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State mobile app is outdated; ETS to survey users and weigh consolidation options
Summary
ETS reported the Hawaii mobile app on the Apple App Store was last updated in 2017 and has low usage; the committee urged a user‑centered evaluation and recommended ETS consider whether a native app, a consolidated portal or improved website mobile access is the right investment.
Tom, the ETS operations officer, updated the committee on a state mobile application that the team said was published to the Apple App Store in 2013 and last updated in 2017. The app currently has a small number of reviews and no Android equivalent.
"It has been there, put on 2013, but hasn't been updated since 2017," Tom said, describing the app as a basic wrapper for hawaii.gov content and noting low user adoption. He proposed forming a task force composed of ITSC members to survey potential users, research other states’ mobile offerings and deliver a recommendation on desired capabilities, cost and timeline.
Members urged ETS to first identify the app’s target users and measure current usage before committing to development. "Mobile apps is a magic term that a lot of people think is the solution to everything," said Eugene Chang, urging a mobile‑strategy that considers data and services availability and ongoing maintenance costs; Benson Chu and others recommended evaluating whether a single consolidated portal would better serve users than multiple agency apps.
ETS said it would coordinate with the Chief Data Officer’s work on statewide data collaboration and consider Android support, third‑party vendors and ongoing maintenance costs before presenting a recommendation to the committee and the legislature.
