Tech official leaves amid Ohio allegations.

Byline: Carol Marbin Miller

Feb. 16--The new chief of technology at the state Department of Children & Families resigned late Tuesday after agency officials learned he had been faulted by officials at a previous job in Ohio for accepting gifts from a technology company that had won a $1.9 million contract.

John R. Hurd was also criticized in a separate investigation by the Ohio Inspector General's Office for appearing in several advertisements for the company, Novell, and allowing the company to run endorsements by him on its website.

"We do not find Mr. Hurd enjoyed any financial gain from his endorsement of Novell," the Jan. 4, 2000, report said. But the report added: "Mr. Hurd's actions clearly give rise to the appearance of impropriety and a potential conflict of interest."

Hurd, who began his new job in Tallahassee on Friday, was to be paid $104,000 a year. Agency officials were hoping Hurd could help revive the department's efforts to build a workable child-welfare computer system. HomeSafenet. The system is as much as $200 million over budget and years behind schedule.

Hurd was hired by DCF about seven months after the long-troubled department's top two technology officials resigned amid allegations they accepted trips, hotel stays and free massages from technology vendors.

Since last summer, seven top-level DCF officials have resigned or been fired, including former Secretary Jerry Regier, in the wake of a scandal involving wide-ranging allegations of influence peddling and cronyism.