City officials ask Council to fund Department of Innovation and Technology’s digital equity, CRM and infrastructure projects

Boston officials asked the City Council on May 1 to approve FY26 funding for the Department of Innovation and Technology (DOIT), emphasizing digital equity programs, technology modernization and cybersecurity as priorities.

DOIT Director-level staff and program leads told the Council’s Committee on Ways and Means that their request would fund ongoing projects including a permitting and licensing transformation, replacement and rollout of a new constituent relationship management system (CRM) tied to 311, expansion of the Cartograph asset and work-order system, continued investments in cybersecurity and pilots to expand public Wi‑Fi in transit hubs and neighborhoods.

DOIT leaders said the work matters because reliable connectivity, devices and skills are prerequisites for residents to use city services, apply for jobs and enroll children in Boston Public Schools. Councilors and nonprofit partners used the hearing to press DOIT on how programs will serve public housing residents, seniors, non‑English speakers and other groups the city’s survey identified as digitally vulnerable.

Santiago Garces, Chief Information Officer for the City of Boston, described operational improvements and savings tied to centralizing licenses and standardizing devices. "By standardizing to a laptop, we're able to ensure that people have the ability of working in different locations," Garces said during the presentation. He told the committee DOIT identified roughly 400 redundant devices and is consolidating licenses for tools such as Zoom and DocuSign to extend resources without incurring additional cost.

Brian Donahue, Chief Digital Equity Officer and Director of Broadband and Cable, presented results from a recent digital equity survey DOIT completed last year and described targeted work under way. The survey found about 24% of respondents reported affordability concerns for home internet and about 25% reported low internet speeds; 47% said they wanted help with digital skills. Donahue said seniors, veterans, public housing residents, people receiving government assistance and formerly incarcerated residents reported higher rates of need.

DOIT described several initiatives and pilot projects: - Wicked Free WiFi pilots in Nubian Square and Maverick Square, with Mattapan Square and other locations under consideration; Garces said the service sees roughly 50,000 unique connections monthly in aggregate and that lower‑income residents use it at higher rates. - A device refurbishment and long‑term lending program launched with the Boston Public Library and partners to provide devices to low‑income residents and expand public computer lab capacity. - A permitting and licensing modernization effort intended to replace an end‑of‑life system, reorganize permit types around user experience (construction, right‑of‑way, business licensing, events, etc.), and improve inspections and payments workflows. - Rebuilding the city’s Street and Address Management system (SAM) in GIS to support dispatch, permitting and census work; Garces said the SAM rebuild saved about $60,000 in recurring contracts and additional upgrade costs by insourcing work. - A replacement CRM for 311: Garces said more than 50% of 311 calls were already being handled in the new CRM within about four months of implementation; DOIT seeks funds to complete the transition and expand the system into more departments. - Deployment of Cartograph, a new asset and work‑order management system for street lighting and other crews; DOIT asked for funds to expand Cartograph to parks, street lighting and additional departments. - Project Greenlight partnerships using AI to change traffic signal timing at selected intersections; DOIT estimated a 13% reduction in delay at pilot intersections and an approximate 10% reduction in emissions at those locations.

On data sharing, Garces said DOIT built a controlled data‑sharing process that allowed Boston Public Schools to access about 60% of birth certificates needed during enrollment, saving families trips and fees. He also described a new training program (identified in the presentation as the Bastonia Academy) that has trained more than 400 city employees and certified about 100 by project demonstration.

Council members pressed DOIT on specific issues during question periods. Councilor Flynn asked about support for Boston Housing Authority residents; Donahue described three ongoing efforts with the state and BHA: localized digital navigation and training (including Cantonese programming in Flynn’s district), apartment Wi‑Fi and retrofits to building infrastructure. Garces and Donahue agreed to coordinate a summer workshop for seniors and to work with Flynn’s office on outreach.

Councilor Durkin asked whether Boston should pursue a municipal fiber build. DOIT officials noted Boston already has multiple provider options in most neighborhoods and described the city‑operated Boston Optical Network (BONE IT), which the department recently upgraded to a 100 gigabit per second backbone. They said the city will seek Council support during franchise renewals to preserve fiber assets provided by cable franchises (Comcast, Verizon, RCN) because those assets support public safety and city networks.

On cybersecurity, Councilor Braden and others asked whether DOIT has assumed responsibility previously housed in Emergency Management. Garces said DOIT now houses the cybersecurity regional coordinator position and works closely with the chief information security officer. DOIT said cybersecurity work and training are priorities; the department reported a target of roughly 80% completion for annual cybersecurity training across city staff and that the city recently obtained cyber insurance.

Councilors asked about staffing, contracting and budget mechanics. DOIT officials said the department has increased authorized headcount in recent years after a benchmarking study and has insourced work previously done by contractors; they also said some year‑end differences between budgeted and actual contractor spending reflect shifts from capital to operating accounts and the bundling of license, maintenance and services costs across different budget lines. Staff committed to provide more detailed transactional explanations to Councilor Weber and others.

Community partners spoke during the public testimony portion. Dalia Busaid Cox, interim CEO of nonprofit Tech Goes Home, described the organization’s work to provide devices, internet and training, and said it served more than 3,100 learners in Boston last year. "There are currently thousands of people in Boston hoping to take advantage of our digital skills programming, but whom we don't have the capacity to serve," she said. Glenn Williams, general manager of Boston Neighborhood Network, described BNN’s public access media work and ongoing captioning and training programs and thanked the city for technical support.

Council members and DOIT staff also discussed federal and state grants that support projects. Garces described a federal ‘‘smart grant’’ the city used to fund a pilot project that maps posted parking signage and compares signs with the municipal record; DOIT said the grant's second phase was not yet secured. DOIT also noted Digital Equity Fund allocations and state programs that supply funding for retrofits and apartment Wi‑Fi in affordable housing.

No formal votes were taken at the hearing. DOIT asked the committee to support its FY26 budget request to complete the CRM and asset management transitions, to continue cybersecurity work, and to expand digital equity pilots; councilors requested follow‑up information on contract spending, federal grant status, specific BHA site retrofits, and timelines for CRM and Cartograph completion.

The hearing record shows that DOIT is seeking a mix of operating and capital funding to finish multi‑year modernization projects, expand targeted digital equity pilots and sustain cybersecurity and device programs. Committee members signaled interest in workshops, closer coordination on BPS transportation and housing outreach, and policy options on exclusive internet arrangements in multi‑dwelling buildings.

Looking ahead, DOIT staff said they will return with additional materials requested by councilors (contract detail, grant status, and planning for franchise renewals and AI governance). The Ways and Means hearing adjourned after public testimony and rounds of council questions.