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SB 2049

AN ACT to amend and reenact sections 54-35-15.2, 54-59-01, subsection 8 of section 54-59-05, and section 54-59-32 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to executive steering committees of major information technology projects.

69th Legislative Assembly (2025-26)

The bill creates executive steering committees and enhanced oversight for major state IT projects to improve governance, accountability, and procurement.

Filed with Secretary Of State 04/03
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Bill Summary · SB 2049

Summary — SB 2049 (North Dakota): Executive steering committees for major IT projects

Status: Filed with Secretary of State 04/03/2025
Introduced: March 7, 2025 (at the request of the Information Technology Department)
Companion: HB 4903

Purpose
- Strengthen oversight, governance, and reporting for "major information technology projects" across state government by (1) clarifying the definition of major projects, (2) requiring qualified procurement staff and project managers, and (3) establishing and defining executive steering committees to oversee such projects.

Key provisions and changes
- Definitions (54‑59‑01): Formalizes terms used in the chapter (e.g., “department,” “information technology,” “cybersecurity,” and “major information technology project”). A major project is one that, as determined by the chief information officer (CIO), meets one or more criteria such as estimated cost threshold (statute references $5 million in the CIO criteria), requires one year or longer to reach operational status, or otherwise requires heightened oversight because of benefits/risks/visibility.

  • Information Technology Committee duties (54‑35‑15.2):

    • Quarterly meetings and regular CIO reporting.
    • Authority to receive and review project startup and closeout reports for major IT projects of executive‑branch agencies (content specified: objectives, cost‑benefit, risks, budget/schedule variances, lessons learned).
    • Specific provisions for projects of the state board of higher education (reporting required when projects impact statewide WAN, library system, or are administrative projects).
    • Authority to receive information on smaller projects (projects in the $100,000–$500,000 range) as deemed necessary by the IT Department; biennial CIO reporting on proposed major projects.

  • Executive steering committees (54‑59‑32):

    • An executive steering committee must be appointed for each major IT project.
    • Composition: agency project sponsor (chair), OMB director or designee, CIO or designee, representatives appointed by CIO and the contracting agency, head of contracting agency (or designee), and a large project oversight analyst designated by the CIO.
    • Responsibilities: monitor overall project status; review major project decisions (contracts, budgets, schedules, quality, scope changes).
    • Voting: any member’s designation of a “major project decision” requires at least four affirmative committee votes to proceed.
    • Contract approvals: agreements/amendments for major IT projects must be signed by the head of the contracting agency (or designee) and the CIO (or designee).
    • Procurement officer and primary project manager must meet qualifications set by the IT Department and OMB.
    • Agency + IT Department + OMB (with AG consultation) collaborate on procurement, contract negotiation, and administration and must approve solicitation/contract before submission to the steering committee.

Who is affected
- Executive‑branch state agencies proposing major IT projects (excludes higher‑education institutions except in enumerated situations).
- Office of Management & Budget, Chief Information Officer’s office, Attorney General (consulted on procurement), procurement officers, project managers, and vendors/contractors working on major state IT projects.
- The Information Technology Committee and legislative oversight staff (increased reporting duties).

Potential impacts
- Increased governance and transparency for high‑cost or high‑risk IT projects.
- Standardized qualifications for procurement and project management may raise project delivery quality.
- Additional required approvals, committee oversight, and signature requirements could lengthen procurement/contract timelines but aim to reduce downstream cost/schedule/quality failures.
- Higher‑education projects that touch statewide infrastructure will be subject to additional reporting and review.

Procedural/timeline notes
- Introduced March 7, 2025 (file status shows filed with Secretary of State 04/03/2025). Drafting and committee materials indicate the bill was requested by the Information Technology Department. Companion bill: HB 4903.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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