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Analysis of the 2004-05 Budget BillLegislative Analyst's Office
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The Stephen P. Teale Data Center (TDC) is one of the state's two general-purpose data centers. The other is the Health and Human Services Agency Data Center (HHSDC). The TDC provides a variety of information technology services to numerous state agencies which reimburse the data center for its operational costs.
The budget proposes $96 million from the TDC Revolving Fund for support of the department in the budget year. This is a decrease of $2.4 million, or 2 percent, below estimated current-year expenditures.
The administration has not submitted the required report for the consolidation of the Stephen P. Teale Data Center (TDC) and the Health and Human Services Agency Data Center. We withhold our recommendation on TDC's expenditure authority pending receipt and review of the report and consolidation plan.
Administration Has Not Provided Data Center Consolidation Report. In order to increase the efficiency of the state's technology services, the 2003-04 budget began the process of consolidating TDC and HHSDC. (Please see the 2003-04 Analysis pages F-47 to F-52 for a discussion of the benefits of this approach.) As required by Chapter 225, Statutes of 2003 (AB 1752, Oropeza), the Department of Finance was required by December 1, 2003 to submit a plan describing the consolidation of the two centers in 2004-05. Specifically, the plan was to include: (1) the organizational structure of the consolidated data center, (2) identification of data center activities that would result in savings of $3.5 million General Fund in 2004-05 and additional savings to be potentially received in future years, and (3) examination of transferring department data servers to the consolidated data center. In October 2003, the new administration notified the Legislature that the required report would become a progress report—giving it more time to become familiar with the issues of consolidating the two data centers. The progress report has not been submitted to the Legislature.
Withhold Recommendation Pending Receipt and Review of Report. Since the Legislature has not received the progress report, we withhold recommendation on TDC's expenditure authority pending receipt and review of the administration's consolidation proposal.