HONOLULU — The state has canceled a call for proposals for new computer technology after spending $11 million developing the solicitation, but the administration of Gov. David Ige said the money hasn’t been wasted.
The state asked vendors 18 months ago to submit proposals for a statewide system to integrate financial data and human resources, the Honolulu Star-Advertiser reported.
The state spent $10.8 million on developing the proposal requests, and on related studies and research. The state spent another $321,000 on project legal costs.
This week, Ige said he is canceling the requests because proposals already submitted by vendors were too costly.
Officials say work already done can be applied to state efforts for information technology system improvements.
The administration still intends to pursue the most promising components of the “Statewide Unified Resource Framework,” or SURF, initiative, Ige said in a release. However, they won’t attempt to implement the entire initiative in one package as proposed by former Gov. Neil Abercrombie’s administration.
Keith DeMello, senior communications manager for the state Office of Information Management and Technology, wouldn’t identify the companies that submitted proposals or how much they bid because of state procurement laws. However, he said the bids “came in at a level that was simply not an option given the realities of state budget constraints.”
The program was intended to modernize state government’s antiquated computer infrastructure. It would have consolidated about 750 existing systems into a smaller number of modern networks that could share information.
Bids were originally due Dec. 3, 2013, but the deadline was extended. The process eventually stalled because of the high bids, and then the steering committee recommended canceling the effort, DeMello said.
Bidders were notified of the cancellation Wednesday.
Ige said state Comptroller Douglas G. Murdock will lead an effort to select parts of the initiative that can be completed in the near term.
“We will use a business-like approach to prioritize projects that can be ready to deliver efficiencies and cost-saving benefits within the next two years under current funding,” Ige said in a written statement.
Some of these include upgrades to data systems for human resources, payroll, employee attendance, financial management, grants management and budgeting.