“Over my tenure, I’m most proud of reshaping our IT department from a traditional support organization into a partner for all city-parish departments — helping them improve operational efficiency through both technology and process improvement,” Romero said via email. “Our transparency initiatives, including open data and citizen engagement efforts, significantly expanded public access to information. And on the cybersecurity front, we built a strong community approach and delivered meaningful protections despite limited budget and staffing — something I consider a major achievement.”
Romero’s official retirement date is Jan. 2, 2026, and he said he doesn’t have firm plans for afterward, but will “take some time to recharge, spending more days outdoors, whether that’s on the water, in the woods or in my garden.”
The city posted the notice for a CIO earlier this month and will accept applications through Sept. 15. The salary range is $94,235 to $156,613, according to the posting. The CIO reports to the mayor-president and the person chosen will lead the Information Services Department, which is tasked with overseeing AI governance and adoption, overseeing modernization, managing infrastructure and security, guiding acquisitions and fostering partnerships.
Baton Rouge has regularly been recognized in the Center for Digital Government's* Digital Cities Survey, for work including implementing a new 311 system, ensuring public access to Wi-Fi and smoothing procurement. Goals include improving safety, collaboration and operating costs. Its IT division supports more than 4,000 full-time employees and includes network support; server administration; telecommunications; data, analytics and performance; application and development; and enterprise resource planning, according to the fiscal year 2025 budget. The division budget was $7.91 million.
“Rather than a single project, the challenge ahead will be how to responsibly and effectively integrate artificial intelligence into city-parish operations,” Romero said. “The next CIO will need to explore how AI can improve efficiency and service delivery while balancing budget constraints and ensuring equity, security and accountability.”
*The Center for Digital Government is part of e.Republic, Government Technology’s parent company.
