A D.C. Council member this week chided the mayor’s administration for developing a telecommunications utility that has yet to realize any promised savings — and is costing the District millions of dollars more than expected.

Council Member Kwame Brown on Monday challenged the entire philosophy behind DC-Net, the District’s internal fiber-optic voice and data network, which is specifically designed to shift the city away from Verizon. He offered his opinion as City Administrator Robert Bobb testified on the need for $6.8 million “to cover a shortfall in revenue” in the two-year-old system.