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County approves Tablet Command mapping and incident-management system for fire operations, funded with Homeland Security and mitigation fees
Summary
Supervisors authorized a three-year service agreement for Tablet Command to provide mapping, incident management and vehicle-location tools for fire operations, plus cellular connectivity and CAD integration; the county will use Homeland Security grant funds and mitigation fees to cover startup costs.
The Board approved a three-year service agreement with Tablet Command, a mobile incident-management and mapping system, and authorized related connectivity and CAD-integration charges.
Fire department staff described the system as an integrated incident-management tool that time-stamps tasks, provides firefighter accountability, supports mapping with Esri integration and offers automatic-vehicle-location data for closest-unit dispatch. Fire Chief Lancer said the system also supports offline data capture that syncs when a cellular connection is restored, and that El Centro Fire — which has purchased the system — will be able to share resource visibility under an automatic-aid arrangement.
Cost and funding: Chief Lancer told the board the revised three-year package totals approximately $1.649 million (includes hardware, software licenses and integration). Integration with the sheriff’s CAD will cost an additional vendor fee (three-year charge listed at roughly $16,016) and the county will activate redundant mobile connectivity (AT&T and Verizon) for apparatus at multi-year service rates. Chief Lancer said the county will use a remaining Homeland Security grant allocation previously approved by the board and a transfer from fire-protection mitigation fees to complete the purchase and initial operating period. Staff estimated ongoing annual maintenance and licensing after the first three years would be roughly $38,000 per year in current dollars.
Operational benefits: The fire chief emphasized situational awareness and inter-agency coordination as primary benefits, including the potential to implement closest-unit dispatch across jurisdictions once systems are interoperable. Chief Lancer said time-stamped tasking and the system’s analytics will support after-action reviews, training and operational analysis.
Labor and implementation: Chief Lancer noted labor representation and a departmental work group have reviewed the technical approach and preferred redundancy for mobile carriers. Supervisors asked for confirmation that users and labor had been consulted and that operational questions about vehicle tracking, data retention and interagency access would be covered in implementation planning.
Board action: Supervisor Martha Cardona Singh moved and Supervisor Peggy Price seconded the motion; the board carried the item. Staff said they will proceed with contract execution, CAD integration planning with the sheriff’s office and a phased deployment to stations and apparatus.
Ending: The board authorized the purchase and asked staff to return with implementation details, training plans and a long-term funding plan for ongoing licensing after the initial three-year funding period.
