Even though Colorado is one of 23 states that are projecting revenue shortfalls in 2009, Governor Ritter's signs a budget bill that raises state spending by 6% and adds 1,334 new employees to the state payroll. Building Blocks for Health Care Reform gets funded as do several other technology projects.

Yesterday Governor Bill Ritter signed the fiscal 2009 budget into law. It increases general fund spending by 6%, or $431 million, and adds 1,334 new state employees. Meanwhile, legislative economists predict a decrease in revenues of $693 million over the next 5 years.

Several lawmakers seemed unhappy with the process this year, which included much partisan bickering, but little change. Rep. Cory Gardner (R-Yuma) said, "I think it's time we upgrade the budget process, Colorado Budget 2.0." The Joint Budget Committee spend months putting the budget together but the House and Senate have only two weeks to debate and pass the budget bill. Gardner suggested moving to a biennial budget cycle.

So what's in it for technology vendors?

• Department of Corrections -- $54,369 to enable the Parole Board to convert its paper-intensive decision process to electronic documents which can be security signed and transmitted.
• Office of the Governor -- $349,353 to acquire components and software to mitigate critical network security risks through centrally managed firewalls, intrusion detection systems and antivirus protection.
• Department of Health Care Policy and Financing -- $5.5 million to begin the process of centralized eligibility determinations that will streamline the Medicaid and CHP+ application process.
• Department of Public Health and Environment -- $654,000 to operate and enhance the Colorado Immunization Information System (CIIS).
• Department of State -- $749,846 for information security related activities, $900,000 for administering voting systems certification and $520,000 to replace the department's outdated accounting system to better process applications received electronically
• Department of Personnel and Administration -- $7.9 million for the Digital Trunked Radio System so that counties on the Western Slope can obtain needed software and system upgrades.
• Department of Public Safety -- $1.2 million for the new Alamosa Troop Office Regional Communications Center. Part of this capital expanse will be used to relocate and update the existing radio infrastructure.
• Department of Revenue -- $7.8 million for the Colorado Integrated Tax Architecture (CITA), which replaces the current tax system with a single, integrated system.

Also included in the budget was $25 million for the governor's Building Blocks for Health Care Reform package, which includes several technology initiatives including centralized eligibility determination for Medical and CHP+, the state's Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) and the web-based Report Card on Health Insurance Companies.

Still to be enacted is the the Colorado IT Consolidation Plan, which is SB 155.