PRIA records are still held by airlines. Airmen records are supposedly being digitized in OKC.

For a government agency to undertake a massive IT effort such as scanning millions of documents or setting up a massive database (like a centralized PRIA database), funding is required. Manpower is required.

The FAA operates on a shoestring budget with a minimal staff that is constantly fluctuating with every reauthorization act/administration. After repeated series of Republican budget cuts at the Federal level over the last decade, it shouldn't surprise anyone that things are still stored on microfilm in OKC.