Kansas Spent $17M on Technology Project before Outsourcing

The administration of Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback spent $17 million on resolving technology needs in-house before outsourcing the effort to a company in another state.

Chief information technology officer Phil Wittmer told The Topeka Capital-Journal that the in-house project was too expensive and would have cost $50 million to complete.

The state is retiring its IBM mainframe used by four major agencies. In September, Kansas reached a five-year, $14 million deal with Illinois-based Ensono to replace the mainframe.

Department of Administration spokesman John Milburn declined to answer questions on why the project was initially approved, where the equipment for the project is being stored and whether any of the $17 million can be recouped.