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Ohio Launches Highly Anticipated 18F-Style RFP

The effort to bring in new, more agile blood into the state's cloud/data analytics resource pool is now open, with an award date expected in March.

Ohio launched a new kind of RFP Jan. 5 aimed at improving participation on the part of smaller cloud-based analytics companies.
 
Government Technology first reported on the effort in early December, when state CIO Stu Davis outlined his goal of not only streamlining IT procurements within state government, but also making state contracts accessible to lesser-known service providers.
 
According to the state’s procurement opportunity website, an inquiry period will be open until Feb. 3, and bids will be opened by the state on Feb. 17. The website lists the estimated award date as March 17.
 
Davis said last December that he had informally partnered with 18F, the digital federal consultancy within the General Services Administration, for advice on how to better align state resources under the Ohio Department of Administrative Services’ purview.
 
Rather than relying on a system of onboarding new contractors annually, the CIO said the new process will allow for more regular updates to the state's list of service providers. 
 
The procurement effort will give the state new analytics capabilities in the areas of audit compliance and regulation; crime, corrections and recidivism; cybersecurity; education; environmental and natural resources; government process automation; life sciences and public health; public safety and security; risk management; transportation; utilities; waste, fraud and abuse; and workforce. 
 
Eyragon Eidam is the web editor for Government Technology magazine, after previously serving as assistant news editor and covering such topics as legislation, social media and public safety. He can be reached at eeidam@erepublic.com.