SENATE BILL REPORT

SSB 5718

As Passed Senate, March 1, 2013

Title: An act relating to monitoring the development of a one-stop portal for Washington businesses.

Brief Description: Providing monitoring of the development of a one-stop portal for Washington businesses.

Sponsors: Senate Committee on Trade & Economic Development (originally sponsored by Senators Brown, Chase, Smith, Braun, Carrell, Schlicher and Frockt).

Brief History:

Committee Activity: Trade & Economic Development: 2/19/13 [DPS].

Passed Senate: 3/01/13, 47-0.

Majority Report: That Substitute Senate Bill No. 5718 be substituted therefor, and the substitute bill do pass.

Signed by Senators Braun, Chair; Smith, Vice Chair; Chase, Ranking Member; Holmquist Newbry, Schlicher and Shin.

Staff: Edward Redmond (786-7471)

Background: The state’s Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO) has been directed under Executive Order 12-01 to work collaboratively with the Department of Commerce (COM), the Department of Revenue (DOR), the Office of Regulatory Assistance (ORA), and other executive agencies that license businesses or collect taxes and insurance premiums. The Executive Order requires OCIO to review the needs of the business community and evaluate technical options for creating an integrated enterprise system using a single sign-on portal called MyAccount for business interactions with state agencies.

In November 2012, OCIO produced a report entitled MyAccount – Streamlining Business Transactions with Government. The report provides an action plan with a long-range vision for creating and implementing MyAccount, which businesses will be able to utilize to conduct all their interactions with state government in a single, web-based location. The plan outlines the high-level technological architecture and implementation steps necessary to achieve this streamlined project.

The implementation plan relies on a phased approach. Phase I of MyAccount includes building the system backbone, connecting core business systems into the backbone, and implementing a public-web facing web portal. The cost estimate for Phase I is between $7 million and $8 million, and if funded, it is projected to be operational in December 2015.

Summary of Substitute Bill: The Legislature intends to monitor the progress toward the development and implementation of the one-stop business portal. OCIO, in collaboration with DOR, the Department of Labor and Industries, the Secretary of State, the Employment Security Department, COM, and ORA, must provide the Legislature with a plan for establishing performance benchmarks, and for measuring the results of implementing a one-stop business portal by November 2013. The plan must specify how OCIO and other state agencies intend to collaborate with the business community in order to receive business feedback and use business recommendations in the development of the one-stop business portal.

OCIO must submit annual progress reports to the Legislature until the portal has reached initial implementation. The progress report must specify how OCIO and other state agencies are collaborating with the business community and using business recommendations in the development of the one-stop business portal. Initial implementation will be met when a system backbone is developed, specified agencies are connected to the backbone, and a public-facing web portal is developed. The first progress report is due to the Legislature by January 1, 2014.

The Act expires when initial implementation is reached or, if funding is not provided, after OCIO submits the first progress report.

Appropriation: None.

Fiscal Note: Available.

Committee/Commission/Task Force Created: No.

Effective Date: Ninety days after adjournment of session in which bill is passed.

Staff Summary of Public Testimony on Original Bill: PRO: The City of Kennewick created a one-stop shop for our developers because developers were having to go to different locations in the city to figure out what permits were required. The one-stop shop provided a place for developers to do a pre-development conference, which has become an incredible mechanism for the city to answer all the builders' questions. A one-stop shop on a statewide level makes plain business sense. This bill finally puts an agency in charge of getting a one-stop portal developed. A one-stop portal is important to realtors and we are in support of Senator Chase's amendment to include business input in the development of the portal.

OTHER: MyAccount is a very important project that state agencies have been working on for quite some time. COM has been working with businesses throughout this process. In fact, businesses coined My Account as the name for the one-stop portal. The project plan includes continual work with small businesses and doing usability testing with them to ensure that we are designing something that will actually work for them.

Persons Testifying: PRO: Senator Brown, prime sponsor; Amber Carter, Assn. of WA Business; Patrick Conner, National Federation of Independent Business; Nathan Gorton, WA Realtors.

OTHER: Cheryl Smith, COM.