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NEWS RELEASE
CONTACTS:
Michael Herd
mherd@nacha.org |
Helena Sims
hsims@nacha.org |
NACHA's Electronic Benefits and Services Council to
Explore
Interoperability of State Identity and Access
Systems
Herndon, Virginia, February 13, 2006 -
NACHA's Electronic Benefits and Services (EBS)
Council is expanding its work in facilitating the
ability of state electronic systems to communicate
with one another. Having completed its mission of
enabling the interoperability of state electronic
benefits transfer systems, the EBS Council will now
work on promoting communication between other
government systems, including those between
different levels of government.
The first area the Council will review is state
identity and access management systems, including
the advisability of states piggybacking on the
federal government's Homeland Security Presidential
Directive 12 (HSPD-12) for their own employees and
contractors. Under HSPD-12, the Federal government
is requiring that all new Federal employees and
contractors be issued a uniform card by October 2006
for access to facilities and computer systems. The
Council will help assess if standards that apply to
federal employees might also work for state
employees and their contractors.
"The Council wants to explore whether it makes sense
for states to adopt provisions stated in HSPD-12,"
said EBS Council Chairperson Harvey Eckert, the
Commonwealth Comptroller for the Commonwealth of
Pennsylvania. "By reviewing the federal standards,
we might be able to save money and promote the
efficient administration of facilities, like ports
and other transportation hubs, which officials from
all levels of governments need to access."
"Adopting federal standards may not always be the
best approach for states, but uniformity can be
important when electronic systems are involved,"
Eckert said. "By reviewing the feasibility of
uniform standards, states could ultimately be in a
better position to consolidate their buying power
and benefit from commercial products and services
already developed for the federal government."
The EBS Council will begin examining HSPD-12 during
a series of task force meetings and conference calls
early next month. Additional project and participant
information is available at
http://ebt.nacha.org/.
In expanding its scope, the EBS Council is building
on its core competency of developing operating rules
that establish the rights and responsibilities of
parties to electronic transactions. In 1996, the
Council adopted the Quest® Operating Rules, which
have since been adopted by most state governments as
a means of promoting the electronic delivery of food
stamps and cash assistance throughout the country.
The Council will continue to maintain and amend the
Quest® Operating Rules as necessary. Other Council
projects include:
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A primer on best practices for the public and
private sectors in disbursing relief payments
following natural disasters and national
emergencies; and
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An assessment of technologies, such as smart
cards, that can further facilitate the
disbursement of government payments
electronically.
The EBS Council, established in 1995 as the EBT
Council, is a public/private partnership devoted to
enhancing the electronic delivery of government
payments and services. The EBS Council operates
under the auspices of NACHA - The Electronic
Payments Association.
About NACHA - The
Electronic Payments Association
NACHA is the leading
organization in developing electronic solutions to
improve the payments system. NACHA represents more
than 11,000 financial institutions through direct
memberships and a network of regional payments
associations, and 650 organizations through its
industry councils. NACHA develops operating rules
and business practices for the Automated Clearing
House (ACH) Network and for electronic payments in
the areas of Internet commerce, electronic bill and
invoice presentment and payment (EBPP, EIPP),
e-checks, financial electronic data interchange
(EDI), international payments, and electronic
benefits transfer (EBT). Visit NACHA on the Internet
at www.nacha.org.
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