Information technology (IT) has become an integral part of most local governments’ and school districts’ operations. Computer systems and electronic data are fundamental to daily business transactions, communication, and accounting and reporting. The impact of an unplanned IT disruption involving the corruption or loss of data or other computer resources from human error, malware or hardware failure, for example, could significantly curtail an organization’s operations.

Proactively anticipating and planning for IT disruptions will prepare local government and school district personnel for the actions they must take in the event of an incident. The goal of IT contingency planning is to enable a computer system and/ or electronic data to be recovered as quickly and effectively as possible following an unplanned disruption. The time to think about and plan for IT emergencies is before they occur.