Editorial: State’s dormant computers

Wednesday, Dec. 15, 1999 | 9:25 a.m.

State legislators naturally want to know why some agencies aren't using the computers that have been purchased. Sen. Ann O'Connell, R-Las Vegas, the chairman of the Legislative Commission, wants state agency directors to explain at the commission's next meeting reports that computers sit in boxes for months -- sometimes for years -- without ever being turned on.

At first glance it would appear to be just another case of bureaucratic bungling but, as the Sun's Cy Ryan reported Tuesday, there may be more to the story. During a Legislative Commission meeting on Monday, Assemblywoman Barbara Buckley, D-Las Vegas, mentioned an interesting reason why the state Division of Parole and Probation's new computers haven't been installed: The building that houses the agency on Bonanza Road in Las Vegas doesn't have enough power to handle all the new computers.

Carlos Concha, the acting administrator of the Division of Parole and Probation, said that while the agency received the computers in September, they had to be installed instead in the division's downtown office that had a sufficient power supply. Not only does this pose a problem for computers but, as Concha explained, this has caused a problem with the air conditioning at the Bonanza Road office. New air conditioning units were installed in May, but the lack of sufficient power meant they couldn't be turned on until November -- after the electric system finally was fixed.

While the Legislative Commission should determine whether state agencies are senselessly leaving computers in their boxes, it shouldn't lose sight of the big picture. The status of Parole and Probation's offices on Bonanza Road should give pause to state legislators. They also should assess whether they are providing adequate equipment and buildings for employees to carry our their jobs. Elected officials like to crow how they've kept state taxes low, but what often goes unsaid is that scrimping can hurt an agency's effectiveness and delivery of services.