ABSTRACT
The New York City government is one of the largest organizations in the United States, with a budget of $21.5 billion and employment of roughly 330,000 persons of which 140,000 are within the mayoral agencies. In large measure the new push to computerize the city's administration may be regarded as an outgrowth of the fiscal crisis. As a result of the extreme pressure generated by the budget crisis, a number of developments took place that contributed significantly to the new era of computerization. Office of Computer Plans and Controls, organized within the mayor's office, has become a clearing agency for approving equipment purchases and for developing new computerization projects. The lesson for public sector organizations and private sector firms as well, is that budgetary considerations are not likely to long delay initiatives in computerization once a major effort to modernize has been mounted.
