California Lt. Governor Wants Cloud and Open Data Policies

If Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) has his way, California will be operating under a “cloud first” technology procurement policy in the near future.

Lt Gov Newsom called on California agencies to embrace an immediate move to the cloud and be a leader in open data and transparency, during his keynote address at the #Innovate conference on Dec 2. The lieutenant governor has directed his staff to draft two separate executive orders to assist the California Technology Agency and the office of Gov. Jerry Brown (D-CA) should both offices want to move forward with the proposals. Although Lt Gov Newsom didn't say he'd sign the orders, it is within his authority do so when Gov. Brown is out of the state. He said executive orders are meant to spur the state into action, and added that California has dragged its feet regarding the cloud, lagging behind Colorado, Idaho, Michigan, New York and a number of other states in that area.