House Speaker Shap Smith says the Legislature needs to examine why state government has invested in expensive information technology systems that have failed to perform as promised.
The latest example is a case management system designed for the Vermont Judiciary. The courts have so far spent about $1.7 million on software that doesn’t work.
Smith says it’s time for the Legislature to exercise oversight.
"I’m very concerned about IT implementation throughout state government. We’ve had a number of instances over the last couple of years where we have tried to implement systems that have not worked. And I think it’s a real problem. And you can expect to see a great deal more oversight from the legislative branch with regard to IT because we can’t afford to have these fail on a repeated basis," Smith said.
The Department of Motor Vehicles has also spent about $18 million on computer upgrades. But the system is not functioning, and the state has been forced to rely on technology that is 40 years old.