SR 11-28-2017 3H
City Council Report
City Council Meeting: November 28, 2017
Agenda Item: 3.H
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To: Mayor and City Council
From: Joseph Cevetello, Chief Information Officer, Information Systems
Department, Software Systems
Subject: Contract Modification for Software Licensing and Migration Services with
Harris Computer Corporation for the NorthStar Utility Billing System
Recommended Action
Staff recommends that the City Council authorize the City Manager to negotiate with
Harris Computer Systems Corporation and execute a second modification to agreement
#9649 (CCS) in the amount of $433,162 to purchase additional software modules and
extend maintenance and support services for a five year period. This would result in a
10 year amended agreement with a new total amount not to exceed $812,703, with
future year funding contingent on Council budget approval.
Executive Summary
The City of Santa Monica is heavily reliant on the availability of data to inform decision-
making, manage day-to-day operations, optimize service delivery, and improve citizen
engagement. The City has used the Harris Computer Systems, Inc., NorthStar utility
billing system (NorthStar) since 2007 to establish customer accounts for municipal
services such as water supply, sewage collection, resource recovery and recycling, fire
inspection, and more. NorthStar is also used to maintain service and consumption
records, calculate service charges, and for customer billing and reporting. A
modification to the agreement is required to procure upgrade licenses and related
services to migrate from the current web portal to a new and improved web platform to
enhance customer experience in the amount of $187,937 and software support and
maintenance services for a period of five years in the amount of $245,225. This second
modification would increase the contract by $433,162, resulting in a 10 year amended
agreement in the amount not to exceed $812,703.
Background
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In February 2005, the City issued a Request for Proposals for a new utility billing
system. On November 8, 2005 (Attachment A), Council authorized a contract with
Harris Computer Systems, Inc. to replace the City’s legacy utility billing system with
NorthStar in amount not to exceed $392,860, plus a 10 percent contingency of $39,286.
On January 25, 2006, the City and Harris entered into a Hardware Purchase and
Software License Agreement No. 8525 (CCS) for a perpetual license for the NorthStar
utility billing system, which was modified pursuant to a First Modification dated
September 25, 2007 that increased the total amount to $398,259.01.
On October 2, 2012 (Attachment B), Council authorized a new sole source contract with
Harris Computer Systems, Inc. to upgrade NorthStar and provide five years of software
support for a total contract amount not to exceed $290,930 in order to enhance system
functionality. On July 28, 2015 (Attachment C), Council authorized a modification to the
contract for additional software licenses and software modification services in the
amount of $88,611 as part of the City’s Water Shortage Response Plan. Pursuant to
Council authorization, the parties entered into an Agreement for Professional Services
and to modify the original license to include the Software Upgrade, Agreement No. 9649
(CCS), on March 5, 2013, which was modified pursuant to a First Modification dated
October 1, 2015 that increased the total amount to $379,541.
NorthStar has been a reliable and flexible system that has met the City’s evolving
requirements with respect to establishing customer accounts, tracking customer
information, and reporting.
Discussion
The City’s Water Resources Division, Finance Department, Fire Department, Housing
and Economic Development Division, and Resource Recovery and Recycling Division
have used the NorthStar billing and customer information system for over ten years.
The NorthStar system has greatly enhanced the information management, billing, cash
processing, and service order processing capabilities of staff. The system is used to
track customer billing related information and for related service orders; generate maps
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to conduct analysis and create regulatory reports for City projects; and as a data source
for rate-setting modeling.
Significant financial resources and training hours have been invested by the City in this
data management system. While there are other comparable billing systems in the
market, NorthStar has continued to evolve with changing information technology trends
and needs over the years. In comparison with other systems, staff has not identified a
need to migrate to another system. Furthermore, a migration would require significant
financial commitment and substantial staff time to train personnel on a new system. To
continue uninterrupted system updates to be compliant with local, state and federal
regulations, such as the Water Shortage Response Plan, State drought regulations, and
Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards, the City must continue software
support and maintenance through Harris Computer Systems, Inc. All NorthStar
software licenses previously purchased by the City are perpetual and require no
renewal.
At this time, staff recommends executing a modification to the contract with Harris
Computer Systems, Inc. for the purchase of additional software modules, licenses, and
related services to migrate to the new version of the web access portal to enhance the
user experience and improve system security. Additionally, this modification would
allow staff to extend software support and maintenance services for an additional five-
year period. In preparation for the new Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system, an
interface with NorthStar and the ERP will be implemented as part of the ERP project.
Staff will return to Council at a later time to seek approval for additional services from
Harris Computer Systems, Inc., if required, to implement and maintain the new
interface.
Vendor/Consultant Selection
On February 24, 2005, the City issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) for the purchase
of a utility billing system. The RFP was posted on the City’s website and notices were
advertised in the Los Angeles Times newspaper in accordance with City Charter and
Municipal Code provisions. Nine firms responded to the RFP. Responses were
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reviewed by a selection panel of staff from the Water Resources Division and
Information Services Department. Proposals were submitted by: ABLESoftware,
Advanced Utility Systems, AMX International, Cogsdale Corporation, DataNow, Hansen
Information Technologies, Harris Computer Systems, INCODE, and NOYVEG.
Proposal evaluation was based on the following selection criteria: references from
similar engagements, ability to meet the project specifications as stated in the RFP,
technical environment in which the proposed system would operate, and references.
Staff then interviewed and received product demonstrations from three shortlisted firms.
Based on criteria in SMMC 2.24.072, staff recommended Harris Computer Systems as
the best qualified firm to provide new utility billing system based on their ability to meet
the City’s business requirements, robust system functionality, an assessment of how
well the system operated in a live operating environment as demonstrated in the site
visits conducted by staff and positive feedback received from the references provided.
Financial Impacts and Budget Actions
The contract to be awarded to Harris Computer Systems, Inc. is for an amount not to
exceed $433,162. Funds in the amount of $75,000 for the first year costs, are available
in the FY 2017-18 budget in the Public Works Department in accounts 25671.533580
($37,500) and 31661.533580 ($37,500). The contract will be charged to the following
accounts:
25671.533580 $216,581
31661.533580 $216,581
TOTAL $433,162
Future year funding is contingent on Council budget approval.
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Prepared By: Ivo Nkwenji, Lead Systems Analyst, Information Systems
Approved
Forwarded to Council
Attachments:
A. November 8, 2005 Staff Report
B. October 2, 2012 Staff Report
C. July 28, 2015 Staff Report
D. Oaks Initiative Form - Northstar
REFERENCE – SECOND
MODIFICATION TO
AGREEMENT NO. 9649
(CCS)