Boston City Council Reviews $53.1 Million Technology Budget for Fiscal Year 2025

BOSTON — May 9, 2024 — Boston City Council hears $53.1 million technology budget request covering permitting overhaul and address data modernization. Chief Information Officer Santiago Garces told the Committee on Ways and Means on May 9 that the Department of Innovation and Technology is seeking $53.1 million in operating funds and $8.5 million in capital for fiscal year 2025, with $3.6 million in new investments targeting five positions. Key proposals include a phased replacement of the city's business licensing and permitting platform, which Garces said will reach end-of-support within three to five years, and an overhaul of the Standard Address Management System that ties 911 dispatch, code enforcement, and property lien tracking together. Garces also announced the city had just published a new council website featuring AI-generated roll call summaries, making Boston among the first cities to publicly release such a tool — though he acknowledged the summaries were placed on a separate page pending community feedback. Multiple councilors pushed for a formal executive order or ordinance establishing the department's authority over citywide technology procurement and cybersecurity governance, which Garces confirmed does not currently exist in statute; he said the administration plans to share something "soon." The city enrolled over 50,000 households in the now-endangered federal Affordable Connectivity Program, and a state-funded digital equity survey is currently in the field to assess how many of those households have lost internet access.