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GCN Home > 07/01/02 issue

State CIOs will advise feds

By Wilson P. Dizard III, GCN Staff

The National Association of State CIOs will create a working group to advise the federal government on framing a national homeland security strategy.

Homeland Security Office CIO Steve Cooper asked state IT officials for help during NASCIO’s annual DC Fly-In meeting in May.

During the Fly-In, eight state CIOs and other NASCIO members participated in 30 sessions with members of Congress and their staffs in Washington.

In addition, the CIOs met with 50 representatives of federal agencies, including the Justice Department, FBI and CIA, to discuss homeland security and other concerns. The CIOs encouraged federal authorities to consult NASCIO members on IT matters. They presented white papers on information architecture, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, identity security and authorization, and use of federal funds for state IT projects.

The state CIOs attending the conference were Randall Bradford of Arkansas, Matt DeZee of South Carolina, NASCIO president Rock Regan of Connecticut, Terry Savage of Nevada, Larry Singer of Georgia, Robert Stafford of New Mexico, Aldona Valicente of Kentucky and Richard Varn of Iowa.

Valicente said state governments face many of the same IT security problems as the federal government, so they should work together to solve them. “We don’t want to repeat any work the federal government is doing,” Valicente said. “The nation’s cyberspace is going to be as secure as its weakest link.”