DoIT previews revenue-sharing bill, outlines priorities to Budget and Taxation Committee
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Summary
DoIT Secretary Katie Savage told the Budget and Taxation Committee that a bill to expand state authority over revenue-sharing agreements with utilities will be introduced the next day and outlined DoIT’s priorities: build agency technical capacity, centralize services, and deliver user-centered digital services.
DoIT Secretary Katie Savage told the Budget and Taxation Committee that a bill to expand the agency’s authority over revenue-sharing agreements with utilities will be introduced the following day and said the revenue could be reinvested in state infrastructure.
"Tomorrow we will be speaking just a quick preview, we will be talking about, expanding our authority over revenue sharing agreements," Savage said, explaining those agreements authorize the state to charge rent to entities that use state assets such as roads, rights-of-way and bridges.
Savage used the briefing to summarize DoIT’s recent organizational changes and three priorities for the next five years: increasing technical capacity inside DoIT and across state agencies, delivering user-centered digital services, and centralizing common contracts and platforms to reduce duplication. She said the department has consolidated multiple Microsoft contracts into one contract and has moved to fewer, more centralized arrangements where possible.
On accomplishments, Savage highlighted the integration of MD Think into DoIT and the consolidation of several public-benefits applications into a single mobile-ready application. She said that application has been used by nearly a quarter-million Marylanders to apply for benefits.
During committee questions, members pressed DoIT on procurement savings, legacy application migration, and which agencies might resist centralization. Savage said the department is tracking savings from contract consolidation and has reinvested internal savings back into its programs. She acknowledged that some agencies have varying degrees of independence and that relationship-building and, in some cases, legislative measures, will be necessary to bring certain organizations into centralized services.
The committee did not take any formal votes during the briefing. The department’s revenue-sharing bill is scheduled for formal introduction the following day and will be the subject of further committee consideration.
