California to Spend $3.6 Billion for State IT

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Mr_Man

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Feb 17, 2008
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This is one reason I'm proud to live in Missouri, the state where the budget ends in a surplus, not a deficit, every year.
 

NuclearShadow

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Sep 20, 2007
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I don't think its that bad of a idea sure it can fail but it does have potential.

Modernizing things while it can be costly can actually help save money in the end by cutting other costs and getting things done at a more efficient rate. Also this will certainly be creating jobs which is never a bad thing.
 

falchard

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Jun 13, 2008
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California contributes around $400 Billion to the Federal government in taxes. The Californian economy is larger then any nation aside from the US. Hopefully, this investment now will mean they can better manage such an enormous economy. Personally, I am tired of all the paper work that can be done a lot easier with a computer. Like sitting in line for 50 minutes to get a DMV printout, much longer if I need to get something done that takes more then 30 seconds.
 

sinclaj1

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The FBI overhaul was a good plan, but failed because they turned it into a green thing and tried to go "paperless". Paperless is not realistic. Reducing it is fine, eliminating it is folly.

There's no reason that $2B cannot yield manyfold savings if they implement it right. The real question is...will they let the IT experts do it, or will Government ruin that as well and do it instead?
 

yipsl

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Mr. Man says: "This is one reason I'm proud to live in Missouri, the state where the budget ends in a surplus, not a deficit, every year."

If Missouri is like Texas, it has a surplus by not doing it's job as a state government. Though California's made too many promises it can't keep in today's economy with healthcare costs being what they are (and with the proposition system lessening the tax base), states like Missouri and Texas don't do enough for the less advantaged and are just ruled by special interests who get tax abatements while small business owners suffer.
 
G

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Don't they owe us our Tax Refund dollars first? Everyone who works for a business in California is losing their job and these guys act they are doing us a favor by spending more. If they really wanted to stimulate the economy instead of buying a bunch of Chinese IT equipment and installing it..Why not give us a huge tax refund(pay us what you owe back first though), cut gov't to the bone. We don't need cops we need guns and ammo. Cut the insane pension plans for gov't workers. Make all mass transportation free for the next two years. Face it gov't workers are 3rd rate. Their mental capacity is similar to a kid in middle school except they have adult bodies. They should be making $4 an hour yet we're paying these folks $40-$60 an hour. On top of that, the state has accumulated benefit obligations to these folks for about what their getting in salary, retire at 50 and gets your same salary for life, who wouldn't want to be a socialist school teacher.
Automated Welfare System = automatic feeder for slum bunnies.
New HR System = for what picking out 3rd rate people with Ebonics skills.

whats really going to happen is they're not going to have the brains or think they have the brains to do the job. They're going to hire some consulting firms. They'll come in with some bid and proposal, the front man selling this project is some former gov't level exec. They start billing hours, draw PPT slides, promise the moon, keep billing hours while they draw out the mess in visio, play kiss face with the gov't employees. Year 2-5 they say they are implementing.. years 5 to 10 after getting the sack to ask whats up where's the program... They find they have a screwed up program. They will blame the consultants and the consultants will says hey we asked you what you wanted and this is what you got. Embarrassed the gov't employees come back to us and ask for more money.
 

rooket

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Hopefully this means more jobs, would like to change my IT position and earn more money. I work at a business not affected by the economy and they cut my pay. So it kind of pisses me off. A state job would give me a full 40 hours a week.
 
G

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Here is how this works. To get funding in 2009-10, the client agency must obtain approval for a feasibility study report (FSR) and budget change proposal in the summer of 2008. That gets it into the Governor’s budget, released in January 2009. The money becomes available at the start of the fiscal year, July 2009. The client agency then expands upon the FSR and submits a draft request for proposals (RFP) to the Department of General Services procurement division (DGS) in June 2010. DGS wordsmiths the RFP and adds several requirements. The contract will have a firm fixed price. The contractor will receive no payment until the system is delivered and accepted by the client agency. The contractor must provide a 50% bond. COTS software vendors must sign the DGS terms, which give all rights to the State and none to the copyright owner. At least 50% of the score will be based on price. As there are numerous COTS products that meet the State’s need equally well, the competition boils down to a low bid.

The RFP is issued in January 2011. Takai and Schwarzenegger are gone.

Very few bidders will sign-on to the DGS conditions. At most, there will be two bidders. I decide that I will be one of them. DGS issues numerous addenda and finally receives bids in the summer of 2011. Both proposals place limits on the DGS intellectual property clause. DGS rejects both bids, saying that bidders are forbidden to modify the standard language. They negotiate with both bidders and others that are interested and issue a revision to their intellectual property clause. They invite new bids and I submit the only bid. It is now June 2012.

Throughout the process, bidders cannot talk to the client agency. Questions must be submitted in writing to DGS and are answered in writing. It is difficult to understand exactly what is required without the give and take of live conversation. The RFP language is vague and does not give a good basis for a firm fixed price. In pricing my bid, I estimate a realistic cost for what I understand from the RFP. I obtain a credit line and double my estimate to cover the cost of carrying the contract to the end without any payment. I also add an amount equal to my estimate to address the uncertainties in the RFP and, finally, I add a similar amount to cover the inevitable litigation. Add it up, and my bid is four times the reasonable price.

The client agency returns to the legislature for additional funding, while DGS negotiates with me. My COTS subcontractor is objecting to the intellectual property clause. Eventually, we succeed in negotiating a contract that is signed in July 2013.

The two-year contract is a straightforward installation and configuration of COTS software. By now, however, the client agency has new leadership who want something different from what was wanted in 2008. Our scope, however, is determined by the FSR. The clients refuse to accept and I receive no payment. We go through several rounds of negotiation and eventually wind up in court. I get paid in 2020. The amount paid is my original four times the reasonable price plus interest and my legal fees.

Throughout this time, the client agency and DGS have been paying their staff and consultants to work on procurement, implementation and litigation. Their internal costs are as much again as what they pay me.

The client agency has a product designed to meet the needs that it perceived in 2008. Much has changed, and the system is out of date.

Working with the other 49 States is nothing like this. There, the selection is based solely upon what product best meets the client's requirements. They negotiate a contract to buy the product that best meets their needs. This makes sense – the cost of the software is a tiny fraction of the cost of the processes that it will be used to manage. Selection based on functionality alone provides the best value. The client agency’s staff is actively involved face-to-face in the contract negotiations. That ensures that the product will meet their needs. The contract is generally signed within six months from the date that the RFP was issued.
 
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