FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Thursday, March 6, 2025 CONTACT: Florida TaxWatch: Christina Johnson, christina@on3pr.com, 850.339.5773 St. Thomas University: Dr. Daniel Axelrod, daxelrod@stu.edu, 305.474.2418 Tallahassee, Fla. – Today, Florida TaxWatch unveiled its […]
Florida TaxWatch, in collaboration with the Associated Industries of Florida (AIF), released a report titled “It’s Time to Reform Florida’s Information Technology Procurement and Oversight.” The report highlights Florida’s 25-year history of inadequately executed large-scale IT projects and offers recommendations for reforming the Florida Digital Service’s (FL[DS]) procurement and oversight processes to ensure their success. Key points from the report include: – FTW and AIF identified recurring problems in statewide technology projects, including poor planning, contracting, and oversight, leading to failures in accountability. – Since 1999, Florida has repeatedly restructured its state agency overseeing these IT projects, with the FL[DS] established most recently in 2020. – Public sector IT agencies like the FL[DS] struggle to compete with the private sector in hiring knowledgeable staff due to salary and work condition limitations, leading to an overreliance on consultants and vendors. – The report proposes 10 recommendations for the Florida Legislature, such as forming a joint committee on IT and offering incentives like signing bonuses to attract IT staff. Florida TaxWatch President and CEO Dominic M. Calabro emphasized the need for the state’s IT projects to be delivered efficiently and within budget. AIF President and CEO Brewster B. Bevis highlighted the importance of Florida improving its IT processes for long-term success. For more details and access to the full report, including all recommendations, interested parties are directed to the Florida TaxWatch website. FTW, a nonpartisan, nonprofit government watchdog, has been working to enhance productivity and accountability in Florida government for over forty years.
This report highlights the chronic issues plaguing Florida’s large-scale IT projects, such as inadequate planning, contracting, and management. These issues have led to the repeated formation and dissolution of a state agency overseeing these projects, with the most recent being the Florida Digital Service (FL[DS]) established in 2020. The paper provides a series of recommendations to prevent the failure of FL[DS]. These include forming a joint House and Senate IT committee for oversight, adopting a new governance model, standardizing statewide agency business processes, and revising Florida Statutes for better IT project procurement and vendor evaluation. Furthermore, the paper suggests methods to attract and retain IT talent, like offering signing bonuses, revising job descriptions to focus on skills, and creating a talent pipeline from the State University System. The report emphasizes the necessity for effective project management and strategic decisions to ensure the success of Florida’s IT projects and to safeguard taxpayer investments??.
Where and how well our school districts spend our education dollars can have a profound impact on student academic achievement and success. Historically, education makes up about one-fourth of Florida’s total budget. Florida TaxWatch believes that shifting education spending away from administrative and other expenses and toward classroom/instructional expenses is beneficial.
In early June, Florida TaxWatch received the Bond Oversight Committee Quarterly Report for the Quarter Ended March 31, 2022 (“Quarterly Report”). This report provides updated information on the implementation of the District’s SMART Program and the use of general obligation bond funds to purchase and install technology upgrades, purchase music and arts equipment, improve school safety, upgrade athletic facilities, and renovate educational facilities.
Tallahassee, Fla. – Today, Florida TaxWatch, the state’s premier independent, nonpartisan policy research institute, is releasing a report entitled Manufacturing a Transformational Shift: Expanding Florida’s Workforce Development Through Sector Strategies. It features a comprehensive summary of the 2021 MakeMore Manufacturing Summit, which included a series of four events (three virtual and one in-person) from June through October 2021, bringing together thought leaders such as Associated Industries of Florida, CareerSource Florida, the Florida Chamber of Commerce, Enterprise Florida, and FloridaMakes to elevate the importance of the Manufacturing industry in Florida and identify ways to strengthen and advance Florida’s economy by improving the competitiveness, productivity, and technological performance of its Manufacturing sector.
On November 26, 2021, Florida TaxWatch received the Bond Oversight Committee Quarterly Report for the Quarter Ended September 30, 2021 (“Quarterly Report”). This report provides updated information on the implementation of the District’s SMART Program and the use of general obligation bond funds to purchase and install technology upgrades, purchase music, and art equipment, improve school safety, upgrade athletic facilities, and renovate educational facilities.
On September 17, 2021, Florida TaxWatch received the Bond Oversight Committee Quarterly Report for the Quarter Ended June 30, 2021 (“Quarterly Report”). This report provides updated information on the implementation of the District’s SMART Program and the use of general obligation bond funds to purchase and install technology upgrades, purchase music and arts equipment, improve school safety, upgrade athletic facilities, and renovate educational facilities.
On May 28, 2021, Florida TaxWatch received the Bond Oversight Committee Quarterly Report for the Quarter Ended March 31, 2021 (“Quarterly Report”). This report provides updated information on the implementation of the District’s SMART Program and the use of general obligation bond funds to purchase and install technology upgrades, purchase music, and arts equipment, improve school safety, upgrade athletic facilities, and renovate educational facilities.
Presented to the Broward County Bond Oversight Committee October 5, 2020
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