Reporting from Sacramento — California may be known as the cradle of computer innovation, but several state agencies can't get their computers to perform essential functions despite hundreds of millions of dollars in cost overruns for repair and upgrade work.
Although taxpayer money has been flowing to corporate consultants and software overhauls, some computer systems are on the verge of collapse, and some replacement projects are years behind schedule or have been scrapped because they didn't work.
The antiquated systems have even been cited by top finance officials as a contributing factor in the difficulty the state has managing its money. A lack of shared databases results in a sluggish information flow that can hamper financial decision-making. Budget officials may have trouble obtaining accurate, up-to-date numbers, and the information lag can hinder purchasing and investment decisions.
"It's embarrassing," said Tracy Westen, chief executive of the Center for Governmental Studies in Los Angeles. "If California can't get it right, who can?"
Among the computer flops:
* The wheezing, 1970s-vintage computer system that prints paychecks for the entire state workforce is held together by software patches and jury-rigged connections and is in danger of failing, according to officials in the state controller's office. A $130-million overhaul called the 21st Century Project was supposed to have been activated two years ago, but instead state officials have been locked in a lawsuit with the contractor and say it will now cost 39% more.
The Legislature's chief budget analyst said the project was a mess. One option: pull the plug and start over -- leaving taxpayers with a $70-million bill and nothing accomplished.
* Similar setbacks have plagued a colossal project intended to enable state budget and accounting databases to interact. The existing, obsolete system forces workers to spend hours manually processing data and doesn't allow agencies to coordinate their purchasing and contracting, according to H.D. Palmer, a spokesman for the state Finance Department. If a contractor does shoddy work for one agency, there is no automatic warning system to advise other departments against hiring the company.
