Cross Plains trustees approve staying with existing accounting software, move to cloud service

VILLAGE OF CROSS PLAINS, Feb. 2, 2026 — The Village of Cross Plains Board of Trustees voted during a special meeting Monday to remain with its current municipal accounting and utility-billing software vendor and to adopt the vendor's cloud-hosted service to address ongoing server issues.

President Lincoln called the special meeting and introduced consideration of the vendor proposal, which staff presented as an option to avoid replacing an aging on-site server. A staff member said the cloud option would not change routine user workflows for employees who already access parts of the system via web login and that monthly support costs "should not change."

The decision followed a staff summary of recent service and pricing history. Staff told trustees that the vendor had been acquired by an entity identified verbally in the meeting as "GOBINER Solutions," and that 2025 increases were an "inflationary catch up" after years of minimal raises while 2026 reflected alignment with the buyer's pricing across its customer base. "We've been happy with this product," a staff member said, noting that support contacts remain local.

Trustee Bill, who presented brief research on competing products, warned regulators and colleagues that switching vendors would impose a new "learning curve" and a lengthy implementation process. "Every software company that you're gonna be using, they charge you kinda like a Chinese restaurant. You want something on a platter, you gotta pay for it," Bill said, arguing the village would incur additional time and cost to change systems.

Trustees asked technical and operational questions before the vote. One asked whether the cloud service is hosted on Amazon Web Services; staff confirmed it uses AWS. The board also clarified scope: the software covers utility billing, payroll, general ledger accounting and accounts receivable but does not replace county-managed tax payment recording.

At one point staff noted the vendor had offered a limited-time discount if the village signed by Jan. 31; staff had sought a special meeting to preserve pricing and said the vendor agreed to hold the quote for a short extension. The transcript contains a reference to a "10% discount" tied to that timing, and staff discussed the quote's expiration in late January.

A motion to "stay with the same software" and proceed with the cloud-hosted proposal was moved and seconded. The board approved the motion by voice vote; the presiding officer called for "aye" and the motion passed (no roll-call tally was recorded on the record). The meeting then adjourned.

The village did not record a roll-call vote or provide a detailed, item-by-item cost comparison of alternative vendors during the meeting. The board's action keeps the village on its existing platform while shifting the hosting environment to the vendor's cloud service and directs staff to implement the migration.