Department: Management and Budget
Department Head/Elected Official: Daniel Ramos, Executive Director
Regular or Supplemental RCA: Regular RCA
Type of Request: Commercial Paper
Project ID (if applicable): TBD
Vendor/Entity Legal Name (if applicable): N/A
MWDBE Contracted Goal (if applicable): N/A
MWDBE Current Participation (if applicable): N/A
Justification for 0% MWDBE Participation Goal: N/A - Goal not applicable to request
Request Summary (Agenda Caption):
title
Request for approval of commercial paper funding for Elections Administrator for the Election Management System project in the amount of $1,145,000.
end
Background and Discussion:
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 Election Management System project and is expected to be repaid within the next three fiscal years either through bonds, budgetary means or pay-as-you-go sources.
HB 1869 compliance confirmed by: Michael James, Senior Assistant County Attorney, August 22, 2022.
Expected Impact:
This project would supply a replacement of the current Election Management System utilized by the Election Administration Office (EA), VEMACS, which was last updated in 2003. Harris County Elections teams have used the VEMACS system to house voter registration rolls, election data, election worker payroll, voting location information, voter registration boundaries, mapping, and other functions. Since that time, substantial advancements have been made in the information technology space in the form of cloud servers, automation languages, integrated systems, mobile functionality, etc., that have outpaced the capabilities of VEMACS. Additionally, Oracle, the underlying system that supports VEMACS, will no longer support this older infrastructure beginning in May 2022. Universal Services and the Elections Office request investment in a new Election Management System.
Alternative Options:
Delay: As voter registration continues to expand and contemporary software becomes more cloud-based and streamlined, it becomes apparent that delaying a complete overhaul only allows for opportunities for inefficiencies and gaps. Delaying could also mean a new system is implemented just ahead of a major election, such as November 2024 Presidential Election, where the opportunity to utilize the system for the first time in a smaller election is lost.
Do not pursue: Harris County Universal Services transitioned to take over the IT function for the EA office. Previously all elections-related IT fell to the responsibility of the County Clerk (elections) and the Tax Office (voter registration). Currently, there are two different election management systems that the US is required to maintain. In evaluating the systems, Universal Services determined there are no viable alternatives except replacement because of the age of the technology used in VEMACS.
Alignment with Goal(s):
_ Justice and Safety
_ Economic Opportunity
_ Housing
_ Public Health
_ Transportation
_ Flooding
_ Environment
X Governance and Customer Service
Prior Court Action (if any):
|
Date |
Agenda Item # |
Action Taken |
|
8/10/2021 |
325 |
Commissioner’s Court approved starting the RFP process for an Election Management System. |
|
6/28/2022 |
251 |
Commissioner’s Court approved funding as part of the Office of Management and Budget of baseline budget expectations for FY22-23 accounting for cost drivers of labor and non-labor related costs to maintain the current level of service being provided by County departments. In the amount of Yearly SaaS fees- approximately $1,500,000, The one-time fees for implementation services: $820,000, and Year 1 one-time fees for Project Management: $220,000. |
Location:
Address (if applicable): N/A
Precinct(s): Countywide
|
Fiscal and Personnel Summary |
|
Service Name |
Election Technology |
|
|
SFY 22 |
FY 23 |
Next 3 FYs |
|
Incremental Expenditures (do NOT write values in thousands or millions) |
|
Labor Expenditures |
$ |
$ |
$ |
|
Non-Labor Expenditures |
$1,145,000 |
$ |
$ |
|
Total Incremental Expenditures |
$1,145,000 |
$ |
$ |
|
Funding Sources (do NOT write values in thousands or millions) |
|
Existing Budget |
|
Choose an item. |
$ |
$ |
$ |
|
Choose an item. |
$ |
$ |
$ |
|
Choose an item. |
$ |
$ |
$ |
|
Total Current Budget |
$ |
$ |
$ |
|
Additional Budget Requested |
|
Commercial Paper |
$1,145,000 |
$ |
$ |
|
Choose an item. |
$ |
$ |
$ |
|
Choose an item. |
$ |
$ |
$ |
|
Total Additional Budget Requested |
$1,145,000 |
$ |
$ |
|
Total Funding Sources |
$1,145,000 |
$ |
$ |
|
Personnel (Fill out section only if requesting new PCNs) |
|
Current Position Count for Service |
- |
- |
- |
|
Additional Positions Requested |
- |
- |
- |
|
Total Personnel |
- |
- |
- |
Anticipated Court Date: September 27, 2022
Anticipated Implementation Date (if different from Court date):
Emergency/Disaster Recovery Note: Not an emergency, disaster, or COVID-19 related item
Contact(s) name, title, department: Amy Perez, Deputy Executive Director, Office of Management and Budget
Attachments (if applicable): N/A