Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey has signed the FutureTech Act into law. The legislation will modernize information technology systems across state government over the next five fiscal years.
The bill includes $1.23 billion in bond authorization to support current and future technology needs over the next five years, in addition to $400 million in authorization to spend anticipated Federal funding for major business application projects led by the Executive Office of Health and Human Services.
“The FutureTech Act makes it easier for constituents and communities to interact with state government, while also modernizing our business functions and keeping our data secure. Because of this bill, state government can operate more efficiently and seize on the opportunity to engage with emerging technologies like AI,” said Governor Healey. “I’m grateful to the Legislature for passing this important bill and congratulate Secretary Snyder and his team for their hard work.”
The governor’s office explained that the newly signed legislation represents significant IT capital investment intended to integrate the constituent experience across agencies, deliver on cybersecurity projects across the executive branch, and fund future investments in AI technology. In addition to the capital investments, the bill also provides funding and technical support to secretariats, agencies, public higher education institutions, and municipalities across the state.
“The front door to government is now digital. We are now at a point where the vast majority of residents’ first interactions with state government are via the web,” said Massachusetts Chief Information Officer and Technology Services Secretary Jason Snyder. “This crucial legislation presents an opportunity to look forward and modernize the customer user experience to better deliver government services, while hardening our cyber defenses and making our residents and state IT systems safer.”
Investments supported by the legislation include the Commonwealth Digital Roadmap, which will standardize the user experience across state agencies with a single identity that proactively points users to relevant information and services.
Thus far, the Identity Access Management (IAM) single sign-on has amassed nearly 1.5 million users around the state. The governor’s office explained that building out this existing platform to add more applications and launching new lines of constituent communication through live chat, SMS, and chatbot services will promote increased adoption and interoperability of the platform.
The legislation also supports improvements to the unemployment insurance application process with a new online portal and improvements to help families seeking child support and other assistance from the state by updating core technology systems within the agencies that manage child support and other assistance programs. Funding will also be used to streamline the application process for the state’s financial aid system.
“One of the main components to transforming Massachusetts’ education system includes updating our IT infrastructure to be more modern, flexible, accessible, and user-friendly. Today’s signing of the FutureTech Act will enable us to do just that for child care financial assistance and financial aid for higher education, helping families and students access the support they need to pay for education and care. I want to thank the Legislature for their partnership in this critical work,” said Education Secretary Patrick Tutwiler.
