Civica secures AU$103m contract with Victorian government

Digital solutions provider Civica has locked down a AU$103.6 million contract with the Victorian Department of Justice that will see it build a custom infringements enforcement and warrants management system with ongoing support for eight years.

The Victorian Infringement Enforcement and Warrants (VIEW) system will support the introduction of the Fines Reform Act [PDF] in Victoria.

Replacing a legacy system, the VIEW system will allow the Victorian government to manage the collection of fines, civil judgement debts, and victim compensation orders.

This includes improved verification, processing, and monitoring of infringement notices, as well as an "enhanced" experience for both citizens receiving and staff assigning infringement notices and fines.

Richard Fiddis, managing director for Civica International, said the VIEW system will offer better functionality and flexibility.

"With the Fine Reforms Act coming into effect from January 1, 2018, the new system will also ensure that the Department of Justice is addressing the changes in the legal environment," Fiddis told ZDNet. "Citizens will be able to access a single portal that gives them a full view of all fines, infringements and enforcements in Victoria including their history."

"The state will have lower cost, more efficient processes and better revenue collection as well as the opportunity to manage debt collection campaigns and preventative activities."

In April this year, Premier Daniel Andrews announced the Victorian government was allocating AU$36.8 million to upgrade the police force.

As part of the upgrade, frontline officers would be armed with body-worn video cameras to allow them to capture footage in the line of duty, and also receive tablets in a bid to reduce time spent in the office filling out paperwork.

During the 2015-16 New South Wales Budget, AU$100 million was allocated to enable NSW Police to deploy fingerprint scanners, tablets, and TruNarc machines to allow police to scan for multiple narcotics using a simple hand-held machine.

The department's budget also included AU$3.65 million to continue the allocation of body-worn video cameras, an initiative previously flagged as a success by the state's Deputy Premier and Minister for Police, Troy Grant.

In August, the New South Wales government launched a beta version of a new smartphone app called Fuel Check to provide citizens with real-time updates on petrol prices across the state.

It also launched an integration with Google's Android Pay in August, allowing customers to use the digital platform to pay for government services at all Service NSW centres across the state.

On Monday, the New South Wales government made the first wave of its digital licences available through the new "My Licences" digital wallet in the latest version of the Service NSW app.