The government of Western Australia has handed down its 2020-21 state Budget, with bits of technology initiatives and upgrades peppered throughout the state's COVID-19 recovery plan.
At a glance, the WA Electoral Commission, Commissioner for Equal Opportunity, Industrial Relations Commission, Treasury, Insurance Commissioner, the department responsible for the mining industry, Education, TAFE, Justice, Housing, Transport, the department responsible heritage conservation, and state utility service Synergy will each receive six-figures or more to either continue new IT systems upgrades or kick off the tender process for new projects.
The Office of the Auditor-General will receive funding for its technology transformation project, which will include the procurement of a Financial Management Information System (FMIS) and an Audit Methodology and Tool (AMT) to replace legacy systems.
The AG said it is currently negotiating with a potential supplier for a FMIS, with a view to implementing the new system in October 2020. It is also preparing to undertake an expression of interest for a new AMT, which it said will be heavily weighted on its increasing auditing demands and use of data analytics.
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The Western Australia Police Force will also get AU$4.6 million for "enhanced tracking and tracing capabilities", including 200 GPS tracking devices for electronic monitoring, and 100 mobile intelligence cameras[2], also known as Automatic Number Plate Recognition technology.
The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions said it will be continuing to "manage its response to the increasing use of technology in the criminal justice system". It said digitisation, automation, and data collaboration were initiatives high on its priority list.
The Lotteries Commission has received a bunch of funding, including AU$2 million to develop business operating systems, AU$3.4