Free Republic

<p>What is it about state institutions and computer systems? Why can't the state that is home to Silicon Valley get one to work on time, on budget and without reeking like a dead rat?</p> <p>The latest state entrant into the information technology hall of mishaps is the California State University system, which this week got hit with a state audit that revealed waste and worse. The audit says CSU's contract with PeopleSoft Inc., a Pleasanton company hired to coordinate a software system to track student, personnel and financial records among the system's headquarters and 23 campuses, has exceeded its original $400 million budget by -- this is not a misprint -- more than $250 million. A quarter-billion-dollar overrun would be bad news any time. This one, coming in the middle of an epic state budget crisis, couldn't possibly be any worse.</p>

<p>A massive new computer project under way at the California State University system might be the latest example of the state's inability to wisely fulfill its own technology needs.</p> <p>A new audit of the CSU's systemwide software says the project was never properly justified by university administrators, might not have been necessary and may not even be accomplishing much of what the university set out to achieve.</p>