An Act Establishing A Test Bed Technologies Program.
Summary
HB 7018 establishes a “test bed technologies” program within the Department of Economic and Community Development to help state agencies evaluate new technologies, products, or processes that may reduce operating costs. The bill creates an advisory board with members appointed by the Governor, the DECD commissioner, the Treasurer, the Comptroller, and the DAS commissioner in consultation with a nonprofit applied technology center. The board is tasked with reviewing applications, determining whether a proposed technology appears feasible and cost-saving, and recommending whether a state agency should conduct a temporary pilot test.
Under the bill, an applicant must submit an application supported by an independent assessment from a consulting or market research firm. The advisory board must act within 30 days of receiving an application, and it may not approve the same applicant for more than one pilot. If a pilot is recommended, the state agency must accept the technology and test it for 30 to 60 days, with the applicant bearing all costs. The bill also allows agencies to request state procurement of a technology after a successful pilot and permits agencies to identify technologies tested by municipalities for possible state use.
Impact
The bill adds a new statutory program governing how state agencies can test and potentially adopt cost-saving technologies outside the normal procurement process. It creates a new advisory board, sets application and review requirements, authorizes temporary pilot deployments, exempts pilot acquisitions from state procurement law, and protects proprietary information from disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act. It also gives the Commissioner of Administrative Services a role in statewide procurement if a pilot proves successful, potentially affecting purchasing practices across agencies.
Sentiment
The available voting history suggests generally favorable support in committee, with the Joint Favorable Substitute receiving a 21-4 vote. However, the bill did not ultimately secure broad support on the House floor, where the roll call was 67-75 on the amended version. That split indicates the concept had meaningful support but also significant reservations among legislators.
Contention
The main points of contention appear to be the bill’s procurement and implementation structure, including bypassing ordinary state purchasing rules for pilot tests, the role of the advisory board in selecting technologies, and the requirement that applicants bear costs while also providing proprietary information protections. Another likely area of debate is the bill’s narrow eligibility criteria, which favor small contractors and minority business enterprises and exclude technologies developed by businesses already eligible for another pilot program. Supporters likely viewed the bill as a way to encourage innovation and cost savings, while opponents may have questioned oversight, fairness, and whether the state should be required to test and potentially adopt vendor-driven technologies.