Governor’s office and NDIT outline IT service‑fee problems and propose tighter project tracking
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Summary
Al Dorman (Governor’s Office) told the task force that timing for computing IT service fees, lack of advocacy around those fees, and weak incentives for agencies to economize are driving unsustainable increases; he urged better statewide planning and budgeting for IT projects and automation of billing.
Al Dorman of the Governor’s Office described structural issues in how IT service fees and large IT projects are budgeted and implemented across state government.
Dorman said service fees are set months before budget realities crystalize and that no clear advocate explains rate changes during appropriations, leaving agency leaders surprised by spike in bills. He argued there is little incentive for agencies to economize because service fees are dispersed across many budgets, and recommended exploring options to general‑fund core services so agencies have access without inflating their fee bills.
On large IT projects, Dorman said the state often approves more projects than it has capacity to implement, and agencies sometimes lack budgeting for NDIT project‑management fees. He recommended a continuous tracking process during the biennium so that project scope, implementation costs and recurring service fees are visible earlier and can be reconciled prior to legislative appropriation.
Dorman said NDIT and the Governor’s Office are already pursuing better billing automation and a budget‑build process to track IT projects and implementation needs. He urged the legislature to require clearer planning and to allow NDIT and OMB to better coordinate on which services should be general‑funded versus fee‑based.
The task force voiced support for improved transparency; members asked for details on which services might be shifted to general funding and for better explanations of annual fee changes.