Computer fiasco confirms fears about UC mismanagement

By U-T San Diego Editorial Board

Here we go again: The University of California system has added its name to the long list of state agencies that have had costly debacles when upgrading computers. And UC’s debacle is one of the worst.

University leaders in 2009 adopted a four-year, $170 million plan to create one central payroll for all UC campuses, medical centers and offices. According to a Sacramento Bee report, the project is far from done and is $50 million over budget.

Rather incredibly, the office of UC President Janet Napolitano won’t even provide a forecast of when the project will be complete or what its final cost will be. As an information-technology expert told the Bee, not having publicly identified baselines is a huge red flag because that suggests that six years after the project launched, UC officials don’t have a handle on how to fix it.

Napolitano’s and UC’s handling of this fiasco goes a long way toward confirming the suspicions of Gov. Jerry Brown and many state lawmakers that UC’s finances and management are a mess. It also suggests that the real reason UC has resisted fiscal scrutiny isn’t because of opposition to micromanagement. It’s because UC officials have so much to hide.

A full, independent audit of the University of California can’t come soon enough.

[Source]: UT-San Diego