Scott Hochberg, 46
State Representative, Houston
Hochberg is not a water carrier for the high-tech industry; rather, he's one of the savviest lawmakers in terms of figuring out how the state can best use technology to benefit Texans. A techie himself—he has a master's degree in electrical engineering from Rice University, writes and sells software, and designs Web sites—he was an early champion of the Texas Department of Information Resources (DIR), which is helping other agencies put all sorts of state information online and to make the state's Web site interactive. During four terms in office, he's worked on bills to post all legislative actions and state agency rules on the Internet and to allow state licensing boards to share information electronically, and he's served on the Judicial Committee on Information Technology, which has studied how to bring all courts online. In preparation for the next session, he is reviewing the state's laws on computer crimes and working on a bill that would standardize laws on electronic transactions. "When I leave office, if I can say the state is a model of delivering its services electronically, then I'll be happy," he explains. Spoken like a high-tech nerd.

Carolyn Purcell, 52
Executive Director
Texas Department of Information Resources, Austin
Purcell is a player not just because she led the $200 million effort to make sure state agency computers were Y2K compliant. Year in and year out, she and her team are charged with promoting the concept of electronic government in Texas. Agencies have lots of autonomy when it comes to technology, but the DIR is the "corporate information headquarters for the giant holding company," as Purcell puts it, coordinating plans to disseminate data in cyberspace and to allow electronic transactions like the reporting of sales taxes and the renewal of driver's licenses and motor vehicle registrations. The DIR also manages the state's Web site, which has been online since 1992. "Texas got into the game of making information available over the Internet pretty early," Purcell says, "but we want more of an interactive tool for the public."

Arnold Viramontes, 51
Executive Director
Telecommunications Infrastructure Fund Board, Austin
An El Paso native, Viramontes manages the nation's largest program for investing in telecommunications infrastructure for Internet access. Over a ten-year period, the board will disperse $1.5 billion to wire Texas schools, libraries, universities, and not-for-profit healthcare facilities for high-speed connections to the Internet (down the road, there will be funds available for teaching system maintenance and repair). The TIF grew out of legislation in 1995 that levied an assessment on some telecommunications carriers in the state; the money goes into the fund and is then passed on through grants. The goal is to reach poor areas and level the playing field in public information technology, and it seems to be working: So far, about $370 million has been awarded to more than one thousand school districts.