Leveraging Centralized Data to Benefit Residents

California’s Deputy CIO, Chris Cruz, provided an illuminating account of the State of California’s efforts to modernize its IT systems and attract innovators to the public sector. One area that he discussed was the state’s efforts to reduce unnecessary waste (ex. eliminating separate servers for each state board, commission, or department by centralizing data storage on the cloud) and consequently cut costs. I found this to be an interesting perspective as, generally, government systems are assumed to be bureaucratic, inefficient, and time-consuming. It showed a growing, symbiotic partnership between the thriving private tech sector in Silicon Valley and the state government.

Although Cruz’s presentation focused mainly on modernization efforts at the state-level, I believe these advances can be further leveraged to benefit local governments and their citizens. California has already taken some steps in that direction. Residents can renew their driver’s licenses and pay fines for traffic transgressions online. However, there’s even more potential. Rachel Eckhert, a consultant specializing in IT trends in state and local governments, published a piece in Government Technology analyzing how some states are now using health data to combat the growing opioid epidemic. The State of Indiana has introduced a heat map, using information collected by health professionals and forensics labs, detailing areas with high concentrations of opioid overdoses. This data is now being used by local law enforcement to strategically deploy officers and ensure they have the necessary medication on hand to treat the effects of drug overdoses. Although California (which led the nation in 2015 with 4,659 drug overdose deaths) does not yet have such a system, Cruz’s talk shows that the state is taking the steps necessary to make this a reality. The Los Angeles Times reported in August 2014 that Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield of California were partnering to create a database of patient medical records; such a database could be used to implement a program similar to what’s currently available in Indiana.

The success of centralizing IT systems in improving the quality of life for citizens depends on five major factors, according to Steve Ressler’s article in the Harvard Business Review:

1. Large scale usage. Ressler uses the example of measuring downloads; he criticizes governments for too often measuring success by the thousands of downloads, when instead governments should be measuring their success by the millions of downloads. As with most online entities (Google Plus vs. Facebook, Google vs. Yahoo, etc.), success is measured by the amount of usage of the program/app/website. By offering a variety of resources and services online, governments can increase traffic through their online systems and promote other online services more effectively.
2. Seamless integration of online and offline efforts. Online and offline systems also need to mesh effortlessly; opportunities to participate or obtain the necessary services should be offered in-person and online. Ressler says that, “…to get more people signed up for snow emergency alerts, the city of Minneapolis advertises its GovDelivery (a digital communications platform exclusively for government, serving 100+ million citizens globally) alert subscription options on billboards, in mailings, and on social media accounts. One cohesive message is used to get residents to sign up for snow alerts so that they’ll know the latest parking restrictions.”
3. Easy connection of all government accounts per citizen. The third requirement to connect all government accounts seamlessly may be challenging at first, but California’s taking the right steps to ensure success. By centralizing IT systems, it should be easier for government agencies to partner with each other, collaborate, and share information to create an efficient online experience for the citizen. Ressler offers his own experience, where when an individual signs up for one government organization’s information online, he or she is offered to opportunity to sign up for similar services. On average, he noted, each citizen signed up for one additional service per registration.
4. Smart segmentation. The fourth criteria for success tends to be somewhat controversial. Although segmenting the population and targeting services for specific citizens (e-mails on summer development programs for parents or newsletters on public transport changes for commuters) has been shown to be highly successive by the private tech sector, Ressler cautions that government agencies must take care to protect citizen privacy. He uses Louisville, Kentucky as an example of where this tradeoff has been successfully implemented. “…the city…offers junk pick-up reminders to residents through GovDelivery, segmented by location. More than 12,000 households have signed up to receive text message alerts one week before and one day before junk is scheduled for curbside pickup. By proactively communicating on junk pick-up dates for residents, Louisville has been able to increase efficiency in its call center, cutting the number of calls to its 311 center regarding pick-up dates by 45% since 2013.”
5. Effective engagement of influencers. Lastly, cities should engage influencers. In 2014, Pew Research Center conducted a study on the different pathways people choose to interact with the government. Fewer than 30% of respondents learned about government operated recreational activities online, fewer than 20% of respondents renewed their driver’s license online, and fewer than 15% applied for government benefits or paid fines online. Ressler argues that the primary cause for this may be an uninformed public; without marketing, the public may not know such services as available online. He uses the example of the engaged parent. A citizen who is likely to respond to e-mails from a school district may also be more likely to support a property tax to support local schools.

The presentation on California’s efforts to modernize its IT systems shows that the state understands that it needs to adapt to the 21^st century norms in order to efficiently provide services to its citizens. However, it’s critical that the state leverages the data it stores to its citizens’ benefit and fulfills the five requirements listed above to effectively engage with Californians.

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