News
Top Story
Industry Insider — Texas will not be sending a morning newsletter on Monday, Jan. 19, in observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day. The next newsletter will hit your inbox on Wednesday, Jan. 21.
Top News Stories
The North Central Texas Council of Governments and the Southwest Research Institute will develop a Transportation System Management and Operations data exchange platform, to improve coordination on regional mobility.
What to Know:
- The forthcoming request for offers will cover a wide range of services supporting end-user computing environments.
- DIR currently maintains 20 active contracts in this category and is seeking to refresh or expand its vendor pool.
- According to DIR, the program generated $3.4 billion in sales in the 2024 fiscal year across all categories.
What to Know:
- The proposed FY 2025–26 budget outlines cybersecurity upgrades, data center migration and legacy system modernization.
- Information and Technology Services accounts for more than $186 million.
- Capital funding includes IT network, security and device replacements.
What to Know:
- Jerome Greener currently serves as executive vice president at the Texas Public Policy Foundation.
- The Texas Regulatory Efficiency Office operates under the Office of the Governor with a projected budget of $22.8 million in the next five years.
- Audrey O’Neill, who was named acting commissioner of the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services on Aug. 1, has now been officially appointed to the role.
Key responsibilities include directing IT risk management and governance, leading architecture reviews, developing risk mitigation strategies, and establishing security protocols and procedures.
What to Know:
- The university is looking for a next-generation ERP solution that enhances academic and business operations while supporting institutional goals.
- The selected platform must align with the university’s mission of supporting student success, workforce readiness and institutional agility.
- Texas Southern has set an enrollment goal of 10,000 students by 2025 and 15,000 by 2030.
What to Know:
- The Texas Cyber Command was established through House Bill 150, signed into law in June following its designation as an emergency item by the governor earlier this year.
- White most recently served as commander of the U.S. Fleet Cyber Command and U.S. 10th Fleet.
- According to the Texas Department of Information Resources, the Cyber Command represents a complete overhaul of the state’s cybersecurity strategy.
What to Know:
- The court’s request for information outlines interest in systems that can automatically assign cases using historical case data.
- Systems must operate in the Microsoft Azure Government Cloud and support secure, web-based access through the court’s infrastructure.
- Systems must include safeguards to prevent overreliance on AI and comply with the Texas Responsible Artificial Intelligence Governance Act.
Fair brings more than two decades of experience in IT and executive leadership, most recently serving as deputy city manager for the city of Goodyear, Ariz.
What to Know:
- $2.2 million has been appropriated for FY 2026 through the city’s Technology Improvement Fund.
- $7 million is earmarked for software and hardware maintenance.
- $420,000 is budgeted for technology equipment purchases.
What to Know:
- The agency is interested in support systems capable of managing a broad range of regulatory tasks.
- Respondents are asked to describe how their system supports core business functions.
- Respondents are also encouraged to describe professional services for implementation, data migration and support.
What to Know:
- The county’s Management Information Systems Department is slated to receive $2.7 million in operating funds.
- Enterprise platforms make up a significant portion of the capital investment.
- The new budget will take effect Oct. 1.
Meetings in Laredo and Del Rio will cover several funding and technology topics, including innovation and infrastructure.
As part of Industry Insider — Texas’ ongoing efforts to educate readers on state and local government, their IT plans and initiatives, here’s the latest in our periodic series of interviews with departmental IT leaders.
Because of communication issues between the criminal court system and the jail, paperwork is delivered manually to the county jail, leading to delays in inmate release. Now the county is seeking to resolve the issue.
What to Know:
- The Texas Department of Motor Vehicles received $125 million from the Legislature to initiate a full replacement of its registration and title system.
- The Department of Family and Protective Services is developing a new Comprehensive Child Welfare Information System.
- The Texas Workforce Commission is expanding its portfolio of AI and automation tools in use across the agency.
What to Know:
- The agency seeks insights into tools that can help NTTA build a more comprehensive inventory of assets across its tollway network.
- The agency currently uses AssetWorks as its computerized maintenance management system.
What to Know:
- The Department of Public Safety is exploring vendor options for a platform that can centralize and streamline the process of receiving transfer requests, tracking outcomes and more.
- Currently, the transfer process is supported by a combination of Microsoft Outlook, Access and Excel.
- DPS is also requesting budgetary estimates, cloud hosting details and certification status under TX-RAMP or FedRAMP as part of the RFI response.
What to Know:
- Texas CIO Amanda Crawford and Department of Information Resources Deputy Executive Director Steve Pier spoke at this year’s Industry Insider — Texas State of Technology forum.
- The launch of Cyber Command marks a complete overhaul of the state’s cybersecurity efforts.
- DIR is in the planning and pilot stages for two new contract options through the agency’s Shared Technology Services program.
What to Know:
- The IT department supports operations and infrastructure, including staffing, maintenance and licensing.
- Several city functions will implement new tools aimed at improving service delivery and operational efficiency.
- The five-year Capital Improvement Plan allocates $16.1 million for technology through 2030.
What to Know:
- The college’s goal is to replace manual processes with a unified tool that supports scalability and data-driven planning.
- The software-as-a-service solution must support a wide range of event types.
- In addition to booking and logistics, the software must provide reporting features and integrate with several existing platforms.
Contributed Content
Oracle’s DB@ partnerships refers to initiatives in which Oracle offers its flagship database products as managed services running directly within other major cloud providers' infrastructure — AWS, Azure, & Google.
This year marked the inception of BMC Helix as an independent company. And we’re not just growing. We’re building for the future, boldly and for the long term. That’s why being recognized as a leader in The Forrester Wave™: Enterprise Service Management, Q4 2025 report is more than recognition.
Whether launching a customer-facing app or a cloud-native platform or integrating emerging technologies, effective quality assurance (QA) ensures software performs flawlessly, consistently, securely and swiftly. With AI, this strategic pillar of modern enterprises is undergoing a transformation — evolving into intelligent QA that delivers greater speed, precision and adaptability in testing.
Upcoming Events
