Finance committee approves managed EDR cybersecurity subscription, places $24,000 cap

The Homewood City Finance Committee voted 3-0 on July 1 to approve an annual managed endpoint detection and response (EDR) subscription, a cybersecurity service the city plans to use to monitor laptops, desktops and servers. The subscription was described in the meeting as originating from Brandon Sims and would be billed monthly from the city’s carryover fund balance beginning in July.

Staff explained the service provides monitoring for threats such as malware and lateral movement, and connects to a live security operations center that can alert city IT staff and take actions on the city’s behalf. As one staff member explained, the service is intended to “look for things like malware, canaries, [and] things that might be launching” and provides a security-monitoring “blanket.”

According to staff, the subscription has a minimum unit threshold of 250 devices. Staff stated the total cost at 250 devices would be $15,000 and that they were budgeting for up to 400 devices (which staff said could raise the cost to about $24,000). The committee asked clarifying questions about coverage; staff said the service covers laptops, desktops and servers but not mobile devices.

Committee members moved and seconded approval, and one member asked for a spending limit because the resolution as written did not specify an amount. The committee added a limit of “not to exceed $24,000” before voting; the motion passed 3-0.

The transcript includes somewhat unclear references to monthly billing amounts (a monthly minimum and a per-device billing figure were both mentioned in different lines). Where the transcript is ambiguous, the article reports only the clear figures staff stated: $15,000 at 250 devices and an upper-budget figure of $24,000 for up to 400 devices. Staff said the subscription will be paid from the carryover fund balance.