Department: District Courts
Department Head: Richard Woods
Regular or Supplemental RCA: Regular RCA
Type of Request: Investment Memo
Investment Memo Type: Final Investment Memo
Project Name: Civil Courthouse Audio/Video Systems Upgrade
Project ID (if applicable): AVEQUIPUPGRADE
Vendor Legal Name (if applicable): N/A
MWDBE Contracted Goal (if applicable): N/A
MWDBE Current Achievement (if applicable): N/A
Justification for 0% MWDBE Participation Goal: N/A - Goal not applicable to request
Managing Entity: (1) The Administrative Office of the District Courts and (2) the Harris County Office of Court Management
Incremental Authorization Requested: $5,900,000
Total Estimated Project Cost: $5,970,000
Request Summary:
title
Request for approval of the Final Investment Memo for the Civil Courthouse Audio/Video System Upgrade project for an additional authorization of $5,900,000 for a total authorization of $5,970,000 and request for approval of commercial paper funding in the additional amount of $5,000,000 for a total of $5,070,000.
end
Project Description:
This project aims to upgrade the courtroom’s evidence presentation systems in the Harris County Civil Courthouse. The upgrade will replace audio-visual technology that has been in use for seventeen years, which practitioners rely on daily. This upgrade will make the courtroom not only more reliable but also state-of-the-art. Additionally, the project will enable seamless integration with video conferencing platforms. This integration will facilitate exceptional audio quality, video hearings, remote testimonies, and manage overflow from the courtrooms, thereby offering greater access to the Courts.
This project is one of two A/V system replacement projects proposed in a previously approved preliminary investment memo which funded the design for building-wide courtroom A/V system replacements in the Harris County Civil Courthouse and the Harris County Criminal Justice Center. Over the coming months, the Criminal Justice Center design will be completed, at which point funding will be requested through a final investment memo, specifically for the Criminal Justice Center project. The Criminal Justice Center A/V system replacement project will be similar to the Civil Courthouse project in size, scope, and cost.
Project Scope:
This project will replace all existing courtroom audio/video systems in the Civil Courthouse, which includes twenty-four (24) Civil District Courts, ten (10) Family District Courts, one (1) tax courtroom, four (4) County Civil Courts, four (4) Probate Courts, and one (1) Ceremonial Courtroom, for a total of forty-four (44) courtrooms.
Each courtroom will be under construction for between one and two weeks. Courts will schedule around project construction, the details of which will vary between courts and court divisions. No additional cost is expected in relation to this scheduling.
All systems will be identical in terms of design, components, and functionality, with the exception of the Ceremonial Courtroom on the 17th floor. The Ceremonial Courtroom will have a very similar system as compared to the rest of the courtrooms but scaled to its uniquely large courtroom size. This includes additional microphones, speakers, attorney table monitors, and lengthier runs of various audio and video cabling.
The design phase of this project was completed in Q3 of 2023, and has determined the scope of this project will include the following core system components:
• System Control: Crestron touch panel control screens will allow the judge and attorneys to control the evidence presented to the system, which displays it is presented on, and the audio system for the room.
• Video: The system includes a digital projector mounted above the jury box and displayed to a 92” motorized projector screen. Individual LCD displays are included for the judge’s bench, counsel tables, witness stand, court reporter station, and juror positions. Annotation capabilities exist for the witness displays and the counsel tables. The additional video outputs exist for a Voir Dire display. All displays can receive system output as a group, or with different content on each group of displays. Video inputs include several digital interfaces for laptops and other digital sources located at attorney tables, as well as a document camera.
• Audio: The backbone of the audio systems is the BiAmp Tesira audio platform, including a Digital Signal Processor (DSP) and associated components. All existing speakers are being replaced with newer models and shielded cabling. Microphones will be installed at the judge’s bench, counsel tables, witness stand, sidebar location, and ceiling-mounted microphones above the audience primarily for Voir Dire. The system can emit a white noise for sidebar conferences. The court reporter station includes a headphone jack and USB digital audio output. Audio systems include assisted listening infra-red transmitters and receivers.
• Remote Proceedings: Each system includes three cameras for virtual and hybrid proceedings. Two cameras are ceiling-mounted, together capturing the entire courtroom (except for the jury), and the third is bench-mounted and gallery-facing to capture bench proceedings.
Justification:
Two primary justifications exist for this project: (1) industry-standard technologies have changed from analog to digital equipment, and (2) the existing systems are the original technology installed in 2006 when the Civil Courthouse building construction was completed.
Changing Technology: Legal practitioners and jurors in the courts have come to rely on the availability of evidence presentation systems to conduct trials and hearings. Increasingly, the high-definition content and laptops brought into the courts are incompatible with the current display systems. Implementing this project would result in lower long-term equipment support costs; currently, repair costs are rising, and analog video components are increasingly difficult to procure. The current systems are based on outdated analog video technology and will not support newer laptops and other devices designed to present only digital video (HDMI or Display port).
Harris County courts pioneered virtual appearance capabilities early in the COVID-19 pandemic, resulting in an opportunity to enhance access to courts for any purpose, and for many years to come. These systems will include permanent virtual appearance capabilities, to the benefit of both normal and emergency operations.
State of Disrepair: Existing systems are in varying states of disrepair caused by the age of current analog and obsolete technologies. Finding replacement parts for the current technologies is very difficult and repair costs are exorbitant. Many courtrooms have inoperable audio or video components. A system-wide replacement will result in cost savings in terms of supportability, and improved system reliability.
This project supports the following goal areas and priority outcomes:
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Goal Area |
Support Function |
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Justice & Safety |
This project will result in the installation of audio/video systems that serve as the backbone of trial court evidence presentation. |
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Economic Opportunity |
A core purpose of courts is to serve as an impartial forum for the resolution of legal disputes. This ensures the rule of law and protection of individual rights, as well as the rights of businesses and other organizations in matters related to civil law. Evidence presentation is a critical part of a trial court’s function. |
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Governance and Customer Service |
These systems will provide the public with reliable and versatile evidence presentation capabilities, using a system designed to operate for a period of 10 years. Components selected for this system are specifically chosen for reliability and longevity, which provides the public with excellent courtroom evidence presentation options while minimizing the need for costly repairs or near-term system replacements. It also provides a consistent experience for litigants and the public, ensuring courtrooms are identical in aesthetic, but more importantly in functionality and predictability. |
Alternatives and Engagement:
There are no alternatives to this project as proposed. It has been deemed necessary by District Courts, County Courts, and county officials both inside and outside of the justice environment. This project has already been delayed multiple times due to funding challenges, Hurricane Harvey, and the COVID19 pandemic. Any further delay is not an option and puts the Courts at high risk to have a significant interruption in court operations and backlog reduction efforts which all depend on reliable technology needed for evidence presentation.
Anticipated Project Expenditures and Timeline:
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Scope of Work |
Estimated Cost |
Estimated Completion |
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Design, build bid package, advertise project, RFP process, and award contract |
$46,750 |
Already CIP Funded |
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Equipment cost |
$4,282,130 |
FY2024 |
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Contracted labor cost (first half of project) |
$530,345 |
FY2024 |
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Contracted labor cost (project completion) |
$530,346 |
FY2025 |
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Contingency |
$557,179 |
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Total |
$5,900,000 |
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Alignment with Goal(s):
X Justice and Safety
X Economic Opportunity
_ Housing
_ Public Health
_ Transportation
_ Flooding
_ Environment
X Governance and Customer Service
Previous Court Action:
|
Date |
Agenda Item # |
Action Taken |
|
May 11, 2021 |
168 |
Vote in favor (unanimous) of “Request by the Harris County District Courts, Harris County Courts at Law, Administrative Office of the District Courts, and Office of Court Management for approval of funding for the estimated cost for final design work for Audio/Video systems in the Civil and Criminal Courthouses: $35,000 for system design and specification for Audio/Video systems in the Harris County Civil Courthouse and $35,000 for system design and specifications for Audio/Video systems in the Harris County Criminal Justice Center, for a total Preliminary Investment of $70,000 for both projects.” |
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Address: 201 Caroline St, Houston, TX 77002
Precinct(s): Precinct 1
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Fiscal and Personnel Summary |
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Service Name |
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FY 24 |
FY 25 |
Next 3 FYs |
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Incremental Expenditures (do NOT write values in thousands or millions) |
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Labor Expenditures |
$ |
$ |
$ |
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Non-Labor Expenditures |
$5,000,000 |
$ |
$ |
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Total Incremental Expenditures |
$5,000,000 |
$ |
$ |
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Funding Sources (do NOT write values in thousands or millions) |
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Existing Budget |
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Choose an item. |
$ |
$ |
$ |
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$ |
$ |
$ |
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$ |
$ |
$ |
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Total Current Budget |
$ |
$ |
$ |
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Additional Budget Requested |
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Commercial Paper |
$5,000,000 |
$ |
$ |
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Choose an item. |
$ |
$ |
$ |
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$ |
$ |
$ |
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Total Additional Budget Requested |
$5,000,000 |
$ |
$ |
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Total Funding Sources |
$5,000,000 |
$ |
$ |
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Personnel (Fill out section only if requesting new PCNs) |
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Current Position Count for Service |
- |
- |
- |
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Additional Positions Requested |
- |
- |
- |
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Total Personnel |
- |
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Anticipated Court Date: January 30, 2024
Anticipated Implementation Date (if different from Court date):
Legal funding compliance confirmed by: Paige Abernathy, Assistant County Attorney, 12/20/2023
Department Approval by: Richard Woods (DCA)
OMB CIP Team Approval by: William McGuinness, Director-Capital Projects and Infrastructure, 1/2/2024
Commercial Paper Request (For OMB use only):
Receiving Department: District Courts
Project PeopleSoft ID: AVEQUIPUPGRAD
CP Series Description: Commercial Paper A-1 is used to (1) pay contractual obligations incurred or to be incurred for the construction of and the purchase of fixtures, equipment and machinery for or in connection with the County's criminal and civil justice centers, the County's firefighter training facility, (2) pay contractual obligations incurred or to be incurred for the purchase of automobiles and other vehicles, equipment and machinery, including computers, materials and supplies for the operations of the County precincts and departments and other authorized needs and purposes including services provided by engineers, architects, attorneys, auditors, financial advisors.
Commercial Paper is being requested for the Civil Courthouse Audio/Video System Upgrade project and is expected to be repaid within the next three fiscal years either through bonds, budgetary means or pay-as-you-go sources.
OMB Financial Management contact: Amy Perez, Deputy Executive Director, Office of Management and Budget