Committee authorizes $244,750 cybersecurity review of three state IT systems

The Legislative Budget and Audit Committee authorized April 22 that the legislative auditor enter into a contract with System Soft Technologies Inc. to perform cybersecurity reviews of three state IT systems for an amount not to exceed $244,750.

Vice Chair Representative Fields moved the authorization; the chair objected for the purpose of discussion and asked State Legislative Auditor Chris Curtis to brief the committee. Curtis said the committee previously directed the audit division to inventory state IT systems and rank them by significance and risk. That work is complete, Curtis said, and the division issued an RFP for cybersecurity expertise. A procurement evaluation committee reviewed responsive proposals and scored SystemSoft (referred to in the record as SystemSoft Incorporated or System Soft Technologies Inc.) as the highest-scoring proposer.

Curtis said the recommended contract would allow the legislative auditor to engage cybersecurity expertise to conduct detailed reviews of the three prioritized systems. After Curtis’ briefing and an opportunity for questions, the chair removed the objection and the committee approved the authorization on the record by unanimous consent.

The committee did not discuss technical scope details or schedule in the public portion of the meeting; procurement and audit staff will finalize and execute the contract under the terms described on the record.