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Ulster County committee advances Motorola radio change order for session review amid questions about scope and oversight
Summary
The Ways and Means Committee moved a Motorola radio-system change order out of committee for consideration at session after the comptroller and legislators raised questions about missing packet pages, whether NYSTEC reviewed the change order, and why the project’s scope and costs increased.
The Ulster County Legislature Ways and Means Committee on Dec. 11 moved a Motorola radio-system change order out of committee for consideration at the full legislative session after a round of questioning about missing review documents and sharp cost increases.
Comptroller Gallagher told the committee she had received additional pages from Deputy Executive Papuano that had not been included in the meeting packet and said she was "very uncomfortable" approving an $11.5 million change order without those documents and without confirmation that the county's technical reviewer had vetted the proposal. Gallagher said the change order appeared to include subscriber units for apparatus and portable radios and that the larger project had grown from an earlier $8.5 million estimate to roughly $23 million overall.
A county official responding to questions said the pricing summary showed a systems discount driven by Motorola to complete work before year-end. That official cautioned that delaying approval could forfeit the discount. Several legislators urged the executive office to ask Motorola to extend the discount while the county completes its review. One legislator suggested proceeding to secure the price break and then seeking clarifications; others said they wanted the vendor-review contractor (New York State Technology Enterprise Corporation, or NYSTEC) to confirm what had been reviewed.
Legislator Collins said he would be reluctant to support final approval in session if outstanding questions remained: "Right now, it sounds like we don't know enough about this change order to actually make a decision." Comptroller Gallagher said NYSTEC is contracted to review vendor proposals and cost amendments and that the legislature should expect to see that review as part of the record.
The committee advanced the item for session consideration; members directed the executive office to seek clarifications from Motorola and NYSTEC and to provide answers before the full legislative session.
