SF 737

as introduced - 92nd Legislature (2021 - 2022) Posted on 03/26/2021 10:08am

A bill for an act
relating to state government; establishing an automatic verification software bid
preference pilot program; requiring a report; amending Minnesota Statutes 2020,
section 16E.03, by adding a subdivision.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

Section 1.

Minnesota Statutes 2020, section 16E.03, is amended by adding a subdivision
to read:

new text begin Subd. 12. new text end

new text begin Automatic verification software preference. new text end

new text begin In evaluating vendors for a
project approved under subdivision 3, an agency must give preference to a vendor that
proposes to use automatic verification software. To qualify for this preference, the vendor
must propose software that, at a minimum, includes the following features:
new text end

new text begin (1) automatically gathers verification of state-funded activity at least once every three
minutes or as specified in the contract, while continuously counting keystroke frequency
and mouse-event frequency;
new text end

new text begin (2) functionality for project management, including but not limited to progress tracking,
timelines, and task management tools;
new text end

new text begin (3) permits the agency or an auditor of the agency to have access to data collected and
provided by the software at all times; and
new text end

new text begin (4) ensures appropriate treatment of data that are classified by law.
new text end

Sec. 2. new text begin AUTOMATIC VERIFICATION SOFTWARE BID PREFERENCE PILOT
PROGRAM.
new text end

new text begin Subdivision 1. new text end

new text begin Implementation. new text end

new text begin (a) As provided in this section, the commissioner of
MN.IT Services, in consultation with the commissioner of administration, must require a
pilot program to implement a bid preference for vendors that propose to verify and review
contractor activity through automated monitoring software. The bid preference methodology
must be established before a project may be approved under Minnesota Statutes, section
16E.03.
new text end

new text begin (b) The pilot program must be required for a total of at least four contracts for information
technology services, each in excess of $500,000, that provide services for at least two state
agencies.
new text end

new text begin (c) The pilot program must not include contracted services for a law enforcement agency,
or any agency which is the custodian of Criminal Justice Information as defined by the
Criminal Justice Information Services Security Policy adopted by the Federal Bureau of
Investigation. The commissioner must prohibit the use of automatic verification software
on any equipment or devices that are state-owned, state-leased, or otherwise used by state
employees.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 2. new text end

new text begin Bid proposal evaluation requirements. new text end

new text begin (a) The pilot project must require the
contracting agency to implement a bid preference for a contractor and any subcontractors
that propose to use automatic verification software to verify that hours billed for work under
the contract that are performed on a computer are legitimate. To be eligible for the preference,
the bid proposal must specify that the agency will not pay for hours worked on a computer
unless those hours are verifiable by the software or by data collected by the software. The
bid proposal must require that the automatic verification software is provided by a third-party
vendor that is independent of the contractor and any other subcontractors.
new text end

new text begin (b) The contractor must not propose to charge the agency or an auditor of the agency
for access to or use of the automatic verification software, or for access to or retrievals of
data collected by the software.
new text end

new text begin (c) The contractor must propose to retain and secure the data collected by the software
consistent with terms specified by the agency implementing the pilot project.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 3. new text end

new text begin Software capabilities. new text end

new text begin (a) At a minimum, automatic verification software
proposed in the bid preference pilot program must:
new text end

new text begin (1) automatically gather verification of state-funded activity at least once every three
minutes or as specified in the contract, while continuously counting keystroke frequency
and mouse-event frequency;
new text end

new text begin (2) include functionality for project management, including but not limited to progress
tracking, timelines, and task management tools;
new text end

new text begin (3) permit the agency or an auditor of the agency to have access to data collected and
provided by the software at all times; and
new text end

new text begin (4) ensure appropriate treatment of data that are classified by law.
new text end

new text begin (b) Except as provided in paragraph (a), clause (1), automatic verification software used
in the pilot program must not collect information on the data entered or available from
keystrokes and mouse-event activity.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 4. new text end

new text begin Legislative report. new text end

new text begin (a) By June 30, 2021, the commissioner of MN.IT Services
must submit a status notification on contracts entered into and automatic verification software
used under the pilot program to the chairs and ranking members of the house of
representatives and senate committees with jurisdiction over state government finance and
policy.
new text end

new text begin (b) By December 15, 2021, the commissioner of MN.IT Services must submit a legislative
report on the pilot program to the chairs and ranking members of the house of representatives
and senate committees with jurisdiction over state government finance and policy. At a
minimum, the report must include a summary of the program, a review of impacts of the
automatic verification software, and recommendations for implementing automatic
verification software requirements for state contracting.
new text end

new text begin EFFECTIVE DATE. new text end

new text begin This section is effective the day following final enactment.
new text end