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The province also had to give municipalities an additional $10 million to cover overtime pay for staff who were dealing with upset recipients.

At one point last December, just a month after it went online, SAMS queued up $20 million in overpayments for people living on social assistance.

More than seven million cheques have now been issued properly, and the case workers in municipalities are much more comfortable with the system, added Jaczek.

“Through the last several months there’s been additional training and materials to help people feel a lot more confident,” she said. “We’ve ensured a lot more support is available for the front line workers.”

The province moved to SAMS after the auditor general criticized the previous computer system used for social assistance payments, which Jaczek said had cost $745 million and didn’t do nearly as much as the new system.

“The ongoing support and maintenance of SAMS will be $55 million, about $5 million less than the old system,” she said. “We’re seeing a stable system that, at the end of the day, is going to do what it’s supposed to do.”

The Progressive Conservatives said it would take 10 years before there’s any real savings from SAMS’ lower operating costs because the project is $50 million over budget.

“The government’s SAMS implementation has been an absolute mess,” said PC critic Randy Petttapiece. “It’s 19 months behind scheduled and has already racked up costs of nearly $300 million.”

The New Democrats blamed Liberal negligence and mismanagement for the cost over runs and problems with the SAMS system.

“The blame for the ongoing failure of the SAMS system rests squarely on the shoulders of (Premier) Kathleen Wynne and her government,” said NDP critic Monique Taylor. “Unfortunately, Ontarians are stuck paying the price.”