Adequate financial resources were identified as necessary to take advantage of the promises of information integration projects. Support from state and federal grants was considered a persistent success factor. How resources were used also seemed to influence success. Using resources in an enterprise-wide manner, in particular, was found to be a factor in achieving success. Financial support was often seen as an incentive to reduce resistance to participation. In addition, the cases indicate that the availability of financial support resulted in more agencies being willing to move forward on the changes necessary to support technology and data compatibility. Adequate financial resources allowed those agencies that were resistant based on a lack of their own resources to consider the opportunities of integration independent of the impact on local, already constrained budgets.

Many of the initiatives reviewed in this study received funding from state or Federal sources. However, governments have found other ways to fund integration initiatives. For example, in Marin County, the Criminal Justice Information System began when key officials from four neighboring counties in California pooled money to begin its development.