The computer system that manages child support collection in Hawaii is down more than 15 percent of the business day. Here’s a story about the problem from the Honolulu Advertiser.
This would be frustrating to any staff person trying to work with child support collection, but it must be infuriating when they learn that the state has spent more than $50 million to upgrade and “streamline” the computer system.
A graphic running with the story (Kudos, Advertiser; almost nobody includes graphics with their online stories, and yours really helps!) illustrates that less than 15% of the money paid for hardware and software, and more than 85% paid for consulting.
The problems have apparently affected performance. Here’s a storyfrom KPUA in Hilo, Hawaii indicating that Hawaii ranks last in the nation collecting child support, with more than half a billion owed by delinquent parents.
It takes so much work to decipher the Public Relations and accounting methods, or lack
therof in these “news articles.” How do you stop this. Why do people buy this?
I went to the 94 page consulting report at http://www.state.hi.us/auditor/Reports/2003/CSEA.pdf
and I’m fairly certain neither of the reporters read it. The storys are state PR pieces.
The beauracracies are looking for more money and attaching “for the children” hooks. The system
has never kept accurate data, accurate data has never consistently been entered, how can
the news story cite any real facts about missed payments, missed collections, etc when
the systems integrity and the processes in place are so faulty. Oh, well, ask the fed for
more money, they print it and send it over immediately.
Dr. H.O. Potamus