Committee approves up to three-year contract with Simply Verify LLC for electronic background checks

A Tuscaloosa City committee approved a professional services contract with Simply Verify LLC for an electronic background-check service, staff said; the contract term was described as not to exceed three years.

“So this is a request for approval of a professional services contract with Simply Verify LLC, not to exceed 3 years,” Miss Herbert, a city staff member, said during the meeting. Herbert said the change will move background checks from a paper process to an electronic workflow in which applicants receive texts or emails to enter their information.

Herbert described the expense as budgeted and said the per-applicant cost depends on factors such as how many places an applicant has lived and the jurisdictions involved. “As I understand this, it will depend on the applicant as to how much it cost basically. Yes, sir. It depends on how many places they've lived, the state they live, even down to the county or jurisdiction they live. But it it does vary, but it's it's budgeted,” she said.

Committee members moved and seconded the request; a voice vote followed and members responded “Aye,” approving the contract. The meeting record did not include a detailed vendor cost breakdown, a total contract ceiling beyond the three-year term, or whether the city solicited competitive bids; those details were not specified during the discussion.

Herbert said the electronic checks would require applicants to enter information by text or email; she did not provide an estimated per-applicant cost or projected annual volume. The committee did not set a start date or reporting requirements during the discussion.