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Committee approves amended contract authority to keep San Francisco's 911 CAD operating until new system is ready
Summary
The committee approved an amendment to give the Department of Emergency Management authority to extend the city's Stratus CAD contract through June 30, 2014 (and provide retroactive authority for ~$256,004 in overspending), citing risks of gaps before cutover to a new system targeted for January 2014.
The Budget and Finance Committee approved an amendment and forwarded a recommendation to authorize the Department of Emergency Management (DEM) to extend the city's contract with Stratus Technologies for maintenance of the computer-aided dispatch (CAD) system and to provide retroactive contract authority for expenditures beyond the prior not-to-exceed amount.
DEM staff explained that the city's CAD system — used by 9-1-1 call takers and dispatchers — was first installed in 1999 and is at end-of-life. DEM said replacement work is underway and a new system is anticipated by January 2014, but the department requested additional contract authority through June 30, 2014 to ensure uninterrupted 9-1-1 operations in case of delay. DEM emphasized the CAD's critical role: it routes call information to the appropriate police, fire or ambulance dispatcher and its records are often used as evidence in court proceedings.
The budget analyst reported that the Office of Contract Administration notified DEM that maintenance expenditures totaled $2,739,005.65 — $256,003.57 more than the authorized amount — and recommended amending the resolution to provide retroactive authority for the excess. The controller and DEM explained the overspend resulted from a purchasing-system issue in which two blanket contracts were associated with the same vendor, allowing combined expenditures to exceed the intended not-to-exceed cap; DEM said it has corrected internal controls.
Public comment raised concerns about delayed upgrades and functionality, urging the department to ensure the new system meets queries and public needs. The committee moved to amend the resolution as recommended by the budget analyst and forward the item with a positive recommendation; that motion passed without objection.
Next steps: The committee's recommendation will go to the full Board for formal approval; DEM said it can terminate the Stratus contract early and without penalty once the new system is ready.
