Michael O. Leavitt Center for Politics & Public Service

Governor Michael O. Leavitt

In my inaugural address 10 months ago, I pledged to lead this state to a whole new level of performance. We have a great opportunity to achieve a new level of performance in the area of information technology. Today, I am calling on all of you, as state leaders and information technology managers, to help in this effort.  In that inaugural address, I told a story about driving from Cedar City to Salt Lake City in the 1950s. It was a much longer adventure than it is today.  I used to marvel at the vision of the leaders of that day who saw the need and established a national goal to build an interstate freeway system before traffic became a crisis. It was controversial, but some could feel the excitement of such a daring undertaking. People in the towns throughout rural Utah were concerned about being bypassed by the freeway.  And patterns did change. Some areas were left out; others emerged stronger, taking advantage of the increased traffic and inherent flow of dollars. I described how in this era a new and different type highway must be built. This electronic highway will be critical for the high-paying, high-tech enterprises of the future. And this highway must not bypass any parts of Utah.

To be bypassed would mean real isolation and economic hardship. We have spent several months now investigating and monitoring the development of the electronic highway in Utah. We have held many meetings, made contacts with numerous committees and task forces, and checked progress in other states. We feel we now have a direction and vision with which to proceed. We want to move forward quickly and provide access to the electronic highways and services to our citizens.

Before discussing specific challenges with you, let me share my view of the electronic world with you. I believe we are entering an exciting new era in society . . . our world is becoming an information ecosystem, and the ramifications are monumental. Futurists believe there will be a massive shift in the nature of work, that the impact of the information age may be as great as the societal changes that occurred during the industrial revolution. The thoughtful and informed management of these exciting opportunities for increased productivity, improved government services, a new arena of business and entrepreneurial opportunity, and an enhanced quality of life may be the most important item on the public policy agenda for our state and nation in the next generation. Computer technology has been around for many years. But only in the last few years have a variety of elements converged to drive this transformation. Only now is the digital revolution fulfilling its promise. We should remember that it took some 40 years after the discovery of the light bulb for electricity to effect major changes in society and to dramatically improve productivity. It took that long for power sources to be developed, for lines to be strung, for electrical appliances to be invented, for a regulatory structure to be constructed, for industrial steam engines to be converted, and for the general public to accept this technology and put it to good use. Now, there is little that we do that does not involve electricity. It has transformed society, but we take it for granted.  Today, we stand at the point where digital technology is about to sweep society with the same impact that electricity has had. It has taken a number of years to develop the critical mass of computer hardware, software, networking and public acceptance for this to happen. We are now seeing tremendous productivity surges in the private sector. There’s a PC on nearly every desk in the workplace and computer technology is involved in most pieces of sophisticated equipment.  What was once an obscure science practiced mostly by what we called computer techies, is now being embraced by nearly everyone. It is the most exciting area of business, and of government, with enormous promise.We are now seeing the merging of several industries: television, telephone, cable, entertainment, satellite, wireless, and computers into one vast network with many components and parts, and applications and partnerships, but that is all seamless. And this information highway will feature full-motion video, audio, data, image, voice, text, color, and so forth. Eventually, the technologies of virtual reality and holography will become part of it. Imagine the time when, instead of simply talking over the telephone line, we are able to create three dimensional images of ourselves and project them into physical space, allowing people situated in different locations to virtually meet with each other. What’s more, as these industries are merging, they are becoming far more powerful, with tremendous amounts more capacity, much faster, much more compact and at the same time far less expensive. A veritable tidal wave of technology is sweeping over us.  The day is coming and soon when all Utahns will be able to access information and communicate with each other easily, reliably, securely and cost-effectively in any medium voice, data, image, or video anytime, anywhere.  As state leaders, this is the future we must plan for not using technology of today, but looking toward the technology of tomorrow. A few months ago, I issued some specific challenges to the education community to accomplish before the end of our Centennial year in 1996. I asked them to make education an activity not bound by buildings, place or space. I asked them to make technology-delivered education part of every student’s educational experience.  I am pleased with some of the initial response. Today, I first want to focus on state government. I want to issue some general challenges to leaders and employees in state government, and then I want to talk in more specifics. First, I challenge all of us to change the way we think. Operating in the information ecosystem will require a new mindset.  We must be willing to change, to restructure and re invent.  I submit that a whole world of possibilities is opened when two people or many more can sit at separate locations and look at and work on the same documents, see each other, transmit large amounts of information back and forth, and quickly access other people and other data bases. The ramifications for citizens services, for business services, for telecommuting, for reducing highway congestion, for reducing pollution, and so forth, are enormous. But we must begin thinking technology, thinking new applications and ways of doing things, if we are to make this vision a reality.  Second, I challenge employees and department and division leaders to focus more on technology and less on bricks and mortar. Technology is enormously expensive. We must make these breakthroughs and enter this new world by using existing financial resources. We must find money through reallocation, not through higher taxes. We must find ways to use our resources better.  Third, I challenge you to think specifically of ways we can deploy technology to increase our productivity and provide easier access to state information and services to citizens. We must put the state of Utah at citizens’ fingertips. Most of the best ideas won’t come from the governor or from your department or division director. The ideas will come from the bottom up, from you and your employees who are on the front lines delivering services.  What services can be delivered electronically? How can we provide electronic interaction between citizens and government? Can we develop a system whereby a citizen with a computer, a modem, and perhaps a smart card, can register and incorporate a business, renew a drivers’ license, purchase a fishing license, pay taxes and fees, and so forth? I challenge you to review the services your agency provides, the interaction you have with citizens, and determine how you can make those services available electronically. Fourth, I challenge you to make available electronically the enormous amounts of information state government collects.  Obviously, we must not violate anyone’s privacy and we must maintain security. Decisions about the availability of data will have to be made on a case-by-case basis. But there exists within state government tremendous amounts of information that should be available to citizens. Within my own office and my Office of Planning and Budget we have databases on boards and commissions, registered lobbyists, political contributions, and valuable economic, demographic and budget information (Utah office of Planning and Budget https://gopb.utah.gov/). We produce many press releases, position papers and speeches. All of these things should be available to citizens. Other agencies have data that is valuable to citizens and businesses, things like the Utah Code, state administrative rules, daily status of bills in the Legislature, attorney general opinions, court rulings, public event calendars, job listings, consumer information, business listings, state and federal procurement opportunities, training courses, weather information, licensed day care providers, and much more. This information must be accessible electronically to the public.  Presently, much of it is hard and inconvenient to obtain.  We can do better. Fifth, I challenge you to encourage a strong competitive environment among the private communications companies that are providing the basic infrastructure for the information highway. The communications infrastructure throughout the United States and Utah is quickly being enhanced with fiber optics cable. U.S. West and smaller common carriers are in the process of upgrading their systems. In addition, companies like TCI, Electronic Lightwave and Wiltel are building fiber optics systems or upgrading existing infrastructure (INFORMATION HIGHWAY). A competitive environment will allow us to move ahead more quickly with the applications we need in state government. Capacity will be increased and costs will be reduced for both government and the private sector. Now, all of these things will require a great deal of coordination and collaboration. One of the most important messages I want to leave today is that we must avoid parallel networks and duplication. We must be as efficient and effective as possible.  We must work with other education and government entities. We must avoid turf battles and infighting. We must look at the citizen as a customer of the whole state, not the customer of just one state agency. We could easily fall into the trap of building numerous electronic highways, one overlaying the other. A typical high school, for example, could have many on ramps supporting multiple highways for instructional video, instructional computing, administrative computing and job placement services.

We must strive for the construction of a single highway that will support a maximum number of applications. Tax dollars must be stretched at every level of government and education. I challenge you to work together in a cooperative spirit, avoiding redundant costs and efforts.

To coordinate this effort, I have created an Electronic Highway Task Force, chaired by Ladd Christensen from the private sector with Gordon Peterson, the state’s information technology coordinator, as executive director. The Task Force, in turn, has created a number of committees and subcommittees, and is coordinating with other committees and task forces that already exist (INFORMATION HIGHWAY). I am asking that you work through this structure, which includes representation from all agencies, to move our state into this exciting new world. Let me stress the importance of coordinating with our Division of Information Technology Services, the implementation and services arm of this large effort.

We have skilled and visionary people in that division who will be invaluable as you move forward. Among the key groups who will guide our progress are the Information Technology Policy and Strategy Committee, which consists mostly of department directors, the State of Utah IT Managers, and other IT Steering Committees throughout state government (Utah Information Technology Policy and Strategy Committee http://www.governor.state.ut.us/CIO/Docs/tech_organizations.pdf). Some of these committees in the past were fairly obscure and operated behind the scenes. Today, they are among the most important groups working in state government and they will be key to our success. Let me issue some specific challenges. We have formed two committees to focus on business services and citizens services.

I challenge them to develop, within a year, as full a range of electronic services and information databases as possible. We must create a state information and services network that is of real value to the business community and citizens. The network should be open and accessible to everyone. Other challenges: Telecommuting. Many private companies are improving productivity and reducing building construction and maintenance costs by asking employees to work at home, connected online to the office. Besides reduced building costs, we reduce freeway congestion and pollution by encouraging telecommuting. I challenge state managers to have as many of our state workers as possible telecommuting by the end of our Centennial year (TV LINKS BOARD OF PARDONS WITH INMATES IN GUNNISON). Video conferencing. This is closely related to telecommuting.  By the end of 1996, I challenge state agencies to cut travel by 15 percent. We need to hold meetings electronically. Avoiding travel will reduce state expenses and traffic congestion.  Video conferencing will allow electronic town meetings. Statewide public hearings without travel, and video arraignments, eliminating prisoner travel costs and improving security. We must work together with higher education, school districts, local governments and even the private sector to create a unified system that will serve everyone, benefiting citizens by minimizing redundant systems and reducing overall costs. Within a few years, video conferencing is expected to be as widespread as the use of the FAX machine is today. Wireless communications will be used to connect and enhance the electronic highway. Wireless communications will provide us with the means to interact with one another without being tethered to the office.  Phones, computers, fax machines, radios, electronic tablets, pagers and E-mail terminals are among the many wireless devices presently available. The advantage of these devices is the portability they bring to the work place. Employees can reach the office any time and the office can reach the employee any time.  Numerous wireless communications products and services are being developed and are expected to become less expensive over time. Because of the importance of wireless communications, I have impaneled a task force that will recommend how the state can maximize the use of this expanding technology. The task force will study the type of system we need, what benefits it will provide, how we will fund it, how it will grow and how we will include all levels of government.  The possibilities are endless, including intelligent vehicles and intelligent highways. This technology has many ramifications for law enforcement, allowing agencies to transmit mug shots to patrol cars, silent dispatch, and allowing officers in the field to instantly access law enforcement databases to check for stolen cars, expired registrations and criminal wanted lists. Internet. I challenge you to explore the possibilities of making the Internet available to every citizen. It is a technology that exists today that could provide every citizen with electronic mail and a means for parents to communicate with schools. It could also be the means to access state databases. I challenge you to develop a strategic plan to bring ATM capabilities to the state. ATM, with its large capacities for interactive video and other applications, is very expensive. But we must determine how we can bring this technology to our agencies and citizens. I challenge you to continue to develop the state’s Wide Area Network, expanding its capacity as technology allows. Our employees need to make better use of E-mail, electronic calendaring, task management and work flow management. With more electronic interaction, we can reduce our paper costs. Paperless offices really are possible with new software and data management system. Over the last several months, we have spent a great deal of time talking and investigating. Now is the time for action.

I hope each of you will commit to helping us take state government into the information era. I don’t believe the barrier here is technology. I believe it is lack of vision and unwillingness to change and try something new.

Information technology projects too often can be fraught with pitfalls, lost directions and missed opportunities. Yet if tackled with a systematic mindset and a positive “can do” attitude successful technology enabled delivery of government information and services can yield results that create better and more efficient ways of doing the government’s business. This ultimately can lead to a better engagement or re-engagement with citizens. Implementing an information technology project provides a context by which government can attempt to do a new thing or to do an old thing in a new and better way.  “Better” is usually defined as doing something more efficiently or at a higher level of quality. Breakthroughs in government processes from either an efficiency or quality standpoint are referred to as “innovations.” An innovation must first be envisioned, but envisioning an innovation is only the first in a series of complex steps along the pathway to an IT deployment.  A vision that is not executed is only a dream.  It is Easier to Block Innovation Than to Implement it but Strong Teams Can Overcome Resistance To bring a project from the idea phase to the product phase requires a vast array of distinct skills. These skills do not reside in a single individual or “star” but instead reside in many people. For this reason projects are always team efforts. Being able to effectively lead and work within teams are essential to the success of any government project whether it is repairing a bridge or 1000s of computer systems and sub-systems as demonstrated by organizations that successfully confronted and solved the Y2K dilemma (REGENTS SAY Y2K A $20 M PROBLEM, BUT LEAVITT RECOMMENDS ONLY $5M) . There are several lessons to be learned from IT projects that have succeeded and failed and many lie within the arena of functional and dysfunctional teams.  Most project executives are confronted with several dangers as they attempt to guide projects. Some challenges may include:

1. 1. Teams that can’t get started;
   2. Teams that have “lost their way;”
   3. Teams whose members work at cross purposes to other members of their teams;
   4. Infiltration of the team by “saboteurs.”

Over forty years ago Kurt Lewin wrote about how to help create organizational change (Kurt Lewin http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kurt_Lewin). Bureaucracies must first be “unfrozen,” then “changed” and then “refrozen.” Unfreezing makes organization susceptible and ripe (Mike Leavitt has often said that ideas must be ripe for change to be feasible) to new ways of accomplishing old ends or of doing new things. “Re-freezing” allows for the changes made to be institutionalized and thus preserved. New laws, executive orders, rules and regulations when carefully written can both unfreeze, help support and sustain positive change. These methods, as described by Lewin, are as fresh today as when they were written.  Prospecting For Champions Should Always Be High on the List of Duties In any CIO Job Description Project teams require a critical mass of project champions possessing the correct skills mixes and whose unwavering persistence can overcome confusion and resistance.  The reality in government is that people who work within these organizations have very different opinions about the nature of change and whether a proposed change will be worthwhile, or will instead lead to chaos that only makes things worse. This state is magnified by the fragmentation of government organizations.  Thus, projects must counter balance the tendency of individual agencies to carve out their own turf rather than reaching across organization barriers to work to together to achieve common ends.  Strong executive buy in, formal direction and collaboration backed with incentives can help projects succeed. Without these mechanisms many good projects are soon stopped dead and later abandoned. Successful team projects can be inspirational and can create pathways and models to how to do the next “repeat performance.” Conversely, a series of botched projects or ones that never get started lead to cynicism in the very employees who will be called upon to carry out the next solution. Loss of a Key Stakeholder Can Doom a Project While a Key Supporter at the Right Time Can Enable Success During the Leavitt administration two cross organizational IT projects provided two night and day examples of successful and unsuccessful IT projects. The OneStop Business Registration (OSBR) was a successfully implemented project that allowed new businesses to get started with all the paperwork needed by government located online and in one place (Utah OSBR https://secure.utah.gov/osbr-user/user/welcome.html). During a similar time frame Utah government also tried to implement a comprehensive electronic procurement system that failed to achieve its goals. An IEEE paper that describes the OSBR cross agency collaboration and the lessons learned is included below (IEEE http://www.ieee.org/index.html). Ultimately, the e-procurement system was never able to gain the support from the vendor community. Vendors preferred to go to various state agencies to sell products through their own catalogs as opposed to going through a central procurement interface.  One astute government observer summarized the failure when he said: “Suppliers don’t like being disintermediated from their customers.” When a significant stakeholder fails to play and fundamental issues are not solved then IT projects rapidly grind to a halt.  Assigning Foxes to Guard Hen Houses is Often a High Risk if not Foolhardy Endeavor One IT health and human services project became mired in inaction. A fundamental mistake was made when individuals opposed to the collaboration were selected to lead it.  This strategy is sometimes used by executives who attempt to convert the opposition by trying to win them over and give them responsibility for leading a project.

This strategy is a high risk one since the executive does not know whether the project lead will make the choice to become an advocate or will instead sabotage the project. Rolling the dice is not very often a good leadership approach under these circumstances.  You May Outsource Tasks But You Should Never Outsource Governance Government entities can have very successful outsourcing experiences or get into enormous difficulties at all stages of the process.  Outsourcing projects require lots of decisions at the strategic and managerial levels to be successful. There can be a tendency to see outsourcing simply as a method to reduce the number of employees of the government thereby making government look “lean and mean.” If this is the underlying focus the project is probably already in trouble from the strategic level. This is not to say that staff should not be reduced because one of the goals of outsourcing ought to be either cost savings, service improvement or both. What outsourcing projects need most is a strong and reliable hand in project governance.  Governance should never be outsourced and to do so is nothing less than irresponsible. Legislatures frequently complain about the lack of oversight of quasi-governmental agencies and yet at the same time have often removed executive branch oversight of these entities. It is very difficult for a legislative body to assume direct oversight of government outsourcing that is frequent and sustained enough to be effective. Lack of executive branch involvement in oversight can lead to legislative oversight after the fact in the form of legislative audits. Nevertheless it is clear that government should not be in the business of developing its own spreadsheets or other desktop applications or building computers from spare parts, so there is clearly a place for IT outsourcing. Having the right level of state employee oversight of IT projects is essential to their success no matter how big of a brand name the IT vendor might have.  Finding the right staffing for such projects is difficult.

Citizens have 24×7 access to government services Over the past ten years, Utah has made consistent progress in the delivery of online services and information to its citizens. While Utah’s website was rated second nationally as early as 1996, it continues to be a leader in 2003, becoming the first state portal to roll out 24×7 live help this year along with a new portal to serve Utah business (Utah’s Website http://www.utah.gov/index.html).

Examples of Utah’s Online Services http://www.utah.gov/services/citizen.html

• • Vehicle License Renewal
  • Drivers License Renewal
  • Online Tax Payments
  • Campground Reservation
  • Primary Care Network
  • Aircraft Registration
  • Hunting & Fishing Licenses
  • Impounded Vehicle Service
  • Health Insurance Renewal
  • Historical Society Book Sales
  • Marriage Licenses
  • Birth Certificate Purchases
  • Surplus Property Auction
  • One-Stop Business Registration
  • Business Entity Search
  • UCC Filing
  • Nuclear Generator Site Access
  • Purchasing Bid Notification
  • ABC Online Ordering

Accomplishments

• • 1995 – State of Utah Web page established along with Governor’s Office, Governor’s Office of Planning and Budget, State Library, Division of General Services, and Automated Geographic Reference Center (AGRC) www.utah.gov
  • 1996 – Utah’s homepage wins second place in Best of the Web, among 35 states and 65 cities (Survey https://www.govtech.com/magazines/gt/quotbest-of-the-webquot-winners.html).
  • 1997 – State Library launches the Pioneer home page including the ability to search text and images for over 1,500 journals and periodicals (State Pioneer Home Page https://utahsonlinelibrary.org/).
  • 1999 – Utah creates public/private partnership and the e-Utah “web portal.” Re-designed state homepage page focuses not only on information but also on government services delivered to citizens online. Statewide calendar and press release system established (STATE OF UTAH: TOP 10 ACCOMPLISHMENTS OF 1999 INTEGRATED SERVICE DELIVERY- USING TECHNOLOGY TO SIMPLIFY ACCESS TO GOVERNMENT)
  • 1999 – Digital State Act passed requiring state entities to allow certain services to be transacted on the Internet by July 1, 2002 and Governor issues executive order creating the Utah Electronic Commerce Council to oversee the delivery of online government services (Governor’s Executive Order Forming the Utah Electronic Commerce Council    https://rules.utah.gov/execdocs/1999/e1999-06-04b.htm).
  • 2000 – Multiple government services go online including:
    • • Find out if a company is registered to do business in the state (Business Entity Search)
      • Hunting and fishing licenses
      • Pay for services using a credit card
      • Renew motor vehicle plates (Renewal Express)
  • 2001 – Citizens can renew their driver’s licenses online
  • 2001 – Utah is the first state to implement a 511 service, using a combination of voice and Internet technologies (UDOT COMMUTERLINK http://commuterlink.utah.gov/511.aspx)
  • 2002 – EREP contract inked. EREP will develop efficient and integrated services across multiple government eligibility programs. It will complete its first phase in 2003 with cash assistance and other related programs to needy families. This is part of the Governor’s initiative to expand technology projects that cut across the entire state enterprise (STATE OF UTAH EREP PROJECT https://fcw.com/workforce/2003/12/utah-erep-merges-welfare-systems/224733/).
  • 2002 – 102 new government services go online over the last 18 months including searching for unclaimed property; searching an online directory of human service programs; renewing a professional license; registering to vote; paying county and state taxes; and filing for unemployment insurance.
  • 2002 – Parents can now apply online for medical benefits via the children’s health insurance program (CHIP)( KIDS’ HEALTH HOT TOPIC FOR CLINTON, HE FLAYS STATE EFFORTS — JUST BEFORE TALKING AT GOVERNORS MEETING https://spcoll.li.suu.edu/eadfiles/Xe1kcH8BnM5_0W5sJ69V/ms122NW19990809a.pdf, CHIP WEBSITE http://www.chipcoverspakids.com/).
  • 2002 – Governor issues letter to state employees launching an ambitious new framework for the organization and deployment of information technology (IT) services within state government.
    The changes are designed to accelerate state efforts to offer most state government services online by 2004 and improve the efficiency of state government by developing an enterprise approach.
  • 2002 – Utah is one of the first four states to partner in http://www.recreation.gov/, one of 24 national e-government initiatives
  • 2003 – Utah is one of the initial participating states in the development of the National Environmental Information Exchange Network (http://www.exchangenetwork.net/), a partnership which involves EPA and supports open exchange standards
  • 2003 – Utah passes legislation which will eliminate many service fees associated with online citizen services
  • 2003 – Utah’s One-Stop Business Registration is the first eGovernment service of its kind that integrates key business-related transactions from federal, state, and local government into a single seamless process. The system allows new businesses in Utah to simultaneously register and initiate permit processes with the Internal Revenue Service and five state agencies (the Utah State Tax Commission, Labor Commission, Department of Commerce, Department of Workforce Services, and the Department of Environmental Quality).

Three local governments are also partners in the project (Utah’s One-Stop Business Registration https://secure.utah.gov/osbr-user/user/welcome.html)

• • 2003 – Utah is one of several states recognized by the Digital State Survey for Sustained Leadership in technology over the five year period from 1997 through 2002 (Center for Digital Government http://www.centerdigitalgov.com/).
  • 2003 – Campground reservations at all Utah state parks can be made via the internet
  • 2003 – The Utah Tax Commission introduces “Payment Express”, an online service that allows citizens and businesses to efficiently manage a variety of different tax payments through a single interface (https://secure.utah.gov/paymentexpress/client)

Utah is a leader in technology-based education In 1996, Governor Leavitt along with Governor Romer of Colorado introduced the western virtual university to the Western Governor’s Association (WESTERN GOVERNORS UNIVERSITY MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING https://spcoll.li.suu.edu/eadfiles/Xe1kcH8BnM5_0W5sJ69V/005.pdf, VIRTUAL UNIVERSITY WILL OFFER AUTHENTIC DEGREES BY E-MAIL https://spcoll.li.suu.edu/eadfiles/Xe1kcH8BnM5_0W5sJ69V/003.pdf).  Today, Utah citizens have a multitude of new educational options, including the Utah Electronic High School (LEAVITT CALLS FOR HIGH-TECH SCHOOL SYSTEM https://spcoll.li.suu.edu/eadfiles/Xe1kcH8BnM5_0W5sJ69V/ms122NW19930714.pdf), distance learning through the Utah Education Network (http://www.uen.org/), and collaborative online services like the Utah Electronic College.

Accomplishments

• • 1993 – UtahLink established to connect Utah’s high schools to the Internet (http://www.coastlink.com/users/agibson/holladay/UtahLink.html)
  • 1994 – 12 new EdNet sites added in Southern Utah.

Distance learning gets a boost (http://www.ednet.net/).

• • 1996 – Governors Leavitt and Romer of Colorado introduce the western virtual university to the Western Governor’s Association. The western virtual university (later changed to the Western Governor’s University) aims to play a leading role in offering technology-delivered competency-based education (www.wgu.edu).
  • 1997 – Utah Education Network Satellite Services established and begins serving over 2,500 students per quarter via satellite linked full-motion, full-color video.
  • 1998 – The Utah Electronic Community College opens for business offering anyone, anywhere, anytime, transferable college education by pooling the existing distance education classes available at the state’s five colleges. Students gain access through the Internet (http://www.uec.org/ ).
  • 1998 – 97% of the state’s high schools are now connected to the Internet.
  • 1998 – Western Governor’s University opens for classes (www.wgu.edu).
  • 1999 – A charge issued in 1993 to the Utah public education community by Utah Gov. Michael O. Leavitt stated that every high school course would be available online by 1996. As a division of the Utah State Office of Education, the Utah Electronic High School has accomplished that and more, with the latest figures showing that over 21,000 high school credits have been taken, reflecting an enrollment of 16,000 high school students taking courses online.

• • 2001 – Western Governor’s University becomes the only accredited online university in the country to offer competency-based degrees.

56 colleges, universities and other educational providers offer courses through the WGU.

• • 2001 – Governor Leavitt is recognized as a national NetDay hero for making education and technology a top priority for his administration (NETDAY http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NetDay)
  • 2001 – Governor issues challenge to double the number of computer science and engineering graduates in Utah and moves forward to expand programs throughout Utah’s system of higher education (Utah Engineering Rolls To Soar Leavitt Plans To Double Number, Boost Funding https://spcoll.li.suu.edu/eadfiles/Xe1kcH8BnM5_0W5sJ69V/ms122NW20000911.pdf).
  • 2001 – U.S. Department of Education announced the award of a $10 million Star Schools grant to help Western Governors University (WGU) launch its Teachers College, a national telecommunications network that will provide accredited, online degrees and certificates to K-12 teachers and prospective teachers (WGU GRADUATES CELEBRATE THEIR PATH https://www.proquest.com/docview/351363390).
  • 2002 – Utah leads the Nation in its technology initiatives in education. Utah placed number one in education in the annual Digital State Survey sponsored by the Center For Digital Government and the Progress & Freedom Foundation for two years running (2001 and 2002). Utah also ranks 7th in the nation overall, that is up from 35th place in 1997 Survey.
  • 2003 – U.S.  Secretary of Education Rod Paige today hailed the launch of Western Governors University’s (WGU) new online competency-based Teachers College, which offers accredited certificate, undergraduate and graduate academic degrees for current and prospective teachers. The Teachers College can be found on the Web at www.wgu.edu/tc.

Utah government is more efficient Earlier this year, USA Today recognized Utah as the best managed state in the nation. Utah has been able to control growth in government through effective use of technology. For example, numerous state and local criminal justice agencies throughout the State now have access through the Utah Criminal Justice Information System (UCJIS) to multiple data sources via an XML interface.  The result is that law enforcement officers save thousands of hours and technical support requirements are also reduced.

Accomplishments

• • 1993 – Utah completes the development of the first statewide fuel network in the nation which enables the sharing of resources between over 1000 state, local, and federal agencies (http://fleet.utah.gov/fuel/)
  • 1994 – FI-NET, the state’s new financial management system is launched (https://www.finet.net/).
  • 1995 – Utah consolidates and automates all of its internal and external mail operations, saving over $100,000 per month.
  • 1996 – Leavitt announces plan to establish a statewide communication between law enforcement officers through use of 800 megahertz technology and laptops in patrol cars.
  • 1997 – Governor and legislature establish the position of the state’s first Chief Information Officer.
  • 1997 – UTAX initiated to integrate and modernize tax systems.
  • 1997 – Independent state agency created to provide for governmental public safety communications services and facilities.
  • 1997 – Obtained funding to insure continued operation of critical state computer applications through the change in century (Y2K initiative)
  • 1997 – ITS reduces office space and leads the way with an aggressive telecommuting initiative that is praised by Governor Leavitt.  Division of Air Quality and the Governor’s Office become “early adopters” as other agencies follow suit in the wake of I-15 highway reconstruction.
  • 1997 – Utah Highway Patrol Trooper Randall Richey identifies and subsequently aids in the capture of a California murderer and armored car robber using information he obtained on an 800-megahertz wireless laptop in his patrol car.
  • 1997 – First certificate authority in nation established in Utah. Governor Leavitt signs proclamation using a digital certificate (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_key_certificate)
  • 1997 – Utah’s Governor Michael Leavitt and State or Regional Directors of the Bureau of Land Management. U. S.  Geological Survey, Forest Service, National Park Service, U. S.  Fish and Wildlife Service, Natural Resources Conservation Service, Environmental Protection Agency, U. S. Army Corps of Engineers, U. S.Bureau of Reclamation, and the Utah Association of Soil Conservation Districts signed a Memorandum of Understanding for the Utah Digital Spatial Data Sharing and Integration Project. No other state is known to have an omnibus MOU concerning GIT with so many federal agencies.
  • 1999 – Y2K computer systems tested and fixed.  Utah, like most major computer systems around the world survive the “millennium bug.” (REGENTS SAY Y2K A $20 M PROBLEM, BUT LEAVITT RECOMMENDS ONLY $5M https://spcoll.li.suu.edu/eadfiles/Xe1kcH8BnM5_0W5sJ69V/ms122NW19981217.pdf)
  • 2001 – Utah one of only two states with an “A” ranking in technology (Government Performance Partnership)
  • 2001 – Motor Vehicle portion of U-Tax modernization project completed
  • 2001 – Utah’s Integrated Criminal Justice Information System (UCJIS) completes web interfaces to give state, local and federal criminal justice agencies access to eight different government databases including drivers license, motor vehicle and offender tracking systems.
  • 2001 – In the wake of 9-11 and “hack attacks” against state websites Governor Leavitt issues executive order directing the Chief Information Officer to develop and implement policies promoting the security of State information and information systems.
  • 2002 – Utah stages perhaps the most successful Olympic Winter Games in history.

State, federal, and local public safety agencies work together to develop incident management and communications solutions that ensure security at the games.

• • 2003 – Governor Leavitt as chair of NGA’s homeland security leads in the creation of Interop America to direct a coordinated state response for developing interoperability in homeland security. Governor Leavitt also represents the states on the President’s Homeland Security and stresses the importance of system interoperability (http://www.interop.com/).

• • 2003 – UWIN, the Utah Wireless Integrated Network, embarks on a project to tie together all of the State’s voice and data networks (ITS, UEN, UCAN, Public Safety, DOH, and others collaborate to form a model for future development of wireless services)
  • 2003 – Utah successfully completes the implementation of a new payroll system which will include enhanced self-serve employee options
  • 2003 – Utah completes its interface on several key homeland security interoperability projects
  • 2003 – 19 Utah counties develop GIS implementation plans in cooperation with the State’s Automated Geographic Reference Center

Utah is a wired state During the late nineties and up to the current time, there has been a proliferation of broadband services throughout the State. More recently, there has been rapid growth of wireless companies and users throughout Utah. Private sector growth has been spurred by the growth of government and education networks that have helped push demand into rural areas of the State. Today, many initiatives –public and private, are moving forward that will directly benefit Utah citizens by providing extremely fast access. UTOPIA is moving forward to provide ubiquitous access in 17 Utah communities, while companies like Broadband Central have announced that wireless broadband services will be available in as much as 85% of the state by the end of this year (https://www.utopiafiber.com/).

Accomplishments

• • 1994 – Technology 2000 initiative allocated $28 million for a wide area network “with capacity for interactive, full-motion video, audio, graphics and data.”
  • 1994 – The Utah Health Information Network was created as a broad-based coalition of healthcare insurers, providers, and other interested parties including state government. UHIN participants work toward a common goal of reducing health care costs through standardization of administrative health data and electronic commerce (http://www.uhin.org/).
  • 1995 – Utah became the first state to pass legislation recognizing digital signatures as a legal means to authenticate electronic communications (Coalition Preparing Way for Digital Signatures https://www.proquest.com/docview/288818479, ELECTRONIC SIGNATURES CAN BE COUTED, HIGH COURT RULES https://www.proquest.com/docview/507862874).
  • 1996 – Second “back-up” data center set up in Richfield; high-speed “ATM backbone” established
  • 1999 – High-speed “SONET ring” linking state capitol complex with seven major state agencies goes live.
  • 2001 – 67.7% of Utah households have computers and 54.1% have computers connected to the Internet.
  • 2002 – Re-design of state WAN to provide network redundancy in the event of a need for disaster recovery using private carrier services and the state’s microwave.
  • 2002 – Agreement signed between the State Division of Information Technology Services (ITS) and the Utah Education Network (UEN) established a team to develop ways to share existing technologies maintained by both networks.
  • 2002 – “Gigapop” established as the intermountain hub for Internet2 traffic linking Utah to national and international research institutions. Much like the Internet, this infrastructure positions Utah for the next generation of high speed networks and telecommunication services that will spur growth in high-tech research, development of new commercial ventures.

Technology Initiatives have contributed to economic growth Accomplishments

• 2000 – Governor Leavitt introduces the Silicon Valley Alliance, an effort to get expanding Silicon Valley companies to locate operations in Utah (Leavitt Seeks Funds for ‘Silicon Alliance’ https://spcoll.li.suu.edu/eadfiles/Xe1kcH8BnM5_0W5sJ69V/ms122NW20001213.pdf.)
• 2003 – Governor’s Smart Sites initiative receives the U.S. Department of Commerce (LEAVITT CALLS TECHNOLOGY INDUSTRY TO ACTION https://spcoll.li.suu.edu/eadfiles/Xe1kcH8BnM5_0W5sJ69V/ms122NW19960427b.pdf)
• 2003 Innovation Excellence in Economic Development Award.

The first CIO, David Moon began the process of challenging the perennial problem of government fragmentation in an effort to bring about a more coordinated approach to IT (NEW CHIEF INFORMATION OFFICER IS A CAN-DO TYPE OF GUY https://spcoll.li.suu.edu/eadfiles/Xe1kcH8BnM5_0W5sJ69V/ms122NW19980121a.pdf). Still the Moon legacy rests more with his ability to move Utah government into the 21st century by bringing key citizen and business services online when few tax dollars were allocated specifically to this activity.  This was accomplished while a major share of IT funding was being directed to keeping aging back office systems afloat as they increasingly became at risk of being infected by the Y2K “bug.” (See note at bottom) In the wake of the collapse of the dot.com bubble an urgent need arose for increased efficiency and productivity of IT, which became a priority for a Legislature faced with a wave of cost cutting.  The need for more simplification and consolidation of IT services became a hotly contested discussion both within and external to the Leavitt administration.

The second CIO Phillip Windley was confronted once again with the problem of built-in government fragmentation that was putting the reliability and security of state IT systems at risk. His major contribution was promoting the understanding that an IT architecture needed to be developed around and supported by consistent and repeatable processes.  This approach was essential for the high reliability, availability, and serviceability of IT systems and services. In other words the IT culture needed to be less about “cowboys” and more about “engineers.” One of Windley’s key successes in eliminating government silos was the promotion and institutionalization of the utah.gov “brand”, which included the move of state agency applications and websites away from .org and .com to a name that better signified Utah government (A FEW THOUGHTS ON OUTGOING STATE CIO PHIL WINDLEY https://spcoll.li.suu.edu/eadfiles/Xe1kcH8BnM5_0W5sJ69V/ms122NW20021216.pdf). Governor Leavitt many times commented that IT had the power to transform government but that problems associated with transformation were more about “sociology than technology.” The third CIO of the Leavitt/ Walker administrations Val Oveson, recognized this key truth and moved to directly act on the need for improved collaboration among various sectors of the executive branch as well as reaching across branches of government to do the same. Through each of the CIO’s tenure, Utah’s status among states continued to improve as the innovation in IT government service delivery continued to expand.

Cross agency collaborative projects such as the OneStop Business Registration (OSBR) and the business.utah.gov portal came to fruition under the collaborative leadership of Oveson.

Governor Leavitt and the team that surrounded him clearly saw the connection not only to improving government service through the use of IT but also understood the multiplier effect it had on stimulating businesses and economic growth.  Utah’s leadership among the most technology saavy states was established throughout the Leavitt and Walker years.  Examples remain today of many legacy work products developed and supported by countless public servants who believed in the Leavitt vision and in helping government be best it could be. Footnote: The problems Y2K was an error of procrastination which became more risky as the year 2000 approached.  It was caused by the inability to perceive that computer systems built in the 20th century would still exist in the 21st.