December 30, 2009
December 30, 2009
New department replaces departments of Management and Budget, Information Technology
LANSING - Governor Jennifer M. Granholm today continued streamlining state government with Executive Order 2009-55, consolidating the Department of Management and Budget (DMB) and the Department of Information Technology (DIT) into a new Department of Technology, Management and Budget (DTMB).
After a 60-day legislative review period, the executive order will take effect March 21, 2010. The new DTMB will further integrate information technology into the administrative services presently provided by DMB and DIT.
"We are restructuring and streamlining state government to provide better service at less cost to taxpayers," Granholm said. "Through the use of information technology, this new department also will continue our work in improving efficiency and making government services more accessible to citizens."
When Granholm took office, she inherited a state government that had grown to the constitutional maximum of 20 state departments. The number of state departments will now total 15, a 25 percent reduction since 2003.
The new DTMB also is a result of work performed by Lt. Governor John D. Cherry, Jr. at the governor's request. Since May, the lieutenant governor and his workgroup have sought input from legislators, state employees, and the public on what services a restructured and streamlined government should provide.
"What we learned is that there must be a renewed focus on state government's core functions and the best ways to provide necessary services while protecting people's rights," Cherry said. "Consolidating these two departments is another step toward our goal of making state government leaner and more efficient."
Under the executive order, the Department of Management and Budget is renamed the Department of Technology, Management and Budget. Transferred to the new DTMB are the functions of the Department of Information Technology, which is abolished.
Kenneth Theis, current DIT director, will serve as DTMB director and chief information officer for the state of Michigan. Phyllis Mellon, DIT chief deputy director, will serve as DMB director on an interim basis until the executive order takes effect March 21.
Also under the order, the Office of the State Budget Director is renamed the State Budget Office but remains an autonomous entity within the DTMB. Robert L. Emerson will continue to serve as state budget director.
Additionally, state labor relations functions are consolidated within the Office of the State Employer, and the office's powers and duties are clarified.
# # #
