Board approves firewall support renewal, paving contract and a $50,000 intra-category budget transfer

The Calvert County Board of Education approved several fiscal and procurement items on May 7.

Procurement: The board voted to renew and extend Palo Alto Networks firewall hardware support and software licenses through Skyline Technology Solutions under the Maryland Education Enterprise Consortium cooperative contract (UMD972016) for $85,049, funded from the FY27 data processing budget. Rick Lippert, supervisor of information technology, described that the district has three physical Palo Alto firewalls and several virtual servers the equipment protects; the extension moves support and licensing to a new expiration date of 07/22/2027.

Contract award: Following a documented bid withdrawal by Chamberlain Contractors LLC for the March 2026 solicitation (paving restoration at Appeal Elementary), the board awarded the contract to Image Asphalt Maintenance Inc. of Pasadena, MD, as the remaining responsive and responsible bidder in the amount of $460,000 to be funded through the FY27 CIP. Staff explained the withdrawal stemmed from material errors in Chamberlain’s bid and that rebidding would delay the project until the next summer and risk higher asphalt costs.

Budget transfer: The board approved an intra‑category transfer of $50,000 within the administration category into the legal fees account to cover expenditures through the remainder of the fiscal year; CFO Chris Jewett said there are sufficient savings in other accounts to support the move and noted there may be additional transfers before the end of the fiscal year.

All motions were moved, seconded and approved by voice vote at the meeting. The board recorded "motion carries" and noted votes as "Aye"; the meeting transcript records motions passing with a 3‑0 tally in several roll calls.