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Commissioners weigh ClearGov digital budget book and alternatives ahead of FY26
Summary
Commissioners debated whether to adopt ClearGov's digital budget book (pro-rated cost $5,500) for FY26, with Administrator Amber Jones noting the county could produce many requested summaries without the purchase while acknowledging ClearGov's visual and narrative features.
Commissioner August and Administrator Amber Jones led a discussion on the county’s budget process and whether to adopt ClearGov’s digital budget book. August asked the administrator to add early goal-setting meetings and a department-head goals session to the budget timeline to surface department priorities earlier.
Jones described ClearGov’s features — automated graphs, census data integration and narrative fields that pair numbers with goals — and said a prorated FY26 subscription and setup would cost $5,500. She recommended signing on for FY26 and noted many clients start with the digital budget-book module and later add features.
At the same time, Jones emphasized that some of August’s immediate requests (a one-page capital summary and enhanced narratives) could be produced using the county’s current Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) template without purchasing ClearGov, and that worksheets would be provided to department heads to assist budget preparation.
No final procurement decision was made; the budget process discussion will continue at a future meeting as staff and commissioners weigh cost, timing and potential time savings for department heads.
