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Council approves switch to BS&A Online for payments; city projects $24,000 annual savings
Summary
The council voted to move the city's third‑party payment processing to BS&A Online, a real‑time system the finance director said will save about $24,000 annually on the city side and change some transaction fees for residents.
The Eastpointe City Council on June 3 approved a staff recommendation to replace the city’s current third‑party payment providers with BS&A Online for real‑time processing of municipal payments, authorizing the finance director to process necessary documents.
Finance Director Blanton explained to the council that the city currently uses two providers (DivDat and Point & Pay) that require daily file transfers and a kiosk that generates transactions not all tied to Eastpointe; moving to BS&A Online will show payments in real time and eliminate kiosk-monthly costs. Blanton told the council removing the kiosk will save the city roughly $24,000 a year. The council approved the change on roll call; Council member DeMonaco voted no.
Blanton described fee changes across transaction types: small utility payments may cost less because BS&A charges 2.95% plus a 50¢ fee on small transactions (versus prior minimums charged by the old providers), taxes would be charged at 2.8% under BS&A (a reduction), and larger transactions could incur an additional 50¢ per transaction. The city will not absorb credit‑card fees; residents using certain online e‑check (ACH) options may face new charges depending on how the payment type is configured. The council discussed separately that court payment processing remains a distinct arrangement and the kiosk could be transferred to the court if desired; that would be a budget-neutral internal transfer rather than a city savings.
Council discussion noted that about 40% of kiosk transactions originated from non‑Eastpointe users (for example, payments for other utilities), and staff said the move will consolidate services and reduce costs. The council did not attach new rate changes to the motion; staff will implement the provider change and finalize fee schedules and customer notices.
The roll call for the motion to move to BS&A Online recorded Council member Curley — yes; Council member Shadlik — yes; Mayor Kleinfeld — yes; Council member Rob Baker — yes; Council member DeMonaco — no.
