Brown County approves amendment to Tyler Technologies agreement to add enterprise records module

Brown County Commissioners Court approved an amendment to the county's agreement with Tyler Technologies on a cooperative purchasing contract to add an enterprise records management module that will be used by the county clerk and to continue the county's broader migration off its legacy NetData systems.

County staff told commissioners the broader Tyler implementation covers multiple modules — the justice/court suite, financial/HR (Tyler DRP Pro), public safety (records management and computer-aided dispatch) and the enterprise records module for land and public records — and that the county is roughly 10% into the overall program. Staff said the county signed the primary contract in December and began onboarding in March, and that some modules (the jury system) are expected to go live this summer while the larger court and financial pieces are scheduled through 2026.

The amendment before the court was limited to the enterprise records module (county clerk records and land records). Staff summarized the financial terms included in the packet: a one-time conversion/setup/training figure reported as $63,990 plus hardware listed at $2,002.50 (packet math presented by staff produced a $66,024.00 one-time conversion/setup total), and an annual recurring hosting/support fee shown in the packet of approximately $33,087 for year one with higher annual amounts listed for subsequent years in the three‑year pricing outline provided. Staff said Tyler had offered a year‑one discount under the Sourcewell cooperative purchasing arrangement but would not extend that discount for years two or three.

Commissioners and staff discussed implementation sequencing and dependencies: staff emphasized the project will only meet the sheriff's goals for countywide records and dispatch if the city and county use compatible Tyler versions and if dispatch partners agree to move to the cloud/current Tyler release. Staff said the county's target goal is to be live on Tyler prior to Oct. 1, 2026, which aligns with the county's annual renewal date with NetData, but that the most complex module (full court/jail/jury) has an expected go‑live in August 2026 on the vendor's timeline.

On procedural questions commissioners asked about contract terms, whether annual fees are billed only after each module goes live, and whether proration would be available for offices that begin using a module midterm. Staff said conversion and implementation are fixed costs while the annual hosting/support fee is billed as modules go live; staff also said offices would not be charged the annual support fee until they begin using their Tyler module. Commissioners asked staff to clarify a line‑item that appeared to show 332 implementation hours and an inflated hourly number; staff explained the packet combined fixed conversion subtotals with hourly implementation estimates and agreed to follow up with a detailed breakdown from Tyler.

The court then moved and seconded approval of the amendment covering the enterprise records module and related amendment language; the motion was presented to proceed with the agreement as outlined in the packet and to mark the contract effective on the meeting date. Staff said the total multi‑year financial commitment shown in the packet includes one‑time conversion/setup and three years of recurring fees, but that cashflow across fiscal years will be spread as modules are implemented and billed.

Commissioners asked staff to obtain and circulate a clearer itemized estimate from Tyler showing the fixed conversion fees, the hourly implementation work mix, and the schedule of when budgeted charges are anticipated to hit the current and next fiscal year budgets. Staff identified Gina Sewell as the Tyler project lead assigned to the county and said Tyler team members had already been meeting on‑site with county IT and functional departments.

Next steps recorded in the meeting record: staff will request a clarified cost breakdown from Tyler, ensure the amendment effective date is marked in the contract paperwork, send a scanned signed contract copy to commissioners, and continue coordination with the city and other public‑safety partners about timeline and version alignment.

Ending: The amendment approval will obligate the county to the conversion work and establish the recurring annual fees for the enterprise records module; staff acknowledged more detailed billing and implementation timelines will be provided to the commissioners for budget planning and to address outstanding questions about prorations and the Sourcewell discount.