Have you ever wondered why your $30 telephone service ends up costing you more than $50 by the time all the taxes are factored in? Well, here's part of the reason.

Atlanta Public Schools' stockpile of unused computer electronics totals at least $4.5 million --- about $1.1 million more than previously known. [...]

The equipment, purchased by APS under the national E-rate program, included more than 25 sets of sophisticated switching devices used to route Internet traffic through cyberspace. Atlanta purchased that type of switch in 1999 but replaced it with more sophisticated components during the next two years. [...]

The newspaper's investigation found that Atlanta bought more equipment than it needed, routinely overpaid for goods and services and could not account for some equipment on funding requests. [...]

In response to the article, APS divided equipment purchased with E-rate money into two rooms: one full of equipment that may yet be installed in schools and another with older, obsolete gear. [that was never even used]

The newer equipment includes 31 switching devices manufactured by Cisco Systems, each costing as much as $100,000, neatly stacked against a wall. The switches are among Cisco's most sophisticated networking hardware. With modifications, a single switch is powerful enough to run a small school district's network.

Seven of the switches were in unopened cartons with labels showing shipping dates between May 2000 and September 2001. E-rate ruless require school districts to install equipment in the year it is purchased and in the school for which it was approved.

Officials still don't know how to dispose of the older equipment. The older switching devices cost about $65,000 each five years ago, but it is unclear how much they might be worth now. Three years ago, APS traded in similar components for credits of $7,500 to $30,000 per device against the purchase of newer equipment.

E-rate pays up to 90 percent of equipment costs needed to bring Internet access to classrooms and libraries. The program is financed by a monthly fee collected from telephone customers.

This is much more common than you think. Government budgets are inflexible and usually months behind schedule. And of course if all the money is not used, it doesn't roll over to the next year. Like goldfish who don't know when their next meal might come, public institutions of all kinds are prone to buying equipment just for the sake of buying equipment. For IT equipment, that means that more often than not, warranties expire on the shelf, and obsolescence sets in very quickly.