Title
Approval of Appropriations Ordinance in the Amount of $65,476 for Law Enforcement Records Management System (LERMS) Administrator
Recommended Action
Committee Recommendation:
Not referred to a committee.
City Manager Recommendation:
Move to approve the appropriations ordinance in the amount of $65,476 and increase the Police Department budget by the same amount.
Report
Issue:
The attached ordinance appropriates $65,476 of funding from the LERMS consortium for Systems Administrator services and increases the Police Department budget by the same amount to provide the services, including .5 FTE.
Staff Contact:
Laura Wohl, Administrative Services Manager, Olympia Police Department, 360.753.8214
Presenter(s):
NA - Consent item
Background and Analysis:
The background and analysis have not changed from first to second reading.
The LERMS consortium consists of the cities of Lacey, Olympia, Tenino, Tumwater, and Yelm. The five jurisdictions share a law enforcement records management system that houses all data related to policing activity. The consortium was developed so that the jurisdictions could share the expense of the complex system and so that law enforcement information can be shared throughout the region.
The LERMS consortium implemented a new system in 2013. The system is significantly more robust that the previous software used by the consortium. It is also substantially more complex. The Executive Board of the consortium, on which the Chiefs of Police from each jurisdiction sit, has determined that a Systems Administrator is required to manage the system: to coordinate software changes with the vendor; to manage training for users; to ensure the five cities use the system in a consistent manner; etc.
The City of Olympia has an employee with the requisite skills and abilities to provide the services. On March 25, 2015, the Executive Board voted to contract with the City of Olympia for Systems Administrator services that will be provided by the City of Olympia employee. The member cities allocated an additional $65,476 to fund the contract which will be paid to the City of Olympia.
The attached ordinance appropriates the funds and increases the Police Department's budget accordingly to pay for the employee's services to the consortium.
Neighborhood/Community Interests (if known):
NA
Options:
1. Approve the appropriations ordinance, which will provide funding for the Systems Administrator services to the LERMS consortium.
2. Do not approve the ordinance and direct the City of Olympia Chief of Police, as the City's representative to the LERMS Executive Board, to seek out other alternatives for securing the services.
Financial Impact:
$65,476 appropriated