Like any other government agency, New England police departments are forced to face the reality of reduced budgets. As a result, many have decided to make cuts to their IT departments by reducing staff and purchases so they don’t have to decrease expenditures to line items, such as police officers and traditional police equipment.
While the private sector can more freely embark on an IT initiative, government IT is accountable to its citizens. As a consequence, it has little control over the budget, and it needs to be transparent in everything from purchasing decisions to data management. The situation hands government IT unique challenges in terms of budget, accountability, expertise, manpower, and timetables, among others.
In 2013, the US Government spent more than 500 billion dollars in outsourcing contracts. State and local government entities have also embraced outsourcing, especially when it comes to information technology services, because no matter the size of the organization, they are able to see the benefits almost immediately.
State and local governments are tasked with providing for the needs of citizens by maintaining critical infrastructure and assets, all while providing constituent services of all types. These demands range from public safety, utilities, and services to a panoply of other needs. These public-sector entities are relying more and more on government IT solutions in order to reduce costs while increasing flexibility and scalability. This shift is happening due to the inherent needs of these entities to do much more with very limited IT personnel and budgetary resources.
