Louisiana government spending on information technology services has increased dramatically in recent years. (Julie O’Donoghue/Louisiana Illuminator)
The amount of money Louisiana state government spent on information technology products and services increased dramatically over three budget cycles, from July 2021 to June 2024.
Louisiana state agencies went from spending $554.4 million with the Office of Technology Services in fiscal year 2022 to spending $652.5 million in fiscal year 2024, according to a report the Louisiana Legislative Auditor released this week. That’s an increase of $98 million (18%) over three years.
Five state agencies that saw the largest surge in spending on IT services:
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Louisiana Department of Health, $34.2 million (24.5%)
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Department of Children and FamilServices, $14.5 million (15.9%)
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Secretary of State, $1.5 million (55%)
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Department of Corrections, $7.7 increase (47%)
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Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, $3 million (41%)
Some of the agencies with large increases went through well publicized technology upgrades.
The Department of Children and Family Services, which went from spending $91.4 million in fiscal year 2022 to $105.9 million in fiscal year 2024, has started to upgrade its system so its records can be digitized and its operations can be improved. The Department of Corrections and the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries have made similar change.
The Secretary of State attributes its increase in IT expenses – which went from $2.7 million in fiscal year 2022 to $4.2 million in fiscal year 2024 – to printing and mailing letters to voters about the new congressional and Louisiana Supreme Court districts in 2024. The effort was handled, in part, by the state Office of Technology Services.
The Department of Health attributed the hike in its technology budget – which went from $139.6 million in fiscal year 2022 to $173.8 million in fiscal year 2024 – to the culling of the Medicaid rolls following the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
State officials said existing technology had to be updated in order to drop people from Medicaid enrollment who were no longer entitled to the coverage following the end of the COVID-19 emergency. The federal government required people who were at risk of being removed from the program to be contacted in several different manners, which was also handled by the Office of Technology Services.
