Officials confident Legislature to be ready for high-tech

Lawmakers serving on the Legislative Commission's Subcommittee on Computer Application to the Legislative Process were told Tuesday that progress has been made in fixing the system in advance of the 1999 session.

"A lot has been done, but there is a lot more to do," said Ron Nichols, manager of the information system for lawmakers.

The Legislature allocated about $1.2 million to make changes and improve the system for the 1999 session, but Nichols said that only about $600,000 will be needed to get ready.

Lorne Malkiewich, director of the Legislative Counsel Bureau, said he is confident the modernization of the legislative process is far ahead of where it was in 1996.

Malkiewich expressed disappointment, however, that Nichols was leaving his position to work in the private sector.

Nichols assured Assemblyman Jack Close, R-Las Vegas, chairman of the committee, that deadlines for the testing and operation of the various changes and improvements to the system will be met.

The Legislature embarked on an ambitious $1.7 million computer modernization project in 1996 in preparation for the 1997 legislative session.

The committee hired the Pythia Corp. of Indianapolis to provide laptop computers, install hardware in the Legislative Building and write software for various legislative functions.

The contracts with Pythia were worth about $1.2 million. Other contracts accounted for the other $500,000.

Some of the floor session software was delivered by Pythia and used in the 1997 session, but lawmakers weren't happy with the product and decided to hire their own staff to develop programs.

Sen. Bob Coffin, D-Las Vegas, said lawmakers got a lot of criticism for the expenditures and failures of the modernization project in 1997. The changes made by legislative staff, however, have improved the system and made it easier to use, he said.

The real test will come when the 1999 session convenes, but an easier-to-use system should ensure that more lawmakers use their laptop computers, Coffin added.

A big part of the cost in preparing for the 1997 session was the purchase of laptop computers for the 63 lawmakers at about $6,000 each.

Installing remote sensors so the computers didn't have to be plugged in brought the cost of the laptop contract with Pythia to $675,000.

But the computers only saw limited use during the 1997 session. Coffin said part of the reason was that the system programs were not operating properly.

Lawmakers, who had planned to use the laptops again in 1999, decided instead to replace the machines for the upcoming session with updated models leased for $70 a month.

archive