HomeMy WebLinkAbout#9 OpenGovSTAFF REPORT
DATE: October 4, 2016
CONSENT
ITEM #: 9
MOTION
TO: Mayor and City Council
FROM: Kristina Handt, City Administrator
AGENDA ITEM: Open Gov
BACKGROUND:
Mayor Pearson and Council member Bloyer would like to have the City consider using a new
digital tool from Open Gov that could be placed on the City’s website and allow citizens greater
access to and understanding of the City’s revenues and expenditures. Open Gov is a leader in
cloud based financial intelligence, planning and transparency software. This City of West St Paul
uses this program. You can view the on their website at http://wspmn.gov/331/Finance
The City of Barnesville also uses the program but has a little different display that includes
FAQs on the left hand side. Their website is https://barnesvillemn.opengov.com/transparency
ISSUE BEFORE COUNCIL:
Should the Council discuss Open Gov in more detail at the next work session?
PROPOSAL DETAILS/ANALYSIS:
Open Gov offers a variety of products. Summaries below from opengov.com/products/
OpenGov Budget Builder: the definitive tool for smart, streamlined budgeting. Budget Builder
ensures a collaborative, coordinated budget process by offering a central place for your
departments to submit proposals, budget teams to review submissions, and managers to present
the budget to elected officials.
OpenGov Intelligence: delivers critical information and analytics to decision makers throughout
your organization. Save time and generate visualizations in seconds, streamline your annual
budget process, and share insights with the click of a button.
OpenGov Transparency: Embrace the push for transparency. Enable your constituents to explore
financial data to learn how their tax dollars are spent. Reduce the time you spend complying with
information and data requests.
I spoke with a sales rep for OpenGov and since the City uses Springbrook as our accounting
software the initial fee is lower. OpenGov partners with Springbrook so the interfacing of the
programs is easier. This requires a minimal time commitment for staff. In addition to financial
data from Springbrook, the city can share any other data by simply creating an excel spreadsheet
and uploading it to the OpenGov program. If Council supports further discussion at the 10/11
work session, we could have a sample page specific to Lake Elmo created.
FISCAL IMPACT:
One time training and deployment fee: $2,500
Annual fee: $3,000-5,700 depending on level of transparency and internal or external use
OPTIONS:
1) Discuss Open Gov program at 10/11 work session
2) Move this item to regular agenda and discuss at this meeting
3) Do not discuss Open Gov at this time
RECOMMENDATION:
If removed from the consent agenda:
Motion to add Open Gov discussion to 10/11 work session