[fullwidth background_color=”” background_image=”” background_parallax=”none” enable_mobile=”no” parallax_speed=”0.3″ background_repeat=”no-repeat” background_position=”left top” video_url=”” video_aspect_ratio=”16:9″ video_webm=”” video_mp4=”” video_ogv=”” video_preview_image=”” overlay_color=”” overlay_opacity=”0.5″ video_mute=”yes” video_loop=”yes” fade=”no” border_size=”0px” border_color=”” border_style=”” padding_top=”20″ padding_bottom=”20″ padding_left=”0″ padding_right=”0″ hundred_percent=”no” equal_height_columns=”no” hide_on_mobile=”no” menu_anchor=”” class=”” id=””][title size=”1″ content_align=”left” style_type=”underline solid” sep_color=”#000000″ margin_top=”” margin_bottom=”” class=”” id=””]USDA halts information technology program known as MIDAS[/title][fusion_text]Thursday, June 18th 2015
Poor performance and uncertainty about future plans were the key factors that led to USDA’s decision to halt a long-delayed and overbudgeted information technology program known as MIDAS, the General Accountability Office said today in a report. From 2004 through last July, when Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack decided to halt MIDAS, USDA’s Farm Service Agency spent about $423 million on the program, which was designed to replace aging hardware and software applications and provide a single platform to manage all FSA farm programs, GAO said. Development was stopped after a second software release. GAO ound that FSA did not have “key management disciplines” in place for MIDAS, and that the agency lacks the capacity to effectively manage successor programs. GAO’s key recommendation in the report is that FSA establish and implement a plan for adopting recognized best IT practices. In response, FSA cited steps it has already taken to so, GAO said. The report was prepared at the request of the Republican and Democrat leaders of the Senate and House Agriculture Appropriations subcommittees.
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