Government IT spending expected to rise in 2010

IT spending, investment and innovation in government is one of the striking trends we came across while researching our Keating Report 2010 forecast on government budgets, spending and technology.

The federal ARRA stimulus package is likely to have an impact in 2010, says Autodesk Government's Infrastructure Industry Manager Richard Humphrey. "Stimulus spending forecasts indicate that much of the money for infrastructure still has not been spent, and we expect 2010's spending to be an even bigger shot in the arm for the design and construction industry working with government," Humphrey says. "'Shovel ready' projects, primarily those involving water and transportation, will require new design work to ensure cities and counties are building for the future."

IT security spending in government in 2010 should also show gains, according to the 7th annual Global State of Information Security Survey 2010. More than half (56 percent) of public sector respondents expect spending to either increase or stay the same.

"The increased risk environment has elevated the role and importance of the security function," says Scott McIntyre, partner and leader of PricewaterhouseCoopers' Public Sector Advisory practice.

Based on the survey results, Scott recommends that public sector organizations "plan for cyber disasters or crises just as they plan for natural disasters. Know what actions your government agency needs to take in a cyber crisis, who to call for help, and how to keep the organization running, and minimize damage/loss to critical data and systems."

Open source tools also are coming to the forefront, says John Punzak, senior national sales director for State & Local Government/Education at Raleigh, N.C.-based Red Hat. "The most obvious sign of the times is how many states are going through 'mid-year' budget reductions," Punzak says. "The revenue projections they made last spring (and based their 09-10 budgets upon) were more optimistic than reality. So, now we're seeing state and local governments being more frugal with their budgets and aware about how, where and when they spend their money. Open source solutions have emerged as high-value options for state and local IT departments on many fronts, and more are looking at virtualization and cloud computing as options to help extend value, as well."

Read the entire story from Government Product News, our sister publication.