.
The legislature is currently adjourned for summer recess, scheduled to reconvene on August 6.
