Budget Amendment ID: FY2017-S4-539

EHS 539

Children’s Integrated Administrative Data Center

Ms. Forry, Ms. Flanagan and Mr. Lewis moved that the proposed new text be amended in section 2, in item 1790-0100, by inserting after “resources” the following: “provided that not less than $100,000 shall be expended for the development of a Children’s Integrated Administrative Data Center”; and in said item by striking out the figures “$3,347,240”, and inserting in place thereof the figures “$3,447,240”; and further moves that the bill be amended as follows by inserting after Section XX the following section:

SECTION XX.  (a) In order to promote accountability for effective management and stewardship of public funds and to achieve measurable positive outcomes for children, the Massachusetts Office of Information Technology shall convene a task force to advise regarding the establishment and ongoing operations and research of a Massachusetts Children’s Administrative Data Center, herein “Data Center”.  This task force shall be chaired jointly by the Executive Director of the Massachusetts Office of Information Technology and the Secretary of Health and Human Services or their designees.  The task force shall include but is not limited to the following members: the Commissioner of the Department of Children and Families or designee; the Commissioner of the Department of Youth Services or designee; the Commissioner of the Department of Mental Health or designee;  the Assistant Secretary for MassHealth or designee; the Secretary of Elementary and Secondary Education or designee; the Secretary of Administration and Finance or designee; the Child Advocate or designee; the Court Administrator of the Massachusetts Trial Court or designee; a representative from a Massachusetts academic research institution with expertise in the use of administrative data for longitudinal research and evaluation; a representative from Citizens for Juvenile Justice; a representative from the Massachusetts League of Community Health Centers; and a representative from provider agencies which offer state-funded services to children.

The Children’s Administrative Data Center would be authorized to enter into agreements with state entities serving children and families in order to secure, match and integrate administrative data from multiple systems.  The Data Center would maintain a data “store” or “warehouse” for managing and linking administrative data sets across various state agencies in a form that can be used for research and analysis and, where appropriate, made available to the public in aggregate form. The Data Center may use probabilistic data linking provided such data is not used for the determination of any individual’s qualifications, character, rights, opportunities, or benefits.  The Data Center would facilitate research by participating agencies and external researchers regarding the services, programs, or policies that will promote the best long-term outcomes for children who are served by agencies and other state-funded entities in the Commonwealth.

(b) Not later than March 1, 2017, the Massachusetts Office of Information Technology shall submit a report from the Task Force identified in section (a) to the clerks of the senate and house of representatives, and the chairs of the senate and house committees on ways and means, which shall include an assessment and recommendations regarding (1) the anticipated research projects which could be conducted about the welfare of children in Massachusetts by the Children’s Administrative Data Center; (2) the agencies which should participate in the initial launch of the Data Center; (3) the entity or type of academic institution most appropriate to serve as the site of the Data Center, including criteria for selecting an appropriate institution, which its criteria should include capacity to maintain research independence and ability to manage confidential data; (4) the oversight and governance of the Data Center including any security measures and procedures needed to guard against the disclosure of personally identifiable information; (5) the minimum requirements for data sharing agreements between participating agencies to ensure compliance with federal and state confidentiality laws; and (6) the anticipated cost of launching  and maintaining the Data Center, including the availability of public or private funds to support the work of the Data Center.

(c) Not later than November 1, 2017, subject to appropriations made specifically for the purposes of this section, the Massachusetts Office of Information Technology shall enter into an agreement to create an Children’s Administrative Data Center with an academic institution located in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts consistent with the recommendations set forth in the report submitted pursuant to section (b).

(d) Not later than March 1, 2018, and on or before the first day of March of each following year, subject to appropriations, the Massachusetts Office of Information Technology shall submit a report to the clerks of the senate and house of representatives, and the chairs of the senate and house committees on ways and means, documenting the status of the establishment of the Data Center, the nature of any research which the Data Center is conducting and related findings; and identifying any additional legislative action which may be needed to fully realize the purposes of this section.

(e) Appropriations made to the Massachusetts Office of Information Technology for the purposes of this section shall be used exclusively for expenses incurred for the evaluation, development and creation of the Children’s Administrative Data Center.  Authorized expenses of the Massachusetts Office of Information Technology may include staff time to prepare the report; contracts with outside vendors regarding the development and operation of the Data Center; expenses incurred by participating agencies related to the review or production of administrative data; expenses incurred by research organizations in order to establish the Data Center; technical support and training for entities or agencies submitting data to the Data Center; regular or contractual employees necessary for the development or operation of systems to produce administrative data to be used by the Data Center.