Since the early 1990s, the State of Wisconsin has rapidly expanded its
use of information technology (IT) to collect, store, process, and report
information related to the programs and services it provides and the
management of its operations. State agencies use IT systems when they
establish eligibility for various public benefit programs, register motor
vehicles, issue licenses to drivers and others, collect fees and payments,
and manage administrative functions such as accounting and budgeting
for state operations.
We identified 184 IT projects completed in fiscal year (FY) 2004-05 and
FY 2005-06 or ongoing at the beginning of FY 2006-07. At completion,
their costs are currently expected to total $291.7 million.
Some state agencies have experienced widely reported difficulties in
completing complex and costly IT projects within budget and according
to schedule. To address the resulting concerns of legislators and the
public, and at the direction of the Joint Legislative Audit Committee, we:
estimated IT-related expenditures and staffing for executive branch
agencies in FY 2005-06;
compiled an inventory that describes each of the 184 projects we
identified and provides information on their costs and timeliness;
identified large, high-risk IT projects and reviewed the development
of 7 of these projects in some detail; and
assessed the Department of Administration’s (DOA’s) initiatives to
consolidate certain IT infrastructure and software, as well as structures
in place to ensure appropriate oversight by both DOA and
the Legislature.
Inventory
The IT projects we reviewed
were undertaken by executive
branch agencies, with their own
IT staffs or with the aid of
contractors. Statutes authorize
DOA to ensure that these agencies
develop and use clear standards
for project development and
that they employ sound project
management practices.
The legislative and judicial
branches of state government
generally operate IT systems
independently from DOA, and
statutes largely exempt the
University of Wisconsin (UW)
System from its oversight.
Each of the 184 projects in our
inventory required at least
1,000 hours of effort. Many involved
the customization or development
of software, including modifying
existing programs.
The final costs of 103 projects
that were completed in FY 2004-05
and FY 2005-06 totaled $90.6 million.
The final costs of 81 projects
that were ongoing at the start of
FY 2006-07 are expected to total
$201.1 million.
Ten agencies are responsible for
more than three-quarters of the
projects in our inventory. With
43 projects, the Department of
Workforce Development (DWD) is
responsible for the largest number
of projects and the highest total
costs: $88.9 million.
We identified 22 ongoing projects
with costs of $1.0 million or more
as large, high-risk projects. The
expected final costs of these
projects totaled $186.4 million
as of February 2007.
We noted particular concerns with
six ongoing projects that have
experienced difficulties and delays.
The combined costs of these projects
are currently estimated to be
$122.7 million at completion.
A seventh large, high-risk project—DWD’s customization of software
for its Enhanced Automated
Benefits and Legal Enterprise System
(EnABLES)—was suspended in
February 2007, after five years of
effort. Only one of six planned
components has been implemented,
at a cost of $23.6 million. DWD
is currently re-evaluating the
project’s feasibility.
Review of Selected Projects
Difficulties with agencies’ software
customization or development
projects typically involved:
inadequate planning, including
underestimating a project’s
complexity and failing to
adequately define its final
functions;
unanticipated costs; or
delays in implementation.
For example, DWD did not clearly
identify the functions to be included
in the State Unemployment
Insurance Tax Enterprise System
(SUITES). That project is currently
four years behind schedule and
$18.7 million over budget.
Similarly, a Department of Revenue
(DOR) contractor underestimated
the complexity of adapting the sales
and use tax software component of
DOR’s Integrated Tax System.
Doing so contributed to significant
programming errors, which increased
costs by $5.7 million and compromised
the accuracy of sales and use
tax distributions to counties and
professional sports districts.
A separate letter report describes
DOR’s efforts to address the sales
and use tax distribution errors
we identified in December 2005.
The sales and use tax software,
which was implemented in
December 2002, is expected to
be replaced in December 2007.
The Department of Transportation
(DOT) initially estimated its
Registration and Titling System
(RaTS) would cost $9.4 million.
When project plans were
significantly revised, it did not
adjust this estimate. Further, DOT
and a vendor underestimated the
complexity of the customer
database conversion and had
problems with service delivery
after the project was implemented.
Two of three DOA projects that
involve statewide consolidation
of IT resources have also been
hindered by poor planning.
DOA originally planned to complete
a statewide consolidation of server
hardware and software, which
is dedicated to managing shared
IT resources, by May 2006. However,
as of April 2007, DOA had not
fully consolidated servers for any
agency, nor had it revised its project
plan or re-estimated the project’s
costs.
Similarly, DOA originally planned
to complete statewide e-mail
consolidation in June 2005.
However, as of September 2006,
only four agencies were using new
e-mail software. Furthermore,
expenditures exceeded the
project’s expected five-year costs
of $2.6 million.
Early planning efforts have been
effective for DOA’s third consolidation
project. The Integrated
Business Information System (IBIS)
is intended to replace approximately
100 types of existing administrative
software. However, because DOA
continues to significantly revise
the project’s expected costs and
benefits, close monitoring will be
important.
Enhancing Oversight of
Large, High-Risk Projects
DOA has broad responsibility for
monitoring and controlling the
IT projects of executive branch
agencies. This responsibility
includes establishing performance
measurements for evaluating
progress. However, since at least
November 2003, DOA’s IT
management efforts have focused
on its own troubled e-mail and
server consolidation projects.
As a result, DOA has not adequately
collaborated with agencies to
identify and monitor large, highrisk
projects. Our report includes
recommendations to assist state
agencies and DOA in project
planning and management, and in
better identifying and monitoring
large, high-risk projects.
The State’s master lease program
has become a significant financing
tool for IT systems. Since its
inception, executive branch agencies
have used the program to fund
$294.5 million in IT costs. We
include a recommendation for
the development of policies and
procedures to guide its use for this
purpose. We also identify options
for increasing legislative oversight
of large, high-risk projects, including
those within UW System.
Recommendations
To enhance legislative monitoring,
our report includes recommendations
that agencies responsible for
the seven large, high-risk projects
we reviewed report to the Joint
Legislative Audit Committee by
October 1, 2007, on:
whether waiting times for
Division of Motor Vehicles
services have declined since
June 2006 (DOT,
p. 34);
the status of the conversion to
new sales and use tax software
(DOR,
p. 40);
detailed plans, including cost
information, for implementing
SUITES and maintaining or
customizing EnABLES or other
software for administering
unemployment insurance
systems (DWD,
p. 46 and
49);
revised time lines and cost
information for the server and
e-mail consolidation projects
(DOA,
p. 57 and
62); and
the status of the IBIS project,
including costs to date,
estimated completion, and the
status of efforts to limit software
customization (DOA,
p. 66).
In addition, we include recommendations
for DOA to report to the
Joint Legislative Audit Committee
by October 1, 2007, on its progress in:
selecting, in collaboration with
executive branch agencies, a
prescribed format for agencies’
annual strategic plans for IT
and a methodology for identifying
high-risk projects
(p. 69);
establishing, in collaboration
with executive branch agencies
and the IT Directors’ Council,
planning standards for large,
high-risk projects
(p. 71);
establishing policies for the use
and monitoring of the State’s
master lease program to fund
IT systems costs
(p. 77-78);
Finally, we include recommendations
for the Legislature to:
consider reactivating the Joint
Committee on Information
Policy and Technology and the
IT Management Board
(p. 74); and
consider requiring regular
reports from UW System on its
plans, budget, and schedule for
implementing new IT systems
for human resources and
procurement
(p. 81).