Status of the Plan for the
State Government Telecommunications Network
Telecommunications Planning and Oversight Council
October 1, 2006
Future and Supporting Efforts
TPOC and DIR are engaged in
various efforts to further the vision of an enterprise network solution.
DIR Role
As the agency tasked with
guiding the implementation of state government telecommunications services, DIR
continues to establish itself as the comprehensive customer support and service
organization the state needs to operate efficiently. As such, DIR will
integrate and provide proactive management and support services to its customers.
By eliminating the need for agencies to provide these support services and by
assuming responsibility for the statewide enterprise network solution, DIR will
facilitate agencies being able to redirect resources currently used for
telecommunications to their respective core functions and optimize the value of
the state's telecommunications expenditures through use of the state’s shared
network.
Continued Development of Texas Enterprise Network Solution
With deployment of the advanced IP Services Gateway platform, the statewide IP infrastructure can be
shared by eligible customers to obtain an array of communications services,
from IP data transport to IP Contact Center and IVR solutions. TPOC and DIR
will promote consolidation and collaboration among agencies through the
marketing and continued development of this enterprise network solution. DIR
will explore service enhancements such as alternate access technologies like
metro-ethernet and wireless technologies, including wireless interoperability.
Develop Comprehensive Request for Offer (RFO) for TEX-AN Re-bid
DIR provides telecommunications services to the Texas government enterprise through
management of the state's TEX-AN services contract. The current TEX-AN contract ends August 31, 2009. TPOC and DIR will review the state's communication
service requirements and assess future growth and new technologies for the next
generation TEX-AN solution. DIR will review the business requirements of
customers (state agencies, cities, counties, and education) to determine the
best enterprise solutions for shared services and infrastructure.
Deploy VOIP Services on CCTS
Lessons learned from DIR's installation of VoIP to the desktop will be utilized during the expansion of
VoIP to agencies in the Capitol Complex. The DIR VoIP project yields a service
platform that can be leveraged by Capitol Complex agencies, while the VoIP Best
Practices provide a roadmap for agencies migrating to VoIP.
Establish the Texas Collaboration Forum
The Texas Collaboration Forum will include representatives of agencies utilizing DIR's enterprise
network solution and vendors that support the infrastructure and services of
the network. The purpose of the Collaboration Forum is to facilitate and
promote interagency and intergovernmental collaborative efforts. To support the
Collaboration Forum, DIR implemented research and testing facilities at the
Network and Security Operations Center in Austin.
Support Statewide Network Security Efforts
House Bill 3112 from the 79th Legislature
mandates that DIR implement a comprehensive security program and develop a
state network security center. The operational activities of state network
security will be administered within the Telecommunications Division of DIR at
the Network and Security Operations Center. DIR’s IT Security Division will
retain responsibility for establishing state security policy, reporting, and
coordinating training. The Telecommunications Division will work closely with
the IT Security Division to deliver security services to agencies in accordance
with existing policies and guidelines.
Collaborate with the Lonestar Education and Research Network
The Lonestar Education and
Research Network (LEARN) is a non-profit collaboration of Texas higher
education institutions that supports the research, education, health care, and
public service missions of higher education. LEARN has received $7.5 million in
state funding to help build an advanced fiber-optic network connecting their
institutions to Internet2 and the National Lambda Rail. House Bill 1516 from
the 79th Legislature allows DIR to leverage LEARN to support agency disaster
recovery and business continuity efforts. DIR is also authorized to use LEARN
to transport latency-tolerant data traffic to and from state data centers.
Telecommunications Division Rate Setting Methodology
In fiscal 2007, DIR will conduct a comprehensive review of the methodology used to establish rates for
telecommunications services. The review, to be conducted by a contracted
vendor, will establish a pricing model that is sustainable, yet adjustable to
changing operational expenses and overhead.
Managed Services Procurement
DIR will develop a procurement to offer managed services across a more comprehensive suite of
communications equipment platforms. This will provide a broader pool of
resources to customers.
Support Enterprise Architecture Efforts
The enterprise architecture under development is a key tool for leveraging existing technology and aligning
technology solutions with the business needs of the state. The state enterprise
architecture will identify best practices and create rules, standards, and
guidelines for statewide adoption and implementation. These rules, standards,
and guidelines will provide the state with a unified way of managing, planning,
and streamlining information resources. TPOC and DIR will support the
development of architecture components related to communications technologies
and managing state communications services.
