What to Know:
- A new federal executive order aims to curb state laws that create compliance burdens or compel changes to AI model outputs.
- Trump’s executive order directs federal agencies to challenge conflicting state AI laws, with legal, regulatory and funding actions set to begin within 90 days.
- Texas laws such as TRAIGA and HB 4 could face pre-emption or funding penalties if deemed inconsistent with the national AI policy framework.
What to Know:
- Kerr County officials are moving forward with a new flood warning system in partnership with the Upper Guadalupe River Authority.
- San Marcos is seeking $4.78 million in state funding, and the Upper Guadalupe River Authority has earmarked $1.5 million to support local deployment.
- The Texas Department of Information Resources has launched a statewide procurement for flood early warning systems under its Cooperative Contracts Program.
What to Know:
- Texas leaders made clear that AI is now an expected part of funding and oversight conversations, and vendors should prepare to quantify efficiency gains.
- A new “Procurement-as-a-Service” model aims to help smaller agencies modernize faster with DIR support.
- Contracts move faster when vendors come prepared with an understanding of state-mandated terms.
What to Know:
- DIR has opened a competitive solicitation to refresh or expand its vendor pool for end-user IT outsourcing services.
- Vendors may offer services including desktop support, asset management, hosted virtual desktops and emerging tech like AI and cloud solutions.
- Selected vendors will enter Master Cooperative Contracts and serve a wide range of public-sector customers across Texas.
What to Know:
- TPWD’s new internal AI policy outlines rules for the responsible use of generative AI tools by agency staff.
- All AI tools must be approved by the IT Division, with strict limits on high-risk use cases.
- The policy emphasizes training, data privacy and human oversight in AI-assisted decision-making.
What to Know:
- Texas has secured a statewide MS-ISAC membership through November 2026.
- The federal government ended funding for MS-ISAC in late 2025, citing redundancy with other federal programs and shifting cybersecurity priorities.
- Texas members will continue to receive threat intelligence, incident response support and domain-blocking tools.
Commission on State Emergency Communications Director of IT Grace Ruwwe and public-sector IT leaders from various agencies were recognized for their contributions to the state’s public service.
What to Know:
- Angelo State University (ASU) is procuring a vendor to design, develop and implement a cybersecurity data dashboard for its Regional Security Operations Center.
- Student collaboration is a core requirement of the solicitation.
- The solution must integrate with ASU’s Microsoft environment and tools like ServiceNow, CrowdStrike and Okta, and comply with security standards including NIST and FedRAMP.
What to Know:
- The Texas Cyber Command is poised to take over statewide cybersecurity functions from DIR by the end of 2026.
- Agencies are being guided to adopt responsible AI practices, including use of the Texas AI Code of Ethics and the NIST AI Risk Management Framework.
- The state is prioritizing cloud, DevSecOps and agile development as part of a broader strategy to replace aging systems and accelerate modernization.
What to Know:
- The central IT agency on Friday proposed a statewide AI Code of Ethics that would apply to all state and local government use of artificial intelligence.
- The rule outlines seven key principles that agencies must follow when deploying AI systems.
- Agencies will be required to document compliance, provide redress mechanisms and train staff to monitor and validate AI outputs.
What to Know:
- DIR is seeking flood detection and alert technologies, including sensors, modeling software and emergency notification systems.
- This is a new contract category under DIR’s Cooperative Contracts Program, with no existing agreements in place.
- Eligible customers include state agencies, local governments, school districts, public hospitals and other authorized entities.
What to Know:
- The upcoming solicitation will cover cybersecurity software, services and related support.
- DIR plans to award one or more vendors under indefinite quantity contracts with no purchase minimums.
- The deadline for vendor responses is expected to be Feb. 2, 2026.
What to Know:
- As the central IT agency, DIR oversees statewide procurement vehicles, cybersecurity programs, data center services and cloud offerings.
- For Fiscal Year 2026, DIR has received $9.3 million for IT capital items and operates under a total budget of $779 million.
- DIR is shifting its focus from cybersecurity toward its Innovation Lab and new AI Division.
What to Know:
- Texans can now upgrade driver’s licenses and renew boat registrations through the TxT digital assistant platform.
- More than 10.8 million users have created TxT accounts since the platform’s public launch in 2022.
- TxT is a joint effort by DIR and multiple state agencies, with services developed in partnership with DPS and TPWD and operated by Deloitte.
What to Know:
- Tony Sauerhoff has been appointed chief AI and innovation officer at the Department of Information Resources.
- He'll be tasked with leading the agency's forthcoming AI Division.
- He previously served as Texas’ chief information security officer. DIR's cyber functions are moving to the new Texas Cyber Command.
What to Know:
- Texas Cyber Command (TXCC) is hiring two cybersecurity analysts to support threat research and incident response as part of its statewide cyber modernization push.
- Both roles are housed within the Office of the State CISO, with responsibilities that include developing detection tools, analyzing threats and building incident response capacity.
- Successful applicants will help stand up the statewide Cybersecurity Incident Response Team under TXCC by 2026.
What to Know:
- The Texas Cyber Command website is live and recruiting for top IT roles, including a director of IT services.
- The command is centralizing the state’s cybersecurity infrastructure with $345 million in funding.
- The agency is building three technical units under newly appointed Cyber Chief T.J. White.
What to Know:
- United Data Technologies has been awarded a cooperative contract with the Texas Department of Information Resources covering education IT products and related services.
- The contract allows Texas state agencies, local governments and educational institutions to buy directly from UDT through DIR’s Cooperative Contracts Program, which streamlines procurement and ensures competitive pricing.
- UDT, headquartered in Florida, already serves hundreds of K-12 customers nationwide and says the award will help expand its footprint in Texas.
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:
- 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.
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.
Applicants must have three to five years of Appian implementation experience and an Appian Senior Developer certification.
What to Know:
- A forthcoming request for offers will seek solutions that forecast and alert for flood events.
- DIR’s notice comes as demands to expand the state’s flood alert infrastructure have grown in the wake of deadly flash flooding in July.
The Best of Texas Awards, part of the Texas Digital Government Summit, honor public agencies working to improve the constituent experience.
The analyst will monitor security alerts, perform forensic investigations and help guide response to cybersecurity threats.
What to Know
- Five House bills signed into law this session directly impact DIR and its functions.
- Cybersecurity responsibilities are shifting from DIR to the newly established Texas Cyber Command.
- DIR is due to receive a $1.6 billion budget and an $18 million IT capital budget.
What to Know:
- Products include emergency alert systems, mass notification systems and various sensors; services include data backup, cybersecurity incident response and business continuity planning.
- Cooperative contract purchases specific to emergency preparedness and disaster recovery accounted for about $58 million in Fiscal Year 2024.
The Texas Responsible Artificial Intelligence Governance Act was one of five AI-related bills the governor signed on Sunday.
Contracts managed through DIR's Cooperative Contracts program generated more than $9.7 billion in sales in the past three fiscal years.
The analyst will conduct forensic analysis of compromised systems, identify threats and vulnerabilities, and develop intelligence to guide security strategies statewide.
Half the bills address artificial intelligence; the others deal with a variety of issues including state agency websites.
The position is based in Austin and reports to DIR’s Office of the Chief Information Security Officer.
Both bills reached Gov. Greg Abbott's desk as the 89th legislative session came to a close on Monday.
Three of the four bills relating to AI referred to the committee in March are now out of committee and have been referred to the Senate Committee on Business and Commerce.
GIS and digital land surveying sales made through the Cooperative Contracts Program generated $28 million last year, a $15 million increase from 2023. The solicitation includes emerging technologies such as AI.
House Bill 150 calls for the state’s new cyber headquarters to be administratively attached to the University of Texas at San Antonio under a governor-appointed director.
The new members, representing higher education and the private sector, are Keith Halman, Frank Coppersmith and Catherine Bellah.
With a projected budget of $22.8 million, the Texas Regulatory Efficiency Office will operate under the jurisdiction of the Office of the Governor.
As of this writing, 22 tech-related bills have been referred to the Committee on Delivery of Government Efficiency, four of which deal with artificial intelligence. One would create an AI division within the Department of Information Resources.
The chosen vendor will be responsible for managing, maintaining and modernizing the official website for the state of Texas and its digital assistant.
The DIR Innovation Lab is the state’s facility for testing emerging technology, educating state agencies on technology best practices and partnering with vendors on new solutions.
Dustin Haisler, in his second appointment to the committee since 2011, will assist in forming strategic goals for the state to consider when making tech-related decisions for the 2026-2030 period.
Lin Zhou, who has served Texas Tech as CIO and vice president for the past year, will help advise the Department of Information Resources on its strategic plan for the 2026-2030 period.
Through its Cooperative Contracts program, the state's IT agency has managed more than $3.4 billion in the past three fiscal years.
The agency’s contract with Deloitte, the sole provider of technology solution services through the Data Center Services program, expires in August 2026.
The state’s IT department will be contracting successful respondents to provide public safety IT resources under its Cooperative Contracts program.
DIR has released multiple solicitations in the past few months to overhaul several aspects of the STS Program, such as its Data Center Services program, Managed Security Services, multisourcing services integration and texas.gov.
The company, now a prime vendor to the state, offers a software solution to help agencies manage the end-to-end grant management process.
The agency’s recommendations aim to address the needs of Texas’ various agencies and local government entities scattered across the state.
Nancy Rainosek has joined Signature Advisory Partners LLC as a senior consultant.
The state IT department’s latest cooperative contract solicitation targets a wide range of hardware, software and related services for digital land surveying.
The chosen vendor will be responsible for modernizing the official website for the state of Texas.
The agency expects to publish a request for offers in late March, resulting in a cooperative contracts vehicle.
Per the contract, Science Applications International Corporation will assist DIR with the management of state agency networks.
Selected vendors will perform multi-supplier application development, maintenance, solution design and staff augmentation services to eligible DIR customers.
The chosen MSI will assume management of DIR’s existing ServiceNow environment, integrate new services and component providers into the MSI operating model and provide program strategy management.
The Department of Information Resources provides the statewide technology center and other services for which they receive payment. Meanwhile, Deloitte and Rackspace continue to head the state IT spending list.
Texas completed its first-round State and Local Cybersecurity Grant Program applications in March; a report indicates the next opens in the new year.
The Department of Information Resources released its state performance report last week, highlighting legislative recommendations aligning with strategic goals.
Millions of dollars in awards have already been made this fiscal year, ranging from hardware and software to learning and training platforms.
The University of Texas RGV is opening the third state regional operational security center, and four more are on the horizon, per DIR’s legislative appropriations request.
The City Council has roughly $95 million earmarked for communications and software on its next agenda.
The Department of Information Resources has GIS and IT-based surveying tech and services on its calendar for an October competitive request for offer.
The Department of Information Resources has updated its planning website to reflect two related but separate procurements to provide purchasing vehicles for public-sector public safety, security and emergency equipment and technology.
Amanda Crawford has been involved with NASCIO for several years and is the past vice president.
The chosen vendor will partner with DIR to provide security services through the agency's shared technology services program.
The state has been identified as one of the top leaders in the IT space, tackling cybersecurity and artificial intelligence from the top down.
The Department of Information Resources is asking for 49 more employees, in part as a response to the Sunset Advisory Commission’s advice to increase outreach.
The agency's pre-solicitation states it will be contracting for a wide variety of services, including web page design, application software, data conversion, networking, risk management, software maintenance and more.
The chosen applicant will be a senior-level program management specialist for DIR's Shared Technology Services (STS) Vendor Management Office.
Rainosek’s nearly eight-year tenure saw her implement multiple key security initiatives in the state, for which she was named one of Government Technology’s Top 25 Doers, Dreamers and Drivers.
The state’s IT agency has spent in the hundreds of millions each with Rackspace, Deloitte and Atos, companies that provide multiple services impacting the Texas digital infrastructure.
The Department of Information Resources’ Innovation Lab is the state’s facility for testing emerging technology, educating state agencies on technology best practices and partnering with vendors on new solutions.
DIR Deputy Executive Director Steve Pier and Deputy State CIO John Hoffman discussed the upcoming budgeting session and what causes procurement negotiations to fail at a recent Government Technology event.
Applicants must have two years of experience in system administration, information security, vulnerability scanning, vulnerability management, formal risk assessments, penetration testing, digital forensics and/or security operation center operations.
Marie Cohan has been the Department of Information’s steward for accessibility for three years, using creative ways to mentor and support 130 statewide agency leads.
The Sunset documents offer a critical look at 12 agencies under review this year, examining each agency’s mission, priorities and performance ahead of the 89th Legislature.
The tech giant has been notifying customers whose emails were caught up in the Jan. 12 Midnight Blizzard cyber attack.
Texas state agencies are required under a new law to submit these lists on AI use, development and procurement.
The portal is seeking input from businesses and individuals impacted by House Bill 4, passed in 2023, which regulates the use of consumer data.
The IT service management company joins five other vendors contracted by the agency to provide IT research and advisory subscription services to DIR customers.
Department of Information Resources procurement experts recently gave timely reminders about getting into the public-sector market.
The IT Staff Augmentation Contracts portal connects DIR cooperative contract customers with temporary IT staff resources via solicitations.
The Department of Information Resources is asking the Legislature to revisit ISO requirements and allow agencies and universities to share officers, so they may stretch their financial and human resources.
The Best of Texas awards, part of the Texas Digital Government Summit, honor public agencies working to improve the constituent experience.
The five-year plan includes multiple components that require third-party strategies and solutions to meet the state’s goals.
Vendors seeking to do business with SLED entities may look to two agencies for information: the comptroller’s office and DIR.
In response to a question regarding the agency’s plans for future AI integration, DFPS CIO Drew McGrath revealed that plans for a state agency-specific model trained to adhere to federal requirements may be in the works.
Texans in tech will recognize the state information agency’s people and culture officer, who is often spotted at conferences and in tech media; she has earned distinction for her role and achievements in government technology.
The former CIO of the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission made the announcement via LinkedIn. It is among other changes in the Department of Information Resources’ org chart so far this year.
DIR’s Neil Cooke speaks with Governing’s podcast crew about data management and its impact on AI; he also discusses how his agency and the Legislature are leading data and AI policy.
The panel of representatives from state agencies and higher education institutions shared how vendors can help their products stand out at the recent Texas Association of State Systems for Computing and Communications conference.
The latest Industry Insider fireside chat features longtime state procurement officer Hershel Becker answering vendors’ questions about selling tech in Texas.
DIR has shepherded the center’s growth for more than four years and continues to influence SLED learning about and adoption of non-generative AI.
The state IT agency published a solicitation for HP products that will result in a purchasing vehicle for the Texas SLED community.
The state IT department’s latest cooperative contract solicitation targets a wide range of hardware, software and related services for education.
The consulting group isn't the only one providing services on a Texas-sized scale; the state also spent $172 million with Rackspace.
The requested solution must be a cloud-based software-as-a-service solution with automated workflows for creating, evaluating and awarding contracts through the entire contract cycle.
The council will assess the landscape, legal and ethical concerns, and state government use. Its seven members will begin reviewing reports this summer.
Of the three, DIR spent the most on IT-specific purchases, while TxDOT’s largest expenditure appears to be with a built infrastructure firm.
The vendor will provide OneTrust software to the social services agency as part of the state’s shared technology services.
DIR’s current cloud manager is responsible for public cloud provider deployments through the agency’s Data Center Services program.
The IT agency has released a pre-solicitation notice detailing the equipment and services for a March request for offers.
The state IT department plans to issue a request for offers for various hardware and software purchases on March 4.
The chosen respondent will provide a solution that can be customized and improved upon for the duration of its contract with DIR to address evolving cybersecurity threats.
Texas is accepting State and Local Government Cybersecurity Grant Program applications through mid-March; grants allow for cyber enhancements at the local level.
Keith Halman has been appointed to a one-year term by the governor.
Industry Insider — Texas’ One-on-One interview series has featured state and local government leaders throughout the year. Here are five tech leaders making a statewide impact on people and IT.
Collected here is a roundup of our AI-related coverage in 2023, including expert insights, events and agency use cases.
Here is a roundup of this year’s events, with insights from the Texas Department of Agriculture, the Office of Court Administration, the Texas Workforce Commission, the Austin Transit Partnership and the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts.
The Waco college, with about 8,500 students, has adopted additional YuJa tools for instructional materials.
According to Amanda Crawford, the public sector has increasingly accepted tech’s integral role in constituent services.
The department is requesting managed print services, document imaging, enterprise content management products and hardware for establishing and providing contracts to DIR customers.
The Sunset Advisory Commission reviews and evaluates for efficiency, effectiveness and potential abolishment.
Once data is collected from consumers, who owns it? According to speakers from IBM and Atos, discussing the topic at a recent event organized through the Texas Legislature, collected data and insights always belong to the creator.
The State Strategic Plan for Information Resources Management is a collaborative effort that will inform tech planning for agencies and institutes of higher education.
Experts at a legislative AI event agreed that employers looking to attract talent and retain workers would benefit from incorporating AI into their training and hiring as soon as possible.
A consensus among panelists at an event near the Capitol was that the most effective area for AI is in back-office tasks, where there is less opportunity for public-facing failures and more opportunity for human-AI task augmentation.
Vendors may also propose any value-added service as related to the products requested in the RFO, but proposals solely containing related services do not qualify for consideration.
The department is requesting managed print services, document imaging, enterprise content management products and hardware for contracting to DIR customers.
The National Association of State Chief Information Officers has announced its new leadership choices, and has tapped Amanda Crawford for one of the top roles.
Working with government customers is distinct from strictly commercial relationships in important ways. Texas CIO Amanda Crawford has some tips on how to cultivate lasting partnerships with the public sector.
The department’s current MSS solution assists customers statewide with cybersecurity including monitoring, incident response, risk management and compliance.
Through the program, customers can access services including data center, managed security, Texas.gov and the Texas Open Data Portal, a state repository for publicly accessible open data sets.
Massock has more than 23 years of contracting and procurement experience.
The 88th Legislature redistributed the funding, originally earmarked for agency cybersecurity modernization.
The Department of Information Resources (DIR) was nominated for its Regional Security Operations Center Pilot Project.
As the deadline nears for governor appointments to the new council, state leaders continue to remind public- and private-sector technologists of their thoughts and concerns on AI use.
During the 2022-2023 fiscal year, the Texas Department of Transportation led the spending on IT goods among all departments.
Hershel Becker joined Signature Advisory Partners LLC as chief executive officer in August.
State CIO Amanda Crawford recently gave a brief overview of the technology agency serving Texas public entities — along with some numbers illustrating its progress.
Under the new law, local governments have 48 hours to inform the state of ransomware or other suspected cybersecurity breaches through an online portal.
The Texas Department of Information Resources has released a request for offer for a vendor to manage and further develop its multifactor authentication and single sign-on solution.
Two state entities partnered up to provide a new online training aimed at smaller forces, providing guidance and continuing education credits for peace officers.
Texas state agencies are partnering with public junior colleges to develop a state information technology credential to address workforce shortages.
Steve Pier, deputy executive director of the Department of Information Resources, recently spoke on a panel about AI and later shared thoughts and resources on keeping current on the AI landscape.
The State of Technology: Texas Industry Forum has a robust speaker lineup that will discuss technology implications of the state budget and recent legislation.
The state’s IT agency also encourages Gen Z workers to explore its technical careers.
House Bill 3730 is bringing the capitol phone book to tech modernity.
Angelo State University’s center is built from an incident response perspective and serves as a regional defense.
The “Best of Texas” awards, announced during last week’s Texas Digital Government Summit, acknowledged various significant IT projects.
In 2024 alone, the department will receive $663 million for various IT projects and modernization efforts.
Fourteen types of state and local entities are listed, clarifying which may take advantage of the state IT agency's services.
The training would teach state law enforcement professionals how to recognize and respond to cyber crimes and collect digital evidence.
The job would entail performing senior-level information security analysis functions such as planning, implementing and monitoring security program elements and services.
DIR shared information in a webinar about the upcoming request for offer, which will fall under the cooperative contracts category.
Bills relating to competitive bidding, contract validity, exempting certain contracts and reporting requirements are currently making their way through the state’s Legislature.
Three potential upcoming cooperative contracts are in planning stages with opportunities for large and small vendors.
The Department of Information Resources will be at an educational and networking event for historically underutilized businesses.
The department’s five largest purchases of IT goods during the first quarter totaled just under $60 million. Specific buys included computer, IT and contracted services.
