About OTM

Act 1098 of the 1997 Regular Session (LA R.S. 39:140-143) statutorily established the Office of Telecommunications Management within the Division of Administration. The act established the duties of the office as follows:

1. To establish and coordinate all telecommunications systems and telecommunications services affecting the management and operations of the executive branch of state government;

2. To act as sole centralized customer for the acquisition, billing, and record keeping of all telecommunications systems or telecommunications services provided to state agencies;

3. To charge respective user agencies for the cost of the telecommunications systems and telecommunications services provided by Office of Telecommunications Management including the cost of the operation of the office;

4. To develop coordinated telecommunications systems or telecommunications services within and among all state agencies and require, where appropriate, cooperative utilization of telecommunications systems and telecommunications services by aggregating users;

5. To review, coordinate, approve, or disapprove all requests by state agencies for the procurement of telecommunications systems or telecommunications services including telecommunications proposals, studies, and consultation contracts or services;

6. To establish and define telecommunications systems and telecommunications services specifications and designs so as to assure compatibility of telecommunications systems and telecommunications services within state government;

7. To promote, coordinate, or assist in the design and engineering of emergency telecommunications systems and telecommunications services within state government;

8. To advise and provide consultation to agencies with respect to telecommunications management planning and related matters and to provide training to users within state government in telecommunications technology and system use;

9. To develop policies, procedures, and long-range plans, consistent with the protection of citizens rights to privacy and access to information, for the acquisition and use of telecommunications systems, and to base such policies on current information about state telecommunications activities in relation to the full range of emerging technologies.

10. To develop policies, procedures and long-range plans for the acquisition and use of telecommunications systems.

Act 1098 of the 1997 Regular Session (LA R.S. 39:1751-1755) established the procedures to be utilized in competitive procurement of telecommunications systems and services. The act defined the types of contracts that will be permitted, the method of procurement, and the products and services affected. It provided that the Office of Telecommunications Management, through State Purchasing, may on behalf of any state agency enter into such telecommunications contracts. All such procurement activity shall be approved and coordinated by OTM including: electronic transmission facilities, telephone systems, facsimile systems, radio paging services, mobile telephone services, intercom and electro-mechanical paging systems, and any and all systems based on emerging and future telecommunications technologies relating to the above.

Act 772 of the 2001 Regular Session amended and reenacted R.S. 39:141-143 and R.S. 39:1752 adding local and wide area network systems and services and video systems and services to the types of telecommunications products and services affected by OTM.  The act also added the duty of the management of building access by telecommunications common carriers to state facilities.