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Virgin council approves Simply SCADA purchase, citing cybersecurity deadline and impact-fee funding
Summary
Virgin’s town council voted unanimously June 16 to award a roughly $110,000 contract for a new SCADA water-control system to Simply SCADA after state and federal directives required moving externally accessible systems behind firewalls; council agreed to use impact fees to pay the cost.
The Virgin Town Council voted unanimously June 16 to award the town’s SCADA (supervisory control and data acquisition) contract to Simply SCADA, authorizing roughly $110,000 in upgrades and add‑ons and directing staff to finalize paperwork and a signed proposal.
Town staff and an Appco integrator told the council the change was not optional: federal and state cybersecurity guidance required that any SCADA servers facing the internet be moved behind secure firewalls, and Virgin was given a two‑week deadline to stop external access to the district system. “It is the heartbeat of this town,” said Nick, a town staff presenter, describing the supervisory role SCADA plays for pumps, tanks and valves. He and Eric said Simply SCADA is cloud‑based, provides more robust alarm options (phone calls and repeated reminders), and avoids on‑site servers.
Scott Ashby of Appco, the systems integrator on the bids, said his shop would build the required control panels and do programming; based on parts procurement and panel construction he estimated the town could be online in about three months. He said a control-panel could be produced in approximately two months and programming completed shortly after.
Mayor and staff said the Washington County Water Conservancy District will continue to receive alarms and can provide monitoring and limited operational support during the transition, but Virgin operators would not have direct control unless the town implemented its own system. Council members asked whether there were penalties for delaying purchase; district staff said there were no financial penalties but expressed strong cybersecurity and operational concerns and recommended that each municipality adopt an independent SCADA.
Finance: town staff proposed two funding options: use leftover loan proceeds from the east-tank project or draw on impact fees. Rod and several council members recommended using impact fees for the initial $110,000 to preserve the east-tank loan balance for pipeline work and potential change orders; council members agreed that impact fees were available and appropriate.
The council voted to award the work to Simply SCADA and to authorize staff to finalize the proposal and start work. Appco said it can accept a signed proposal as acceptance and work under a master-service approach; staff will ensure a Utah sales-tax exemption certificate is on file.
The council’s action authorizes procurement and funding subject to standard purchase documentation and final invoices. Staff estimated the new system would increase the town’s direct control of tank settings and alarms once fully implemented.
