County faced with another six-figure software bill due to conversion delay

The delay in converting the offices of County Clerk Katie Lang and Precinct 4 Justice of the Peace Dub Gillum to Tyler Odyssey software has cost the county more than originally thought.

Another $152,324 has been paid in addition to the $220,750 that, when paid several weeks ago, depleted the county’s contract services account.

The additional cost is for continued support of NetData, the software program that will continue to be used by those offices until the conversion to Tyler is complete.

Lang and Gillum halted their offices’ conversion because, according to them, it was extremely difficult and burdensome.

They later agreed to complete the switch, but by that time Tyler Technologies representatives said it would no longer be possible for those offices to go live at the same time as other offices.

Splitting the conversion into two phases resulted in the unexpected bill of $220,750, which the Tyler company said represented 1,250 additional hours of work.

County Auditor Becky Kidd said at the Dec. 13 regular meeting of the Commissioners Court that NetData was not willing to pro rate its fees and insisted on a lump sum payment.

The payment had to be made by Dec. 31 or else service would be interrupted.

Kidd said that she had a check ready to send with funds taken from the IT department’s budget.

However, she expressed the hope that Lang and the Commissioners Court would agree to replace the IT department’s money with money from Fund 68, Lang’s records retention fund. That fund accumulates at a rate of about $350,000 per year and currently contains about $1.6 million.

Kidd further stated that using Fund 68 for software is allowable by statute.

“Well, I’m not gonna take your word for it,” Lang said. “I’m gonna do some research.”

Lang stated during the brief discussion that she did not want to agree to anything in that moment.

“This is the first I’ve heard of this,” she said. “I was not approached before court or contacted. This was sprung on me here in court.”

Kidd said that the matter had come up “very late” the previous week. The Commissioners Court meeting was on a Tuesday.

The court voted 4-1 to approve payment of the bill and to request that Lang and Kidd work together on the Fund 68 question.

Precinct 4 Commissioner Dave Eagle cast the dissenting vote.