San Patricio County approves voluntary countywide cell-phone plan for elected officials and department heads

San Patricio County Commissioners Court voted to approve a voluntary, countywide cell-phone plan for elected officials and department heads, with staff to handle onboarding and payroll changes.

Steven Gonzales, information systems manager, presented vendor quotes and told the court that T‑Mobile’s two-year quote shows potential savings compared with current allowances. Gonzales said, "From all the 3 vendors, I think T‑Mobile kind of stepped up and actually have what we need as far as the management piece." He said the county would pay an initial setup cost for device-management software and that the monthly management service would be included in the per-device charge.

Court discussion emphasized the plan would be voluntary. The judge said, "I don't wanna make it mandatory. Not right now." Staff and commissioners described a phased, volunteer rollout: employees who opt in would relinquish their phone allowance, the county would switch groups of users simultaneously to avoid payroll errors, and employees would be asked to use a secondary device rather than port a personal number. Gonzales relayed carriers’ recommendations that employees not port personal numbers: "They would advise not to port over your personal number. Just do a secondary phone."

Commissioners asked about coverage and contingency communications. Gonzales and other speakers noted that T‑Mobile has priorities and backup programs that can help maintain text messaging during outages and is exploring additional priority services later in the year. Staff also referenced the federal GETS program (Government Emergency Telecommunications Service) as existing backup access for first responders and elected officials.

The court approved a motion to implement the plan on a voluntary basis, directed information-technology and auditor staff to prepare a memo describing the sign-up process, and asked that an onboarding date be set after coordination with the auditor’s office. Carrier representatives and commissioners told the court that carriers generally do not recommend county-paid insurance for devices because insurance costs can negate the savings; employees would be expected to cover device-damage costs out of pocket or use carrier repair options.

The plan’s rollout timeline was left to staff and the auditor to finalize; staff suggested a target onboarding process in June but commissioners directed staff to confirm logistics before a firm start date.