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Board approves new "Nevada County Alerts" opt-in system to replace Code Red
Summary
After a staff presentation and questions about data migration and outreach, the Board unanimously approved a contract with HQE Systems to run the county's opt-in emergency alert platform and rebrand opt-in messaging as "Nevada County Alerts."
The Nevada County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a contract April 14 for an opt-in emergency alert platform to replace the county's previous Code Red service, which staff said was decommissioned after a nationwide data breach.
Alex Hubertoll, director of the county's Office of Emergency Services, said staff ran a competitive procurement, vetted five proposals with a multi-disciplinary panel and selected HQE Systems as the best fit for the county's rural alerting needs. "HQE was the top firm for both proposal and software demonstration vetted by our panel of experts in Nevada County," Sergeant Andrew Liller, assigned OES coordinator with the Sheriff's Office, told supervisors.
Staff highlighted features the county favored: the new platform allows multiple addresses per registrant, improved customer-interface configuration, accessibility options for residents with access and functional needs, and user-friendly zone maps. Hubertoll also said county staff migrated legacy data back to March 2025 and that the county planned a robust outreach campaign and a countywide test in May.
Board members asked how the system would interact with existing town systems such as Truckee's RAVE and whether branding could be preserved if vendors change. "The user sign-up page is very much Nevada County Alerts, focused and hardly anything about HQE," Mr. Liller said, adding the county is configuring sign-up pages to prioritize the county brand.
Supervisor questions also covered whether Scribe 24 (the platform that received migrated data after Code Red's breach) would remain an interim redundancy; staff said HQE would be the vendor if the contract is approved and that Crisis24 would not be used going forward. Several supervisors praised the planned outreach to Firewise groups and neighborhood watches to ensure residents understand the switch.
During roll call the board voted yes across all five districts; supervisors also encouraged staff to use the board as community ambassadors for the rollout.
Outcome: Contract approved. Next steps include staff outreach events, a May countywide test and final data migration details to be completed before going live.
