| September 2009 |
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| Director's Message |
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Scott L. Harra
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Welcome to the latest edition of What’s Up at DAS, the quarterly newsletter of the Department of Administrative Services. Today I want to highlight an important innovation that will affect every state agency — Oregon's new “Transparency” Web site.
This year, the Legislature enacted HB 2500, which requires DAS to set up a Web site that provides easy public access to information on state agencies' revenues, expenditures, contracts, staff salaries, etc. On my behalf, the DAS Enterprise Information Strategy and Policy Division (EISPD) has established a project team to get the ball rolling. In collaboration with many divisions of DAS and partners from other agencies, EISPD will tackle the technological challenges of setting up the site by New Year’s day, the deadline. |
Among the major tasks is capturing the agencies’ information and offering access in a way that’s intuitive, friendly, and readily usable. The overarching goal is to provide a site that lets the public find answers to questions about how the state spends its revenue.
The legislation calls for appointment of a nine-member commission to oversee creation and management of the Web site. With guidance and input from the citizens on the commission, Oregon state government will take a big step forward in helping educate the public about how money is spent.
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For more information about the Transparency Web site, visit the project’s online collaboration tool on GovSpace.
We hope you enjoy this edition of What's Up at DAS. Feel free to contact us if you have questions or if you want to suggest a future topic. We look forward to hearing from you.
Scott L. Harra
Director, Department of Administrative Services
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Links to Articles
EISPD
Facilities
HRSD
Operations
PEBB
State Controller
State Services |
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Other Topics
H1N1 Flu
Unpaid Time Off
(Furlough Days)
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| Operations Division |
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The Future of Video, Audio and Web Conferencing
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The DAS Technology Support Center has provided video and audio conferencing services to state agencies and other public entities since fall 2006. During the 2009 legislative session, the Legislature directed DAS to discontinue these services. DAS immediately assembled a project team to tackle the mandate and examine its two key parts: |
- Video Conferencing. Analyze the best approach to meet state agencies’ needs for video conferencing — in-source or outsource.
- Audio and Web Conferencing. Analyze whether the current contracted vendor is able to meet agencies' existing business requirements.
DAS will continue to provide these services until further notice and will stay in touch with its customers who rely on video, audio and Web conferencing. For more information including the results of a recent survey about agencies’ conferencing needs, visit the project Web page.
Contact: Suzanne Hein, (503) 373-1371
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| Facilities Division |
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Custodial Transition to Daytime Cleaning
The department’s custodians have experienced major changes during the past few months as the night custodial operation moved to the dayshift. Although the transition presented many challenges, it happened fairly smoothly.
Agencies’ personnel have received the custodians into the daytime flow of work very well, and DAS thanks you for that. We've received many kudos from people who appreciate the efforts of these dedicated workers. The custodians themselves now feel more a part of the “team.”
DAS will continue its efforts to put the “shine” on state buildings. Please contact your building’s manager or the DAS Facilities Division if questions about daytime custodial services arise.
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Bill Wood at the DAS Executive Building
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Contact: Dean Freeze, (503) 378-4457
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| Human Resource Services Division |
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Online Job Application Coming to State Government
With the purchase of NeoGov, the industry leader in recruitment software for the public sector, state government can now officially step into the 21st century and receive employment applications online.
NeoGov currently serves 425 government entities including 13 states. The company serves only government, and has refined the product for the public sector’s unique needs. Thanks to NeoGov's vast experience with government rules and processes, Oregon is unlikely to place new or different demands on the software. This inspires confidence, will provide for greater ease of deployment and reduce risk.
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Check out three job sites powered by NeoGov:
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The state has needed an online application for a number of years. Now that the economy has driven application volumes to an unprecedented level, agencies must have a tool that reduces the time staff spends to manually screen, process, prioritize and communicate information about jobs.
Recruitment and selection are fundamental elements to the success of each state agency. DAS recognizes and appreciates the importance of stakeholders' involvement in implementing this software. The Human Resource Services Division has formed both a steering committee and an advisory committee from a cross-section of state agencies to encourage the greatest collaborative input and direction.
The new e-recruiting service should fully deploy by next spring. DAS HRSD looks forward to providing this best-in-class recruitment and selection tool to state government.
Contact: Jennifer Lara, (503) 378-3869
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| State Services Division |
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SPO Wins National 'Gold' Award
Every year the National Association of State Procurement Officials (NASPO) awards a gold, silver, and bronze “Cronin Award” for procurement excellence and innovation. NASPO is a non-profit association dedicated to strengthening the procurement community in the U.S. through education, research and communication. In addition to recognizing outstanding public procurement initiatives, NASPO promotes adoption of the awarded initiatives in the states.
This year the DAS State Procurement Office won the prestigious NASPO Gold Cronin Award for the Information Technology Managed Service Provider (MSP) price agreement. Oregon created the MSP in 2005, the first contract of its kind in the nation to offer agencies a way to obtain temporary IT professionals for hourly or short-term deliverable-based projects. Through the MSP, agencies can quickly engage people from a pool of IT subcontractors at standardized rates, saving time and money.
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“I want to congratulate our State Procurement Office for achieving this high honor from the national association of their peers,” said Scott Harra, DAS Director. “We also owe thanks to the many people throughout state government who helped DAS form the MSP. We could not have achieved this without the participation of our agency partners.”
For more information about the award, visit the NASPO Web site.
Contact: Dianne Lancaster, (503) 378-3529
Brian King
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New Fleet Manager
DAS’ Surplus Property Manager Brian King recently accepted the job of Fleet Administration and Motor Pool Manager. Since April, Brian has served as Fleet’s interim manager, in addition to managing the Surplus Property program.
Brian will continue dual management roles while the State Services Division explores the possibility of a merger of Fleet and Surplus. The goal is to determine how the programs can unite their efforts and expand in new directions toward even better customer service.
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"Fleet is adjusting to closure of the Eugene and Portland Motor pools and a cut to the vehicle purchase budget, and the Surplus program took deep staff cuts in 2003. I’m excited to examine what the two programs can achieve together that neither could accomplish alone. We have a unique opportunity to find new ways to meet the needs of our state with fewer resources. Luckily, the great crews in both programs are up to the challenge." -Brian King
Reassigning Unused Vehicles
DAS Fleet continues to manage the transition of customers affected by the closure of the Portland and Eugene Motor Pools on July 1. The closures, combined with an $11-million reduction in Fleet’s budget for new vehicles, dramatically changed the way many Fleet customers meet their vehicle needs. Contracts with car rental agencies have helped many. In addition, Fleet has permanently assigned additional vehicles to former high-volume users.
During the coming month, Fleet will process the remaining vehicles from the rental fleets in Portland and Eugene. The vehicles will replace older cars, trucks and vans that have reached the state’s new replacement criteria of 130,000 miles.
For hybrid vehicles, the mileage replacement is now 150,000 miles. Fleet has a first generation Toyota Prius with 194,000 miles that still uses its original battery. The car will continue to run as a test to find out just how long Fleet should keep a hybrid on the road. Every 30,000 miles on a Prius saves about $1,100 in fuel costs, and represents one less new car to purchase.
As Fleet pushes cars to higher mileage, staff will monitor maintenance costs and analyze the impact to greenhouse gas emissions and fuel use. Whenever feasible, DAS Fleet also will increase assignment of more fuel-efficient and hybrid cars. The program remains committed to reducing the environmental impact caused by state vehicles.
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For more information, visit the Fleet Web site.
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A ‘Perfect Storm’ at Surplus Property
The State and Federal Surplus Property program recently experienced a perfect storm of excess property. On the federal side, Surplus took in 11 semi-trailer loads of Herman Miller systems furniture from the U.S. Bureau of Land Management. Faced with a yard full of cubicles and a chance of rain, Surplus staff contacted state government’s largest employer — the Department of Human Services — which had just acquired new positions for the biennium.
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Linda Riddell from DHS was excited to see the items available at Surplus. Although the units were an older style, they were in good condition. DHS made a deal, and paid just $125 per cubicle, whereas new systems furniture costs about $2,000 per workstation. With 160 workstations, DHS saved about $300,000 by buying the used systems from Surplus. |
For more information, visit www.oregonsurplus.com, or contact Brian King, (503) 373-7723.
Publishing & Distribution Offers PacTrac
Need to track shuttle packages in near-real time from pickup to delivery and save money over other third party carriers? Publishing & Distribution’s PacTrac system lets you track packages between any buildings in the state shuttle system. You can also track the delivery of documents created at P&D to points on shuttle routes.
The system is convenient to use and easy to access. Users create their own shipping labels on the PacTrac Web site. Delivery times appear on the label and a barcode is scanned every time a package changes hands. Users keep a duplicate copy of the label and can track the package online.
P&D currently uses PacTrac to track print orders and mainframe reports. Since implementing the system in May 2008, P&D has tracked more than 5,000 level-3 or level-4 security packages. See the policy on asset classification (pdf) for more information on security levels.
Take advantage of this service the next time you need secure package handling within the state’s shuttle delivery area. To make it even easier, P&D staff will come to your office and help you get started with PacTrac.
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For more information including how to sign up, view the PacTrac brochure (pdf).
Contact: Jason Lanzafami, (503) 373-1715
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| Enterprise Information Strategy and Policy Division |
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E-Government in Transition
The E-Government Program of the Enterprise Information Strategy and Policy Division (EISPD) has begun preparing for a new contract and transition to a new operating model. Wally Rogers, the E-Government Manager, leads a team of about 24 agency representatives who have worked since May on a transition plan. The team includes staff from the State Data Center, State Procurement Office, and Department of Justice. It receives support from EISPD and Willamette Consulting.
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E-Government’s
Lines of Business
Oregon.gov – Web Content
Management
Electronic Commerce
Enterprise Web Collaboration
Custom Web Applications and Portal Development
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"This is an opportunity to work closely with agencies to redefine the E-Government Program," Rogers said. "It also gives us a chance to better match business requirements and to change the current funding model to be more value-driven.”
The possibility of funding some or all of the costs of the E-Government contract and new application development through convenience fees is a focal point of the team. The fees would be charged primarily to citizens and businesses that see the value in completing transactions online.
House Bill 2146 establishes an E-Government Portal Advisory Board made up of representatives from agencies, the public (including students), and the Legislature. If the new E-Government funding model includes convenience fees, the Board will advise DAS regarding the amount and collection method for fees charged for new financial-transaction applications developed under the E-Government contract.
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“In addition to the good work agencies already do, there is real potential to improve and increase the number of online services for citizens to interact with state government. Twenty-three other states have proven the success of this funding model and Oregon needs to seriously consider this alternative,” Rogers said. “It is also an opportunity to reduce the assessment that agencies currently pay for the E-Government contract costs.”
The current E-Government contract is with Electronic Data Services (EDS), a Hewlett-Packard Company.
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(503) 378-2973
Annual Inventory of IT Assets Underway
With the help of many state agencies, the DAS Enterprise Information Strategy and Policy Division (EISPD) compiles an annual report of the state’s IT assets. The report contains information about the different kinds of computer hardware, network infrastructure, and other technology assets owned by state agencies. Data collection for the 2009 report is under way.
The 2008 report showed that state government owns more than 40,000 personal computers. EISPD and state technology managers use the asset data to plan and better manage the state’s IT environment into the future. EISPD will issue the 2009 report later this year.
For more information, visit the IT Asset Management Web page.
Contact: Stacie R. Younk, (503) 378-5378
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| State Controller's Division |
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Electronic Payments Save Time and Money
The State Controller’s Division (SCD) encourages electronic payments to vendors and employees. Electronic payments provide convenience, safety and savings to state employees. They also reduce state costs and advance the state’s sustainability goals.
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The state’s payroll application allows employees to authorize up to nine direct deposits — eight fixed amounts and one “net pay.” In addition to deposits to checking and savings accounts, SCD offers state employees a stored-value card, the U.S. Bank® AccelaPay® Visa®. Employees can deposit a fixed amount or their net pay to a card. Additionally, if an employee has an AccelaPay card through payroll, they can receive expense reimbursements on the card (through the R*STARS application). |
Stored value cards have received some bad press recently. News stories have talked about costs that do not apply to the state's AccelaPay card. Because of Oregon’s wage-and-hour laws and SCD’s interest in providing a low-cost option to state employees, our contract with U.S. Bank allows the following free use of the AccelaPay card:
- Two cash withdrawals per month at a U.S. Bank ATM or any Visa/Plus-branded ATM in the U.S. (Note that while U.S. Bank will not charge a fee for the first two cash withdrawals, the owner of an ATM may assess its own fee.)
- Two cash withdrawals per month from a teller of a financial institution that accepts Visa.
- Any purchases with a merchant who accepts Visa.
- Cash back at time of purchase with a participating Interlink network merchant.
- An online system to check the card’s balance.
- Help through its Customer Care center.
The American Payroll Association’s May magazine included some interesting facts about electronic deposits and stored value cards:
- Nationally, check-cashing services charge 2-3 percent of the value of a check. An employee who receives a $1,200 check per month would pay at least $25 per month in check-cashing fees. The employee would need to use an AccelaPay card at an ATM more than 16 times in the month to incur that amount in fees.
- In 2005, the Federal Reserve noted that payroll cards are generally less expensive than checking accounts and 80 percent less expensive than check-cashing services.
- For employees who don't maintain checking or savings accounts, payroll cards are a safe method to store funds. The FDIC insures the deposits for up to $250,000 and Visa’s protections apply to the AccelaPay card.
- The Office of the Controller of the U.S. Treasury estimates that on average an employer spends $3 to produce a paycheck and $8-10 to replace a lost check. The state does not incur these same costs for electronic deposits.
- Floods, fires and blizzards can delay the delivery of paper checks. In 2008, FEMA recognized 93 natural disasters in the U.S. These events may have disrupted the delivery of paper checks. Employees who receive their pay by direct deposit or payroll cards usually do not suffer from these delays.
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"The AccelaPay card works great for my family. We’ve used it for recreational expenses for almost two years.
The card helps us stick to our budget. It’s very convenient and we’ve never had a problem."
-A State Employee
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For more detail or to sign up for an AccelaPay card, visit MyPay online.
Contact: Sharon McKeehan, (503) 378-6777, ext. 230
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| Public Employees' Benefit Board |
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PEBB Plans Mandatory Medical Open Enrollment
The Public Employees’ Benefit Board (PEBB) will hold Mandatory Medical Open Enrollment, Oct. 1-31, 2009. All eligible employees must enroll in a medical plan for 2010.
Those who don’t enroll will automatically move to the employee-only tier of PEBB’s Statewide Plan beginning Jan. 1, 2010. Their dependents will lose coverage on that date.
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Those who opt out of PEBB medical coverage must provide information on their other group coverage.
Employees may also change their dental plan or tier during Open Enrollment. They can enroll in or change optional benefits – life, disability, accidental death and long-term care insurance. Some of the choices require a medical history.
Online Enrollment
Employees can enroll online Oct. 1-31 at https://pebb.benefits.oregon.gov/members. They can register to use this online system at any time.
Those who don’t have online access can get forms from their agency. They must submit completed, signed forms by Oct. 31.
Family Coverage
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PEBB rules allow members to cover over-age dependents (age 19 to 24) if they certify – during Open Enrollment – that they expect the dependents to meet certain criteria in the next year. These apply to relationship, age, residence, support, and student, marital and tax-filing status.
Employees may also cover a domestic partner, either by PEBB affidavit or registered certificate with the state. The affidavit must be on file at the agency within five days of enrolling.
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Benefit Program
The Board purchases health and other benefits for about 50,000 state employees, who cover about 72,000 dependents.
The Benefit Board chose a Mandatory Medical Open Enrollment this year to support its mission, vision and program integrity. It will be the first mandatory open enrollment statewide since 1999.
Resources for Open Enrollment
PEBB Web Site
http://www.oregon.gov/das/pebb
- Summary Plan Description
- 2010 Benefit Program
- Portal Page with Updates
- Links to Plans
- Plan Comparisons
- Premium Rates and Calculations
- Forms
- Newsletters
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pebb.benefits Online System
https://pebb.benefits.oregon.gov/members
- Contact Us
- Benefit Estimator
- Compare Plans
- Register
- Log In
- View Current Enrollment
- Update Contact Information
- Enroll (Open Enrollment or Newly Eligible)
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Contact: Ingrid Norberg, (503) 378-4313
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