Thanks for joining us for the November Technology Work Group meeting. The following items were covered:

• The group saw a demo of Deloitte’s Close As You Go system for secure documentation and eligibility verification for federal grant programs (including disaster recovery).
  • The system takes federal grant requirements, including procurement requirements, and captures them in a question-and-answer format (similar to how do-it-yourself tax software does) to help applicants verify their eligibility for reimbursement.
  • The initial development of the system was to support FEMA’s Public Assistance program. Deloitte captured the requirements from the Federal Accounting Regulations (FAR) and Public Assistance Program and Policy Guide (PAPPG).
  • The system also captures required documents. Uploaded documents are not only associated with the correct questions and categories, but the system allows the user to index key areas of the documents electronically. This allows a reviewer to immediately jump to the correct part of a contract or other file without having to search through it in detail.
  • The system can also catalog facilities, vehicles, personnel, and equipment. Pre-disaster information (like current state photographs) can be uploaded along with other documentation to help support cost recovery after disasters.
  • Questions in the system can be modified to support other grant programs beyond Public Assistance. Key functionality (the survey-style data collection, document library, and libraries of facilities, vehicles, employees, and materials) can be used across grant programs.
  • The system uses blockchain technology to securely store all records of changes to information in the system, providing a verifiable trail of what information was collected and/or updated in case that is needed later.
  • In addition to its use for Public Assistance, Deloitte is currently working with federal mortgage lenders to test its feasibility for that program, and is working with a state to use it for validation of procurements under the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA).
  • The federal government does not allow any third-party systems to directly interface with federal grant systems, but Close As You Go does allow the user to quickly export relevant information into a Zip file for easy upload into federal systems.
  • Those who are interested in a one-on-one demo can contact the team (CAYG@deloitte.com or ctavallali@deloitte.com), or view the system’s brochure.
• Technology administrators provided status updates on their systems.
  • There is some money left in this year’s Jetty project, so Fort Bend County is planning to schedule one more Jetty Administrator training, likely in early December. Email antwyne.johnson@fortbendcountytx.gov for more information. In addition, those needing UASI site access for the FY2022 UASI files can contact AJ at the email address above. Finally, TRG is looking into issues related to Jetty distributions going to people’s SPAM folders.
  • The WebEOC Governance was updated. Work Group members are voting on the changes (deadline today). Please see the email from CJ Pacheco from earlier this week for the final draft and voting link.
  • Haystax is working on map filter and annotation updates. Currently in development on the mini-map on the asset page, users now have the ability to set specific filters by data type. Users can also add annotations to the map to assist with pre-incident planning. The filter upgrades be added to the main map once they are finalized.
• The December 2021 meeting is still on the books for the 30th, but please watch your email for updates as it may be canceled if not enough people are available.
• The group opted to keep the current meeting date and time for 2022 (last Thursday of each month at 1pm). The tentative 2022 dates are:
  • 27 January
  • 24 February
  • 31 March
  • 28 April
  • 26 May
  • 30 June
  • 28 July
  • 25 August
  • 29 September
  • 27 October
  • 17 November (one week earlier than normal due to Thanksgiving, but also conflicts with IAEM, so date may change again)
  • 29 December (if held)
• The Technology Resource Overview small group will hold its first meeting next week. If you see an email asking for information about technologies in use in your EOC and jurisdiction, please respond.
• The analyses of EPI Systems, AlertFM/IPAWS gateways, and i-Info will resume soon.

Thanks! Please watch your email for information on a December meeting.

Ian and Gabe