Committee holds public hearing on bill to create Technology Modernization Fund (Senate Bill 1090)

The Joint Committee on Information Management and Technology opened a public hearing on Senate Bill 1090 on Friday, April 4, where committee staff described the bill and an industry representative urged lawmakers to approve a fund to modernize state information technology.

The bill would require the Oregon Department of Administrative Services to create a program that awards grants and provides loans to state agencies to replace outdated IT, create an advisory board to consult on awards, and establish a Technology Modernization Fund with an appropriation to DAS, according to a staff summary read into the record.

Rachel Wiggins Emery, representing the Technology Association of Oregon, told the committee she supported the bill’s creation of an IT modernization fund. "Oregon’s IT aging infrastructure is in need of updating," Emery said. She said aging systems pose security risks to state and personal data and slow delivery of services, and praised the bill’s prioritization of funding for cybersecurity, given increasing cyber threats and a shortage of cybersecurity professionals.

Committee members asked staff about how the bill would differ from earlier state programs and about what the phrase "for certain other purposes" in the bill text would allow. Committee staff said Oregon previously established a productivity improvement revolving fund in 1989; that earlier fund went dormant after a statewide financial system implementation in the mid-1990s, but the statute remains on the books and envisioned grant awards and a share-in-savings model. Staff said SB 1090 is broader: in addition to replacing legacy systems it would allow grants or loans for innovation or emerging technology exploration, including possible uses of artificial intelligence, depending on program criteria set by DAS.

Lawmakers also discussed fiscal context. Staff said the state is overseeing about 71 major IT projects that require independent oversight and that agencies submitted roughly 38 policy option packages asking for new IT spending this cycle. Staff told the committee the state spends about $2.3 billion on information technology across all funds in the current biennium and estimated that roughly 75–80% of that is used to maintain and support legacy systems rather than to pursue innovation. Committee members asked whether an initial seed appropriation (discussed during the hearing as $10 million) would simply backstop unexpected needs or would supplement existing agency IT budgets; staff said the fund is intended to provide capital for projects that cross agency silos or were not funded in agency budget requests, and to create options for enterprise investments rather than leave modernization to individual agencies.

Senator Woods, the bill’s chief sponsor, was not present; the committee accepted written testimony and noted written testimony would be accepted up to 48 hours after the hearing. After oral testimony and questions, the committee closed the public hearing on SB 1090 and proceeded to an informational briefing on IT modernization and the state data center.

The public hearing record includes the staff measure summary and one in-person supporter from the Technology Association of Oregon; committee staff said additional written testimony may be added to the public record as submitted.

The committee did not take a vote during this hearing; the bill remains before the committee for further action and staff said members would continue to refine details such as eligibility criteria, governance, and fund replenishment mechanisms.