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IMTEC-84-11 1 (1984-05-25)

handle is hein.gao/gaobabnjm0001 and id is 1 raw text is: 



                       UNITED STATES GENERAL ACCOUNTING OFFICE
                               WASHINGTON. D.C. 20548              Iv2sg



INFORMATION MANAGEMENT
& TECHNOLOGY DIVISION
                                                        MAY 25, 1984

     B-214903

     The Honorable John R. Block                          III Ii I

     The Secretary of Agriculture                           124258

     Dear Mr. Secretary:

          Subject: ASCS Needs Better Information To Adequately
                    Assess Proposed County and State Office
                    Automation (GAO/IMTEC-84-11)

          We are writing to you to express our concerns with the county
     office automation proposed by the Agricultural Stabilization and
     Conservation Service (ASCS), and to recommend that ASCS proceed
     with a pilot project before committing itself to nationwide auto-
     mation. We feel that such a pilot project is needed because (1)
     major segments of ASCS' cost-benefit analysis are seriously ques-
     tionable and (2) the software technology proposed has not been
     tested by ASCS.

          For several years, ASCS has been considering automation of
     about 2,800 state and county offices that administer its commodity
     and land use programs, which are designed for production adjust-
     ment, resource protection, and economic stabilization. ASCS of-
     ficials believe computers will allow faster service and more accu-
     rate payments to farmers, reduce paperwork, give access to more
     management information, and improve county office productivity.

          Automation would change the way ASCS field employees work.
     They now keep manual records on their business with farmers and
     send forms direct to the Kansas City Management Office (KCMO) for
     processing and entry in national data bases. State offices are not
     involved in the data flow. If the proposed automation is adopted,
     county offices will use computers to transact business and maintain
     local data bases, and will transmit data by telephone or mailed
     diskettes to state officials. State offices will consolidate and
     transmit the data to KCMO or to Washington, D.C.

          ASCS tested the idea by installing computers in seven county
     offices. In April 1983, ASCS began a cost-benefit analysis to
     establish economic feasibility. The analysis, completed in Sep-
     tember 1983, showed estimated benefits greater than estimated
     costs, but this may be overly optimistic. (The cost-benefit analy-
     sis is attached as encl. I.)


                                        Ws%_7(913711)

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