County technology director outlines cybersecurity grant application, Delta Township substation work and public‑safety vehicle upgrades
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Summary
Eaton County’s technology director told Ways and Means the county applied for a State and Local Cybersecurity Grant and summarized ongoing IT projects including a new Delta Township substation network, an IT audit of court systems, migration to WebTCS and coordinated GPS work with remonumentation for GIS uses.
EATON COUNTY — Eric Daley, Eaton County’s director of Technology Services, told the Ways and Means Committee the county has applied for year‑three funds from the State and Local Cybersecurity Grant program administered through the State of Michigan and federal DHS/FEMA funds. The county sought funding for advanced backup solutions for sensitive data and for continuing employee cybersecurity training.
Daley said the county applied specifically for advanced backup solutions to replace aging equipment used by the prosecutor’s office and the sheriff’s department, plus funding to continue a cybersecurity awareness program the county runs through KnowBe4. “Based on what I know today ... there shouldn't be any matching dollars required for local county funds if these grant applications are awarded,” Daley said.
Daley briefed the committee on a range of other technology projects. He reported the Delta Township substation network installation is complete, with security cameras and secure door access installed; furniture and final equipment migrations were planned for late February and occupants were expected to move in the first week of February. He said the county is scheduled to begin an IT security audit for the circuit court office and prosecuting attorney’s office and described the audit as a three‑year required cycle that the state pays for.
On court systems, Daley said Eaton County will transition to WebTCS — the state trial court case access system — during the first week of February and the IT team tested disaster‑recovery protocols to ensure staff could access state records if courthouse connectivity fails.
Daley also described ongoing work to equip local police, fire and EMS vehicles with MCT (mobile computer terminal) hardware funded by the 9‑1‑1 millage and managed by the county. He said vehicle replacements are done in synchronized batches so patrol cars are uniform in hardware and software during rollouts. Deputy Director Nathan Nybert told the committee the county has roughly 60 fully outfitted law‑enforcement vehicles plus additional vehicles and apparatus (fire trucks and ambulances), and about 250 devices in the field overall.
Daley and Tim (the county’s remonumentation representative) described coordination between the remonumentation program and the county GIS team: as remonumentation moves into a phase that includes GPS coordinate capture, Daley said Technology Services seeks a formal role so GIS receives digital coordinate values and the county avoids duplicative fieldwork. “We’re really advocating for ... value‑added data that we need,” Daley said.
Committee members asked about backup generator capacity at the courthouse; Daley and Facilities Director Chad Powers said the courthouse generator capacity is limited and a full upgrade would be a multimillion‑dollar capital project included in long‑term capital planning.
Daley invited commissioners to tour Technology Services facilities and the Delta substation once final work is complete.
