LEGISLATIVE FISCAL ESTIMATE

[First Reprint]

ASSEMBLY, No. 2614

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

219th LEGISLATURE

 

DATED: FEBRUARY 11, 2021

 

 

SUMMARY

 

Synopsis:

“21st Century Integrated Digital Experience Act.”

Type of Impact:

Annual increased State cost

Agencies Affected:

Office of Information Technology; all Executive Branch agencies.

 

 

Office of Legislative Services Estimate

Fiscal Impact

Year 1 

Year 2 

Year 3 

 

State Cost Increase

 

Indeterminate

 

 

 

 

 

·         The Office of Legislative Services (OLS) finds that the bill will result in an indeterminate annual increase in State costs.  The bill requires each Executive Branch agency to submit an information technology modernization and improvement plan within one year, and then to ensure that every agency website is mobile-friendly and accessible to persons with disabilities within one year of submitting the plan.

 

·         The bill does not provide deadlines for the other provisions of the plan, including enhanced use of data analytics, enhancing the delivery of digital services, and digitizing government processes and workflows.  The bill provides that the plan is to be developed within the limits of fiscal and other resources available to the agency, so the availability of resources is likely to be a constraint upon the ambition and scope of these plans.

 

 

BILL DESCRIPTION

 

      This bill requires the Office of Information Technology and agencies in the Executive Branch of State Government to provide citizens with a modern, digital experience by updating the platforms through which these agencies provide services to businesses and members of the general public. 

      The bill requires each Executive Branch agency to submit, within one year following its enactment and every year thereafter, an information technology modernization and improvement plan to the Chief Technology Officer and Chief Innovation Officer for the State of New Jersey. The plan is to describe how each agency will improve the provision of digital services by leveraging data analytics and related tools to ensure an effective rendering of all publicly facing websites on mobile devices, increasing the use of data analytics to improve website operation, enhancing the delivery of digital services through the adoption of cloud computer services, and digitizing government processes and workflows. Additionally, the plan is to outline ways to improve wireless connectivity Statewide, including underserved urban and rural communities, as well as recommendations to expedite the implementation of the necessary infrastructure for wireless connectivity.

      The bill also requires the plan to outline a process to be utilized by each agency to ensure that its website intended for public use is mobile-friendly and accessible by persons with disabilities within one year following the submission of each agency’s plan. Each agency’s plan is to be developed within the limits of fiscal and other resources available.  Each agency is to make its plan available to the public electronically through a link displayed on its website.

       The bill requires the Chief Technology Officer to consult with the Chief Innovation Officer in conducting certain responsibilities. The bill adds the following responsibilities to the role of Chief Technology Officer: 1) to regularly consult with the New Jersey Information Technology Project Review Board to evaluate the feasibility of using artificial intelligence, machine learning, and commercial cloud computing, as well as other emerging technologies, by agencies to provide public services and the development of data analytics capabilities to enable data-driven policy development by agencies; and 2) to develop a process to promulgate, and update no less than every other year, a set of metrics to assess each agency’s implementation of a modern digital experience. The set of metrics are to be reevaluated every three years.

 

 

FISCAL ANALYSIS

 

EXECUTIVE BRANCH

 

      None received.

 

 

OFFICE OF LEGISLATIVE SERVICES

 

      The OLS finds that the bill will result in an indeterminate increase in annual State costs.  The bill requires each Executive Branch agency to submit an information technology modernization and improvement plan within one year from enactment and then to ensure that every agency website is mobile-friendly and accessible to persons with disabilities within one year of submitting the plan.  The costs involved in the creation of these plans and the execution of modernized websites cannot be known due to a lack of information about how the departments will develop these plans and what those plans will ultimately entail.

      The bill does not provide deadlines for the other provisions of the plan, including enhanced use of data analytics, enhancing the delivery of digital services, and digitizing government processes and workflows.  As a result, these more substantive changes to agency operations may take place over a longer time period.

      The bill also provides that the plan is to be developed within the limits of fiscal and other resources available to the agency.  The availability of resources is likely to be a constraint upon the scope of these plans, and the bill does not directly provide any resources to executive agencies to accomplish objectives.  The OLS is further unable to quantify the cost of this bill due to a lack of knowledge about what resources each Executive agency may be able to make available for the purposes of this bill from appropriations.

 

 

Section:

Authorities, Utilities, Transportation and Communications

Analyst:

Patrick Brennan

Principal Fiscal Analyst

Approved:

Thomas Koenig

Assistant Legislative Budget and Finance Officer

 

 

This legislative fiscal estimate has been produced by the Office of Legislative Services due to the failure of the Executive Branch to respond to our request for a fiscal note.

 

This fiscal estimate has been prepared pursuant to P.L.1980, c.67 (C.52:13B-6 et seq.).