Secretary of State's Office Selects ViaWest to Help Complete Critical First Step in Establishing the State's Disaster Recovery Facility

Denver, May 3, 2006 - Secretary of State Gigi Dennis today announced the selection of ViaWest as the colocation service provider for the State of Colorado's Enterprise Facility for Operational Recovery/Readiness/Response and Transition Services (e-FOR3T). A key component for establishing this disaster recovery facility was the finalization of the facility lease with ViaWest for the infrastructure and operational services necessary to support the e-FOR3T mission.

The purpose of the facility is to create a common infrastructure that supports data center operations for all state agencies to use as a backup to their current Information Technology (I.T.) processing needs. The completion of this initial milestone is the first step towards creating a disaster recovery facility for state agency information processing services in the event of an I.T. operational failure or emergency.

"Having a backup facility for our distributed I.T. services will allow the State to keep providing vital services to citizens in case of emergency," Secretary of State Gigi Dennis said. "e-FOR3T will have an incredibly positive impact on the State. Ensuring computer services and availability of information will help promote eGovernment statewide, reinforce our homeland security posture, and help us proactively prepare for unforeseen natural disasters or emergencies."

The contract recently received approvals from the Secretary of State, Attorney General, and State Controller. After a rigorous selection process, ViaWest was chosen for its flexibility in providing enhanced solutions and the ability to meet the State's Disaster Recovery requirements. In addition to providing the data center facilities for the State of Colorado, ViaWest is offering a suite of managed services including firewall services, system and database administration, monitoring and data protection services to meet the strict security and performance needs of e-FOR3T.

"Entering into a partnership with the State of Colorado to create a state-of-the-art disaster recovery facility is a significant milestone for ViaWest," said Roy Dimoff, CEO, ViaWest. "Over the years, we have built a reputation for I.T. expertise, flexibility and reliable services which are all important for ensuring the success of e-FOR3T. Our team proved its ability to think outside the box to develop an innovative solution that fits the State's requirements. We are looking forward to working with the State on this important project."

The Joint Budget Committee (JBC) and General Assembly approved the proposal for the facility in 2005 and determined the Secretary of State would facilitate the project. The start up funding for the project is derived from the Secretary of State's cash fund and it is anticipated continual funding for the project will be available from the Secretary of State's office. Any participating agency will need to provide their computer equipment and each agency will decide what method of computer disaster recovery best supports their agencies business continuity plan.

The facility is anticipated to be available to provide services to state agencies by June 30, 2006.