Skamania County approves Tyler Technologies ERP contract, not-to-exceed $1.112 million

Skamania County commissioners voted to approve a contract with Tyler Technologies on March 25 that county staff said will replace the county's aging Eden enterprise resource planning (ERP) system.

County officials said the board approved a not-to-exceed contract totaling $1,112,000 for a five-year term to cover software, professional services and optional modules. "The not to exceed amount totals $1,112,000 for a 5 year, term," Heidi said during the workshop discussing the procurement.

The contract covers core accounts payable, general ledger, budgeting, human resources and grants modules, with optional add-ons such as capital assets and inventory modules. Heidi said the county is "99% positive that we want to purchase the capital assets module, and we also want to purchase the inventory module" because those modules would help the sheriff's office meet asset-tracking needs identified in last year's audit.

County staff and the board emphasized timing as a driver: Eden is scheduled to sunset in 2027 and project staff recommended a July start to preserve a specialized Tyler/Eden migration team and to target an 18- to 24-month implementation period. "If we don't get a contract soon, then we're gonna get bumped out to October," Heidi warned; she said earlier start could reduce the implementation timeline toward the 18-month end.

The contract includes a five-year maintenance component. Staff said annual maintenance increases are limited to 4% per year after the initial term. Commissioners and staff discussed a change-order process so optional modules would be brought back to the board for approval if required.

The board made and seconded a motion to approve the contract; the chair called for the ayes and the motion carried.

Why this matters: moving from Eden to a modern ERP will change how the county processes payroll, accounts payable, budgeting and asset tracking and will require sustained staff involvement across departments during implementation.

Implementation details and next steps: staff said the project will require departmental subject-matter-expert time during development, and that change orders (for optional modules) would be returned to the board for visibility and approval. The county will lock in quoted pricing through the not-to-exceed contract while decisions on optional modules are finalized.

ACTIONS: Motion to approve the Tyler Technologies contract (not-to-exceed $1,112,000), motion made and seconded, outcome: approved.