IT oversight meeting focuses on broadband, AI, cyber risks

https://www.carolinajournal.com/it-oversight-meeting-focuses-on-broadband-ai-cyber-risks/

Publish Date: 2026-02-10 16:34:00

State officials briefed North Carolina lawmakers on broadband expansion, cybersecurity preparedness, artificial intelligence governance, and state technology procurement during a February meeting of the Joint Legislative Oversight Committee on Information Technology.

The nonstanding committee, convened under authority granted in state law and session statutes, met to review work underway at the N.C. Department of Information Technology (NCDIT) and related agencies. The panel was co-chaired by Rep. Matthew Winslow, R-Franklin, along with Sen. Ralph Hise, R-Mitchell, and Rep. Jake Johnson, R-Polk.

State Chief Information Officer and NCDIT Secretary Teena Piccione told lawmakers the agency’s mission centers on providing “secure, reliable, and modern technology” supporting residents, businesses, and government services statewide. She said the department’s work spans connectivity, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, procurement, and infrastructure.

“Technology underpins everything you do,” Piccione told the committee, noting its influence on health care access, business competitiveness, and emergency response operations, with a foundational role in daily life.

Broadband investments and deployment

Deputy Secretary of Broadband and Digital Opportunity Annette Taylor outlined funding streams supporting statewide connectivity projects, including more than $1 billion appropriated from the federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) and $1.53 billion allocated through the federal Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program administered by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration.

State programs supported by those funds include the Growing Rural Economies with Access to Technology (GREAT) grant initiative and Completing Access to Broadband (CAB), which together have contracted hundreds of millions of dollars in infrastructure to connect more than 250,000 homes and businesses across North Carolina….

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