Josh Downen charged with accelerating the Illinois Office of Comptroller’s transparency reforms
August 22, 2019
SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois Office of Comptroller has named Josh Downen of Springfield as its first Chief Information Officer, charged with quarterbacking Comptroller Susana Mendoza’s “Transparency Revolution” that is making far more information about state finance available to Illinois residents.
“Josh has the vision to modernize this office and accelerate the transparency reforms we’ve begun,” Comptroller Mendoza said. “I’d like the Illinois Office of Comptroller to be the most trusted, user-friendly, accessible source for Illinois budget and finance numbers. Through predictive modeling, data analytics, and transparency, we will set the tone for influencing the discussions and policies about state finance and budget in a way that respects taxpayers. I’m confident Josh can bring us there.”
Downen, 41, worked as an information technology expert at various private-sector tech companies in Springfield, most recently at Matrix Systems Group, before joining the Comptroller’s office in October on a contractual basis. The ability and vision he demonstrated since then gave him the edge over others from around the country who competed for the position of CIO.
https://www.sj-r.com/opinion/20190821/bernard-schoenburg-durkin-dismisses-51st-state-move-as-re-election-rhetoric CIO for Mendoza
###
