Former State of Florida CIO Jason Allison Joins Foley

Foley & Lardner LLP announced today that Jason Allison will join the firm effective Wednesday, March 8 as a director of public affairs in the Tallahassee office. As former chief information officer (CIO) for the State of Florida and previous executive director of the Florida Agency for State Technology (AST), Allison brings considerable information technology (IT), systems implementation and IT migration experience, as well as an extensive understanding of change management and IT/business alignment.

“Jason is highly skilled at managing the creation, implementation and maintenance of information systems in highly structured and unstructured environments. His deep understanding of government operations and IT issues, combined with his years of experience in the public and private sectors, will tremendously benefit our clients as they face the challenges of doing business with state and local governments throughout the United States, and complying with a wide diversity of regulatory requirements,” said David Ralston, chair of the firm’s Government & Public Policy Practice Group.

During his time as CIO and the AST’s executive director, Allison was responsible for the management and direction of the technology programs, services and policies. He identified efficiencies, increased IT coordination and compliance, and strengthened connections with agency and private sector businesses. Allison’s role included oversight of the agency’s operations, including the State Data Center, Security and Strategic Planning teams. Allison also oversaw the creation of robust infrastructure and enterprise architectures, as well as provided guidance on the development of IT policies, procedures, standards and rules.

“Jason’s diverse experience across both public and private sectors will be a great asset to our government impacted regional and national clients,” said Thomas Maida, managing partner of Foley’s Tallahassee office. “We are excited to welcome him to the team.”

Earlier in his career, Allison served as Governor Rick Scott’s IT policy coordinator, where he identified statewide policy issues and drafted legislation to address shortfalls in state enterprise IT governance. He also monitored IT projects for compliance, testified before legislative committees and served as the Governor’s appointee to specialized IT workgroups and task forces.

“After spending most of my career dedicated to public service in the technology sector, I am eager to return to private practice with an esteemed group of professionals,” said Allison. “Foley’s Government & Public Policy Practice is well known for its outstanding advocacy and counsel to clients, and I look forward to helping advance that effort.”

Allison joins a team at Foley that, in counseling clients, calls upon a breadth and depth of Florida government experience, including: Robert Hosay, former secretary of the Department of Management Services under Governor Jeb Bush; Joe Jacquot, former deputy attorney general of Florida; Jonathan Kilman, who has represented the Florida House of Representatives in redistricting litigation and multiple executive branch agencies, as outside counsel; Paul Lowell, who oversaw health policy for Governor Bush; Herschel Vinyard, former secretary of the Department of Environmental Protection under Governor Scott; Erika Alba, formerly the chief legislative counsel and assistant general counsel for Fidelity National Financial; Jon Steverson, former secretary of the Department of Environmental Protection; Jon Yapo, former chief legislative aide to state Rep. Jason Brodeur; and Christian Caballero, formerly Jeb Bush’s deputy chief Cabinet aide and chief of staff to the Department of Justice.