State’s Estimated Budget to Be Announced

With an unprecedented budget surplus and some three dozen IT modernization requests on the table, the Texas Legislature is set to convene Tuesday.

State Comptroller Glenn Hegar is expected to announce the state’s biennial revenue estimate Monday, and the Texas Tribune is holding “A Conversation With Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar,” a 30-minute event available to livestream at 3:30 p.m. Monday.

Hegar said in July that there was some $26.9 billion above the expected general revenue, but this amount has continued to rise, according to news reports.

These funds could be key to an unprecedented upgrade of state IT systems. There is an ongoing push for IT modernization and to streamline data and processes while upgrading the customer experience for Texas residents.

Agencies requesting technology replacements and upgrades were encouraged by the Department of Information Resources (DIR) to include such projects on their Legislative Appropriations Requests, turned in as part of the biennial budget planning process.

Agencies also requested IT funding via the Investment in Information Technology Improvement, Oversight Committee, which has some $200 million to distribute outside of that process.

Among those requests are large amounts for the Department of Health and Human Services, multiple universities, the Texas Secretary of State and DIR.

These are only a small fraction of agencies on the list, according to testimony at both the Investment in IT Committee meeting late in the summer and during appropriations hearings in the fall.

Agencies hope for funds to start, continue or complete projects of various sizes, and the total ask to the Investment in IT Committee is at least $338 million.

Meanwhile, agencies look to the Legislature to see what funding will become available.

Over the past months, Hegar has announced monthly surplus after surplus, and the total estimate should be available today.

According to the Texas House of Representatives website, the Legislature convenes at noon the second Tuesday of January in odd-numbered years, with a maximum session of 140 days.