Title
Budget Amendment - Code Enforcement - Accela System Enhancements
Action
ACTION:
Amend the FY 2024-2025 Annual Budget Ordinance to appropriate $1,843,312 of Code Enforcement Fund Balance for use within the Code Enforcement Special Revenue Fund (8510) for Accela System enhancements.
Staff Contact: Patrick G. Granson, Director of Code Enforcement
Ebenezer Gujjarlapudi, LUESA - Director
Presentation: No
BACKGROUND/JUSTIFICATION:
LUESA - Code Enforcement is a fee-funded organization that enforces the North Carolina State Building Codes. This service includes plan review, permitting, and inspections. The enforcement territory consists of the six towns and the City of Charlotte. These services include zoning permitting, minimum housing for the six municipalities, and other ordinances.
To cover ongoing technology enhancements with the Accela platform to support the plans review, permitting, and inspection services for Code Enforcement, funds are needed for functionality and development changes, as mandated by Legislation in SB166, SB677, HB305, and HB488. This also covers Electronic Plans Management (EPM) data migrations from the legacy system to the new Accela system. The total cost is $1.6M.
With the new Accela program, Code Enforcement must purchase 30 licenses for the users, agencies, and departments to work within the platform. The licenses cost $49,311.67.
Code Enforcement has off-site storage of planning documents from the 1990s and early 2000s that must be maintained for life based on the classification structure under the Homeland Security Act, GS132. The vendor has provided these services to complete this by scanning the documents to digital format and stored on the IT server for life. The cost estimate is $165K. The vendor is Duncan Parnell in Charlotte. Because these documents are classified per GS 132, they must be protected during the process. Once the scanning process is completed, they must be destroyed appropriately per the NC Retention Act.
In addition, Fire Marshals Office (FMO) is upgrading hardware for their technology to Tough Tablets (Dell). FMO is currently using laptops, and the environment is not conducive to their use based on the need in the field during an investigation or fire scene for the necessary work within their roles and responsibilities. The cost of this upgrade is $29K.
PROCUREMENT BACKGROUND:
N/A
POLICY IMPACT:
N/A
FISCAL IMPACT:
FY2025 Appropriation of Code Enforcement (8510) Fund balance for $1,843,312