Civil Service panel rejects layoffs plan

The state Civil Service Commission on Wednesday rejected a state health agency plan to contract out its information technology services, saying documentation was lacking that it would save money and increase efficiency.

Commission Chairman David Duplantier, of Covington, said information submitted by the state Department of Health and Hospitals was “woefully inadequate.”

“I have zero confidence in your numbers,” commissioner Scott Hughes, of Shreveport, told Carol Steckel, chief of DHH’s Center for Health Care Innovation and Technology.

“I don’t think you have come close to showing there’s either a cost saving or efficiency. Until that can be done, I think we have to reject,” said commissioner John McLure, of Alexandria.

The commission had on its agenda the approval of DHH’s proposed expansion of a $16.8 million three-year contract with the University of New Orleans to cover IT services currently provided in-house by 69 classified state employees. The move would result in the layoff of those employees.

The commission voted unanimously “to disapprove” the contract.

DHH communications director Lisa Faust said late Wednesday the health agency would bring the plan up for approval next month.

“There were mistakes made. There was confusion,” Faust said. “The initiative is still critical to the department.”

Documents DHH submitted to Civil Service indicate a new three-year contract would be for either $35 million or $37 million, depending on the document.

Steckel told the commission that the proposal would save an estimated $2.1 million over the next three years. “There will also be efficiencies beyond what can be estimated today,” she said.

But more important than that, Steckel said, it would consolidate “a fragmented (IT) system” and help the health agency better serve its clients.

Late Wednesday, Faust said Steckel misspoke and that the actual savings would be $7.5 million over the contract period based on new numbers the agency calculated.

Steckel told the commission that DHH’s core function is not IT.

Commissioner Curtis “Pete” Fremin, of Morganza, asked Steckel what skills the current IT employees could not provide.

Steckel did not say. Instead, she responded that UNO’s “core competency is this type of work.”

Hughes said information technology is not a core function of the University of New Orleans either.

Looking at documents DHH submitted, Hughes said it is clear that the agency will increase spending by up to $8 million with the contract.

Commissioner Kenneth Polite Jr., of New Orleans, said it is difficult to support the proposition because “the (Jindal) administration has railed against increased spending” and DHH is relying on additional federal funds, which the administration has also been against.

Commissioner Lee Griffin, of Baton Rouge, said he did not want to discourage innovative ideas that save money. He said he had reviewed documents submitted by DHH and couldn’t back the plan. “I’ve had 50 years in the banking industry and I could not understand this,” he said.

Baton Rouge lawyer J. Arthur Smith III, who represents about two-third of the targeted employees, said DHH seems to be saying it wants to spend $37 million to save money.

“You can spend or you can save but you can’t do both,” he said. “There’s been no showing how you have savings to make up for that $37 million.”

“What we are seeing is a coordinated effort by Gov. Jindal to streamline state government and that’s taking the form of many adverse actions against classified employees,” Smith said.

The employees conservatively have 1,250 combined years working in IT for state government, he said.

“They have been doing their job and doing it well,” Smith said. “They are representing that these people are not competent. I have seen no proof of that.”

John Pourciau, who retired as DHH’s IT director, told the commission that in-house staff through the years have saved the state money as it took on projects for which private contractors wanted big bucks.

“If you want to do what’s right, you shut this down right now,” Pourciau said. “Contractors are no more than vipers whether it’s interagency or private.”

Jesse Kirby, a 40-year IT employee, said he knows of no one in the division who is incompetent and he said staff training is on-going to keep up with technology developments.