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Committee advances bill to require DHS to issue RFP for eligibility and enrollment platform; fiscal cost remains unsettled
Summary
The House Human Services Subcommittee advanced House Bill 1575 directing the Department of Human Services to issue an RFP and plan for an interoperable eligibility and enrollment platform. Lawmakers debated timing, RFP schedule and potential fiscal impact; the committee reported the bill out after a committee vote.
The House Human Services Subcommittee advanced House Bill 1575 on a committee vote after extended discussion about cost and implementation timelines.
Representative Lawson, the bill author, told the committee the measure directs the Department of Human Services (DHS) to issue a request for proposals (RFP) and to implement an eligibility and enrollment platform that can communicate with existing state agency systems. Lawson said he and DHS staff would meet to clarify implementation and that the bill’s effective date (July 1, 2025) and the bill’s RFP schedule were intended to push substantive work into fiscal year 2026 so the current fiscal year would not be immediately affected.
Lawson said DHS had initially estimated a large cost because the department understood the bill to require building a system from scratch; he said that was not his intent. He told members he had commitments from DHS Director Cartmull and identified IT staff for follow-up meetings aimed at producing a more realistic fiscal estimate.
Committee members repeatedly asked where appropriations would come from. Lawson said the bill seeks only to require an RFP and that any resulting appropriation could be handled in the 2026 legislative session, via carryover funds, a supplemental or the FY27 budget depending on responses to the RFP. He described multiple contingencies and said he expected further cost clarity after planned meetings with DHS IT staff.
Chair and other members emphasized the legislature retains appropriation authority and can deny any RFP or withhold funding if the proposals are not suitable.
The committee voted to report the bill out of committee; the committee clerk recorded the outcome as reported to the next committee with recorded votes in committee as noted below.
Ending: Lawson committed to share updates with the committee as the department refines fiscal estimates and as RFP planning continues.
