Davis County IT warns Esri license changes could double GIS costs; staff to inventory and consider consolidation

Davis County—s director of information services told commissioners during an Aug. 19 work session that the county—s Esri geographic information system (GIS) licensing costs could rise sharply under the vendor—s new pricing model and asked departments to inventory current licenses so staff can propose consolidation or alternate strategies before the contract renewal.

Jeff, the county—s director of information services, told the commission Esri is currently charging the county roughly $150,000 a year for GIS licensing. Under the vendor—s new licensing structure the county would face a roughly 50 percent increase to maintain the same functionality next year, and the company—s published pricing could raise costs to nearly $300,000 a year by the third contract year. Jeff said he requested a stripped-down renewal quote…