Center for Digital Government Best of California 2009 Award Winners December 3, 2009

Leadership Awards:

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Leadership in Management of Information Technology

Doug Albrecht, Director of Information Management
Port of Long Beach

In the past four years, Doug Albrecht has transformed information management both within his Information Management Division and throughout the varied functions of the Port; introducing Web-based customer information systems, new processes to give program and project managers tight control over resources and schedules, an electronic document and records-management system with real-time purchasing, a new centralized command and control center, and support for Green Port initiatives - through the clean truck program, green flag discount billing and clean air action plan. Since 2005 Mr. Albrecht has made a sustained contribution to information technology in the Port complex, the City of Long Beach and in marine ports at a national level; through his leadership the American Association of Port Authorities is launching a ‘CIO' style certification for its IT members from North, South and Central America.

Leadership in Solving Business and Policy Problems through Technology

Jerry Sanders, Mayor
City of San Diego, California

Mayor Jerry Sanders is strongly committed to using technology as a means to transform the business of government. By aligning innovative IT to City business objectives, significant cost savings and benefits have been achieved. As the new mayor in 2006, he accepted responsibility for the overhaul of the financial management system; from siloed legacy systems and manual data compilation with inadequate disclosures and controls, to the now city-wide Enterprise Resource Planning system OneSD. OneSD provides improvement for all financial and procurement business operations; for example with tighter controls, 60 percent obsolete ledger accounts were eliminated, $2-3 million of encumbered funds were released, and real-time transparent financial and management information with reporting and analytics is available. The Mayor also has supported the leveraging of Automated Vehicle Locator (AVL) and wireless technology to improve scheduling of trash and recyclables collection, saving one million dollars per year while improving service to residents.

Excellence in Project Delivery

The Genetic Disease Screening Program, SIS - Screening Information System Development Team
California Department of Public Health

Since 2003 the Genetic Disease Screening Program Project Management Team for the Screening Information System (SIS) has successfully delivered a series of projects developing and enhancing the SIS, California's prenatal and newborn genetic screening program. The outcome of the team's original vision for SIS - to better serve California families, provide better and faster information to decision makers, and move away from the 25-year-old legacy system and toward new, scalable technologies - is a state-of-the-art system that is saving babies' lives daily. Through the delivery of three large-scale improvement projects, the system has demonstrated flexibility to support ongoing advances in genetic screening standards. The latest expansion took 20 months, and was developed and tested using more than 75,000 unique scenarios to thoroughly reflect the diverse California population base. The team's technology vision, sustained focus on delivery, and collaborative management approach reflects exemplary project management.

Excellence in Rapid Project Delivery

Records Retention Center IT HUB Relocation Project Team
City of Los Angeles World Airports Office of IT Project Management

The Records Retention Center IT Hub provides communications for over 15 airport operations and administrative systems on the west side of the Los Angeles airport. LAX's new construction required relocation of the Hub, with potentially millions of dollars in penalties if delayed. The project scope of work included cutting and splicing 22 fiber cables (756 single/multi mode fibers, 549 circuits). This 90-day project required fiber cutover activity in a succession of 22 nights, due to limits on downtime. Successful actions were field pre-verification of each circuit, access requirements and systems affected, a detailed fiber cutover plan and table-top dry-runs. The project was completed six days ahead of schedule with only two system outages during the cutover.

Excellence in IT Operations, Support and Service

Information Management Services Division
California Department of Personnel Administration

The Department of Personnel Administration IT staff has fostered a willingness to meet critical business needs now and for the future. Improvements in the infrastructure, server, application and development environment have occurred in just over six months with only 12 full time staff. Inheriting a network/server infrastructure that was struggling to remain operational, they developed a new, stable environment with increased security, capacity, and performance; which allowed staff time to implement workforce development plans and enhance the robust environment, e.g. storage capacity has increased 20,000 percent. New systems, such as a governance process, piloting environment, and content management and document management systems have been implemented, providing efficiencies and economies of scale.

Leadership in Solving Business and Policy Problems through Security Technology

E-Hub Statewide Procurement and Implementation Team
(multiple California agencies)

For nearly a year the E-Hub Statewide Procurement and Implementation Team developed a collaborative approach to defining and developing a security solution for anti-spam, virus protection and encryption services for all executive branch e-mail. Well over 100 separate state e-mail systems deploying disparate architectures to handle mail hygiene such as spam and anti-virus are being consolidated into a single solution. Benefits include improved security and protection, reduced network load, e-mail encryption as an option, consistent toolsets and policies for e-mail management, and centralized administration. The technical members of the bid team continue to meet on a regular basis, setting statewide parameters and developing processes for implementation.

Project and Web Excellence Awards:

Best Application Serving Organization Business Objectives

OneSD, City of San Diego

The City of San Diego's OneSD program is the new enterprise resource planning application that has effectively helped the City remedy its financial challenges. Supported by Mayor Sanders, the initiative completely reformed and replaced the City's administrative infrastructure and business processes, used by over 1,000 city employees in all departments. Successful elimination of obsolete data from the legacy environment allows much greater operational efficiency by City employees, such as 41 percent reduction in inactive vendors, 33 percent reduction in out-of-date funds, and 93 percent reduction in job orders. Additional benefits are greater financial and managerial controls and more timely, accurate, and transparent financial information.

Best Application Serving Organization Business Objectives

Online Assistance System for Insurer Submittals (OASIS), California Dept. of Insurance

OASIS, the Online Assistance System for Insurer Submittals, enables electronic delivery of documents, credit card payments, in-house online sharing, and automated workflow. OASIS provides a more business-friendly climate with an easy-to-use application and fee payment infrastructure. In addition, it eliminates for the insurance industry the need and expense of preparing and shipping multiple copies of an application and mailing paper check payments. Moving to an online transaction processing system improves efficiency and aligns with the California eGovernment initiative. Benefits include fewer errors and reduced liability, ability to assign and track work, efficient application escalation process and quicker response to citizen requests for information.

Best Application Serving the Public

Graffiti Abatement Referral System (GARS), County of Los Angeles, Department of Public Works

By using Geographic Information System (GIS) technology with a Web interface to automate graffiti abatement dispatching and incident reporting, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Works saves $534,000 in labor and other associated costs annually. The Graffiti Abatement Referral System (GARS) revamped business processes, improved efficiencies, and increased customer service. Graffiti abatement contractors benefit from timely and more accurate tracking of graffiti removal requests. Through partnerships, GARS also directly forwards abatement requests to other municipalities. The newly added mobile device feature for inspectors allows for real-time graffiti reporting. Constituents benefit from reduced call times (5-10 minutes reduced to 1-2 minutes per call), a new Web application to report graffiti, and aesthetic improvements for the community.

Best Application Serving the Public

Screening Information System - SIS: Prenatal Screening Expansion, CA Dept. Public Health

The Web-based Screening Information System (SIS) is California's prenatal and newborn genetic disease screening program which identifies genetic disorders in babies before and immediately after birth. SIS provides screening, individual follow-up, counseling, and definitive diagnostic testing for almost 400,000 pregnant women annually. New enhancements of the addition of first trimester and integrated first and second trimester screening provide expectant mothers with results earlier on in pregnancy and also improve detection rates for genetic abnormalities, including a specialized ultrasound that provides additional input to the risk assessment process in addition to blood specimens. Average screenings increased from an average of 32,000 per month to 45,000 per month with the new enhancements.

Best Application Serving Multiple Jurisdictions

"AVOID the 21" Portal - CA Office of Traffic Safety/Livermore Police for Alameda County; Livermore Police Department

The California Office of Traffic Safety (OTS)'s "AVOID Anti-DUI Program" was established to bring law enforcement agencies together in countywide clusters to reduce the number of deaths and injuries caused by alcohol-related crashes. Livermore Police Department administers the AVOID program for the 21 police agencies in Alameda County, and has created a secure Web portal that allows each agency to submit the necessary AVOID DUI activities and grant-related data from any Internet-enabled device. By replacing the tracking of e-mails and FAX submissions, the Web site provides accurate and quick verification for agency grant reimbursements and audits. 100 percent of the 60+ local and state agency users are participating.

Best Application Serving Multiple Jurisdictions

Local Evaluation Online (LEO): Evaluating HIV Prevention, California Department of Public Health

The Local Evaluation Online (LEO) system is a custom, Web-based application designed to collect client data for all California Department of Public Health/Office of AIDS-funded HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus) prevention services, including HIV risk-reduction counseling and testing, outreach, case management, and partner counseling and referral services. LEO meets state and federal reporting requirements for HIV prevention activities, provides policymakers with reliable data for decision-making, provides program administrators with data for monitoring program performance and quality assurance, and provides service providers with useful reports and user-friendly interfaces for managing workloads. All Californians at risk for HIV benefit from having a system which results in more effective services provided more efficiently.

Most Innovative Use of Technology

iPhone Government Services Locator, California Office of the Chief Information Officer

Using location-aware GPS technology, the CA.gov "Locater" pinpoints the user's current location and presents the nearest government offices. Users can click-to-call agency telephone numbers, get directions on a map, or send an email - instead of visiting multiple Web sites for contact information and driving directions to public offices. Users can also search by zip code even when network connectivity is not available. The application runs on the iPhone/iPod operating system (rather than in a browser), uses the iPhone's built-in GPS capabilities, integrates with Google maps, and the Web-based online repository of the state offices and service centers is downloaded by the iPhone application on demand.

The Green IT Award

DASH - Data Automation Software and Hardware System, CA Franchise Tax Board

In 2008, the Franchise Tax Board partnered with the Department of General Services and the California Energy Commission to find a way to reduce FTB's data center energy cost. The outcome was DASH - the Data Automation Software and Hardware System. The system includes Fusible Link Curtains and variable speed fans to provide cooling through the under-floor channels. The system is providing both electrical and carbon dioxide savings on a daily basis: Data Center efficiencies have resulted in 58 percent reduction in fan energy use, 14.6 percent reduction in total energy use, 300 tons less carbon dioxide produced per year, and 310,000 kilowatts less electricity used per year.

The Green IT Award

Los Angeles County Solar Map

Announced on Earth Day 2009, the Los Angeles County Solar Map is an internet portal where LA County residents can find information about the solar potential of their home. It leverages one of the most comprehensive large-scale solar models in the world, covering over 3,000 square miles of the county. Residents simply type in their address, and the following information is displayed; total roof area, the roof area suitable for solar, the system size they can install, amount of electricity that can be generated, the cost savings per year, carbon dioxide savings per year, and links to reputable installers, rebate programs, and cost estimates. Direct cost savings include $400,000 for county buildings, and potentially millions for cities, utilities, and solar installers.

Geospatial Innovation Award

Field Automation for Sanitation Trucks (FAST), City of Los Angeles Public Works/Sanitation

FAST - the Field Automation for Sanitation Trucks is a Web-based application that utilizes a fusion of technologies to deliver sewer and storm water infrastructure data and maintenance work orders to the field. FAST replaced a cumbersome, time-consuming manual work order process with a modern wireless computer application dramatically improving sewer and storm water maintenance productivity and quality of service to City of Los Angeles residents. FAST saves up to five hours and 100 pieces of paper-handling per employee per day, has eliminated 300,000 paper work orders and resulted in a 50 percent reduction in sewer spills.

Best State Government Web Site

California Department of Food and Agriculture Web Site

The California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) Web site is the gateway and principal navigation method to the department's six divisions and their programs. Redesigned for an improved user experience and a standardized look and feel with the state portal, the Web site offers quick access to all of its programs using identifiable icons at the top of the page, provides frequently-updated "hot topics", ability to browse links by subject matter, a visual listing of CDFA's services provided to the public, meeting notifications, funding sources, current news, laws and regulations pertaining to the industry, statistics, directories, agriculture publications, and links to CDFA's Web 2.0 presence on YouTube, Twitter and Facebook.

Best Local Government Web Site

San Diego County Web Site

To serve the public "online, not in line" the County of San Diego's Web site has a huge array of services available. Services include searchable databases such as restaurant inspections, pet adoption, voter registration status, land use permits, warrants and jail inmates, online transactions for property tax payments, camping reservations, building permits, non-emergency crime reports, library materials requests, government contract bids, job applications, and registration for emergency notifications via cell phone. Government transparency and interaction features include streamed and archived video of board meetings, a site devoted to emergencies staffed 24/7 in disasters, easy links to the County's presence on YouTube, Twitter, and Facebook (utilized in the H1N1 flu outbreak) and a Parks and Recreation Google map application.