Wa: County puts brake on new county computer system

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Friday, May 26, 2000, 12:00 a.m. Pacific

Sims puts brake on new county computer system

by Roberto Sanchez Seattle Times staff reporter After spending $30 million to install a new finance-computer system, King County has halted the project and has fired its main consultant.

The project, which would have joined the two outdated financial systems it inherited in the merger between King County and Metro, was budgeted to cost $38 million. As of April, it was at least $10 million over budget and the county was spending $1.6 million a month.

Planned for completion by next January, the project is also at least 18 months behind schedule.

The county knew about problems with the project - and was working to address them - as early as last summer. But yesterday, with no end in sight, County Executive Ron Sims announced he was putting the project on hold while his office ponders how to complete it. And he canceled part of the contract with the accounting firm KPMG, which was managing the installation.

"We are not abandoning our investment of $30 million," Sims said. `We are pausing at this time . . . to restructure the project to achieve a successful conclusion."

It's unclear what that investment has gotten the county. According to county records and consulting reports, much went into programming and labor costs to design payroll systems that are incomplete and a financial system that depended on them.

The announcement comes as King County is considering asking the voters to approve several multimillion-dollar bond issues and a sales-tax increase for buildings, buses and law enforcement. It has also fired up a war of words between Sims and the Metropolitan King County Council over who's to blame.

"It couldn't have come at a worse time, as the county is going to the public to seek financial support for a number of projects," said Pete Von Reichbauer, R-Federal Way, chairman of the County Council. He said he expects a full accounting of Sims' decision by Tuesday, when the council meets.

"I hope that this is not a matter of scapegoating the consultant for a $10 million overrun and an 18-month delay," said Councilman Rob McKenna, R-Bellevue, chairman of the council's budget committee. McKenna has been very critical of the executive's management of the computer project. He said he will look critically at Sims' reasons for mothballing the project.

Sims said he was not "fixing blame on anyone," for the failure of the project. Several county employees who worked on the project have since left, including former Finance Director Brad Duerr, who retired this month; chief accountant Rudy Caluza; and former payroll-project manager Cindy Lee, who took another job at the county in February.

David Martinez, the recently appointed project manager, said the county expected KPMG to have the leadership to resolve the problems with the system. But, he said, the county ultimately felt the need to step in.

"As we saw the inability to recognize what it would take to correct those problems, we just realized . . . the course of action we needed to take, hence that was the action, the decision made today," Martinez said. He and Sims declined to elaborate, on the advice of their lawyers.

Peter Julicher, the manager in charge of the project for KPMG in Sacramento, could not be reached for comment. No one in KPMG's office in Seattle would comment on the county's decision.

The County Council hired Pacific Consulting Group to keep track of the project. According to county records, the consultants spotted serious problems with the conversion of payroll systems as early as October. Their reports suggested that the county could not get the project done on time or on budget.

King County has been trying to replace its aging financial computer systems since 1997. Essentially, its payroll and finance systems are each still split into two separate computer systems that don't talk with each other, a legacy of the merger of King County and Metro.

The managers of the new project split the work into two teams, one for finance and one for payroll, with payroll getting the priority. But the payroll team, which was installing software by PeopleSoft, immediately ran into high turnover and problems training people and dealing with the complex financial and legal requirements of the older Metro system. King County deals with 26 labor unions, about 60 labor contracts and 95 bargaining units.

By April, the project was $10 million over budget and at least 18 months behind schedule.

Sims said KPMG will still work with the county to "stabilize" the payroll systems they have installed. Those systems - which process the paychecks of the former Metro agency and transit department and department of natural resources - have been plagued by errors and inefficiencies. During the next two weeks, Martinez and other project managers will decide how many of the 102 people working on the project will stay to do that work.

Sims said the county will then decide how to continue the installation of the new finance-computer systems.

A report by Sims' project managers shows that the county would need at least $20 million to "restart" the project at a later date.

The city of Seattle has run into similar problems dealing with finance computers. Its proposed new computer system, which would combine utility bills for residents, is at least $13 million over budget and a year behind schedule. That project had an original budget of $26 million.

http://www.seattletimes.com/news/local/html98/comp26m_20000526.html

-- Martin Thompson (mthom1927@aol.com), May 26, 2000

Answers

Local News

Thursday, June 1, 2000, 12:00 a.m. Pacific Nicole Brodeur / Times Staff Columnist The county's own `money for nothing'

The news broke just before the long holiday weekend, and you have to wonder if King County Executive Ron Sims planned it that way, like a kid will ask a distracted parent to sign a bad report card. But this colossal waste is part of what made this Memorial Day weekend unforgettable.

The county has spent $30 million on a new finance-computer system that doesn't work. It is $10 million over budget, 18 months behind schedule.

Last week Sims announced that the county had halted the project and fired its main consultant. Just to restart it will cost $20 million.

I don't know any business that operates like the county did in this case. At least not any business still in business.

So I wonder if the madness was allowed to continue because it is government. Since the money belongs to the faceless masses, maybe someone down there on Fourth Avenue thought no one would notice that the county has been hemorrhaging $1.6 million a month since April.

Of course we're not alone. Computer systems - designed to streamline services and save money - are notorious for crippling government agencies before kicking into gear.

But King County seems an unlikely victim. If the home of Microsoft can't get its computer system working on time and within budget, who can?

Matter of fact, why not call those guys for a little after-hours repair work? After all, these are the computers that run the county that maintains the roads that carry the droids that lead to the universe that Bill built.

That road to riches is well-worn. So are the bridges. Library books are cracking, parks are getting shabby, and the lines for county services get longer all the time.

Thirty million bucks would go a long way.

But get this: The county wants more money to play. On Tuesday, Sims started pushing a measure to increase the county sales tax by three- tenths of a cent.

He wants to raise $120 million a year and has big plans for our largess: $80 million would continue bus service at current levels; $40 million would pay the interest on $536 million in bonds to finance projects such as the extension of the light-rail line to Northgate.

To this, I say what my father would: What happened to the money I already gave you?

I won't vote for anything until Sims will admit something went wrong when the county tried to merge the payroll and finance systems of King County and Metro.

Last week, Sims said he wasn't "fixing blame on anyone" for the snafu. How could he, when the people in charge of this boondoggle headed for the exits a long time ago?

Former King County Finance Director Brad Duerr retired this month. Chief accountant Rudy Caluza moved on to the Port of Seattle, and former payroll project manager Cindy Lee took another county job in February.

Holding the bag is Sims, who said he was "pausing at this time . . . to restructure the project to achieve a successful conclusion."

We taxpayers are pausing, too - to check our pulses. I feel like I've been bled.

http://www.seattletimes.com/news/local/html98/brod01m_20000601.html

-- Martin Thompson (mthom1927@aol.com), June 01, 2000.


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