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City seeks to consolidate clerk, HR, assessor and IT into new Department of Finance & Administration
Summary
City leaders proposed creating a new Department of Finance & Administration to centralize the Clerk/Treasurer office, human resources, assessment and IT functions; the move aims to modernize systems, centralize software and improve cross-departmental services.
City administrators presented a plan to consolidate the Clerk/Treasurer’s office, Human Resources, Assessor functions and Innovation/IT into a single Department of Finance & Administration (DFA) as part of FY26 organizational changes.
Catherine Shaw, the city’s chief administrative officer, said the new department would combine revenue-collection functions with payroll, HR policy, assessment and centralized IT management. “We are the backbone of the city,” Shaw told the Board of Finance, noting the change is meant to improve modern governance, software centralization and data-driven operations.
Why it matters: City officials said the consolidation will centralize systems such as payroll and financial enterprise resource planning, standardize user-fee processes and reduce duplicated software purchases. Officials also cited cyber security and a new vehicle telematics rollout as reasons to centralize IT spending and oversight.
What leaders told councilors Shaw and other department heads said the move is not a simple merging of budgets but a redefinition of responsibilities. Two data-team positions previously housed in planning were described as moving back to IT where they formerly sat; administrators said no loss of data function is expected. “Those positions are just moving back to IMT where they used to sit before,” Shaw said.
The city will begin an RFP and planning process for a new ERP financial system and could consolidate procurement with Burlington Electric Department to seek economies of scale; officials estimated a 12–18 month implementation timeline once a vendor is chosen. CIO Scott Barker (introduced as Scott Parker in the presentation) described planned server upgrades and incremental camera and system refreshes to create a replacement cycle for public-safety and surveillance infrastructure.
Questions and next steps Councilors asked about head counts in the new department, how many positions exist per function and how workflows will be rationalized. Shaw and department heads said more-detailed org charts would be provided; they also said the fiscal 26 budget documents would be combined into a single DFA budget for the council later in the year.
Shaw’s presentation cited threats including budget constraints, bargaining uncertainties and employee morale; she and other leaders emphasized opportunities to modernize budgeting, centralize software contracts and improve service delivery for residents.
Ending note Officials said they will provide detailed staffing tables and process maps as the consolidation proceeds and asked councilors to send follow-up questions by email. The administration is planning to bring the combined budget line into the council packet before the final vote on the city budget.
