In January 1997, pursuant to Proviso 17A.5 of the 1996-97 General Appropriation Act, the State Budget and Control Board presented a study to the Governor, Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, and Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee recommending the consolidation of eleven agency data centers into one single data center. The General Assembly confirmed this consolidation process through Proviso 17A.5 of the 1997-98 General Appropriation Act and Proviso 63A.5 of the 1998-99 General Appropriation Act. This status report is provided pursuant to Proviso 63A.5 and addresses hardware, software, staffing and facility requirements as well as the financial aspects of data center consolidation.

Summarized below are the major accomplishments of the data center consolidation project during FY 1998-1999.

• The systems integrator developed a high-level Master Plan for consolidation of eleven agency data centers into a single State Data Center.

• Two (2) new mainframe processors were installed at the Office of Information Resources (OIR) in support of the consolidation project.

• The Department of Social Services (DSS) data processing operations were transferred from the DDS data center to the Office of Information Resources (OIR) data center. The old DSS mainframe was retired.

• The Department of Transportation (DOT) data processing operations were transferred from the DOT data center to the Office of Information Resources (OIR) data center. The old DOT mainframe was retired.

• The purchasing power of the state was leveraged to negotiate enterprise-wide system software contracts with major software vendors that resulted in significant cost avoidance.

• Eight (8) staff positions (FTE’s) were transferred from the Department of Transportation (DOT) to the Consolidated State Data Center at the Budget and Control Board.

• Construction of the State Data Center Facility proceeded as planned with few delays. The projected date for completion is early September 1999.

This report provides an update on the status of data center consolidation in South Carolina state government as required by Proviso 17A.5 of the 1997-98 General Appropriation Act and Proviso 63A.5 of the 1998-99 General Appropriation Act.

This report is submitted to the Governor, the Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, and the Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee.

The concept of consolidating data centers in state government was formalized by the General Assembly through Proviso 17A.5 of the 1996-97 General Appropriation Act which required the Budget and Control Board to develop a plan to consolidate data centers. In January 1997, the Budget and Control Board completed its study of data center consolidation and reported its findings. Twelve data centers were studied; eleven were found to be viable candidates for consolidation. They are as follows:

• Budget and Control Board - Information Processing Center;
• Budget and Control Board - Financial Data Systems;
• Budget and Control Board - Office of Insurance Services;
• Department of Natural Resources;
• Department of Vocational Rehabilitation;
• Department of Health and Environmental Control;
• Department of Mental Health;
• Department of Disabilities and Special Needs;
• Department of Social Services;
• State Law Enforcement Division; and
• Department of Transportation.

Benefits of consolidation identified in the study include modernization, improved access to information, efficient sharing of resources, compatibility, security, and possible savings of as much as $30 million over a ten-year period.

Based on the findings of the Data Center Consolidation study, the General Assembly reconfirmed its commitment to this process in Proviso 17A.5 of the 1997-98 General Appropriation Act and Proviso 63A.5 of the 1998-1999 General Appropriation Act by requiring agencies to comply with the initiatives of the Budget and Control Board throughout implementation of the consolidation plan.

Two new mainframe processors were installed at the Budget and Control Board’s Office of Information Resources (OIR) data processing facility at 300 Gervais Street. The new mainframes are being used to support data processing operations for the state agencies that have been consolidated. In September 1998, the Department of Social Services (DSS) data processing operations were migrated from the old DSS mainframe to OIR’s mainframe and in April 1999, the Department of Transportation (DOT) data processing operations were migrated from the old DOT mainframe to OIR’s mainframe. The old DSS and DOT mainframes have been retired. Communications infrastructure was installed to facilitate the DSS and DOT migrations.

Data center consolidation provided the opportunity to leverage the purchasing power of the entire state in negotiating enterprise contracts with major software vendors. These enterprise contracts reduced the number of redundant software licenses needed to conduct the state’s business which resulted in significant cost savings. The enterprise contracts also provided agencies with an expanded suite of system software products. Increased staff productivity is also being realized as system software products are being standardized.

Pursuant to Proviso 63A.5, this report includes cost information for this fiscal year on both the actual data center environment as well as what might have been the environment if no consolidation had taken place.

On May 13, 1997, the Joint Bond Review Committee approved a plan to construct the new Data Center at the State’s Broad River Road complex. The State Budget and Control Board on November 4, 1997 approved the design and construction of a 75,441 square-foot facility. Subsequently, on February 10, 1998, the Budget and Control Board adopted a resolution which provided for the issuance and sale of not more than $8,620,000 in State Facilities Lease Revenue Bonds, to finance the project.

A contract for site development work was issued in April 1998 and design work was completed in June 1998. In April 1998, bids were received from five (5) contractors for construction of the building. A contract was awarded to York Construction Company for a low bid of $8,200,200. See architectural sketch – Exhibit B.

• Twenty-one (21) positions (FTE’s) from the Department of Social Services in FY1997-98.
• Eight (8) positions (FTE’s) from the Department of Transportation in FY 1998-99.

The Master Plan also outlined a strategy to reduce the 192 staff positions (FTE’s) devoted to data center support as state agencies are migrated to the consolidated data center. Reductions to date have resulted in the redeployment of sixteen (16) data center support positions (FTE’s) within the following agencies:

• Four (4) positions redeployed at the Department of Social Services (DSS)
• Two (2) positions redeployed at the Department of Transportation (DOT)
• Ten (10) positions redeployed at the Budget and Control Board

• Conducted extensive research on best practices of (6) other state consolidated data centers.
• Presented findings, recommendations and strategies to OIR's executive staff.
• Begun the development of a request for proposal to award the disaster recovery contract to a qualified Hotsite vendor.
• Established timelines for development and testing of the plan.