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Senate of Pennsylvania
Session of 2019 - 2020 Regular Session

MEMORANDUM

Posted:	January 8, 2020 10:39 AM
From:	Senator Doug Mastriano
To:	All Senate members
Subject:	Information Technology Billing Verification Software

In the near future, I intend to introduce the following legislation and I invite you to join me as a co-sponsor: Information Technology Billing Verification Software. During the past few years, we have seen disturbing examples of how state government failed to manage Information Technology (IT) contracts, as those contracts ran late and well over cost. In some cases, such as the State Police Radio Network or the Dept. of Labor & Industry’s Unemployment Call Center contracts, the state never received a working product for which hundreds of millions of taxpayers’ dollars were spent. The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is not the only government entity to struggle managing IT contracts, as the City of New York went to court over fraud with an IT contract growing in cost from $73 million to $700 million. As Pennsylvania continues its efforts of consolidating IT services, our state must also put into place safeguards to prevent IT contracts from running over budget, and allowing state agencies to verify work for which they are billed by an IT contractor. In order to accomplish this, I plan to introduce legislation that would mandate billing verification software for projects that are one year behind schedule, or $1 million more than the original cost estimate. Additionally, my legislation would give preference toward prospective vendors that use billing verification software from the start of a contract. The billing verification software must meet all state and federal privacy and confidentiality laws, and protect all data that is private or confidential on individuals. Numerous states are advancing similar proposals. For example, Louisiana has passed language authorizing the use of billing verification software. Virginia is currently doing a pilot project. Oklahoma is forming a study committee and several states, like Michigan and Ohio, are in the process of considering a similar requirement on state agencies for IT contracts. In light of the public and costly failures that state government has experienced with managing IT contracts over the past several decades, it is time for state agencies to exercise greater accountability over IT vendors. Moreover, the IT industry has already started using billing verification software to verify the work of their contractors and remote workings. Please join me in co-sponsoring this legislation to save taxpayer money and improve how state government oversees IT contracts. If you have any questions, comments or concerns, please contact Scot Pitzer in my office at 717-787-4651 or spitzer@pasen.gov.

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