To: Martin L. Cousineau, Finance Committee Chairperson
From: Rochelle Brown, Prosecutor’s Office Operations Director
title
RE: Approval of a budget amendment for an additional $25,000.00 in the Service Contracts line item 1010-296.01-801.004 for FY 24-25 and to authorize the annual payment to Karpel Solutions for the cost of the Prosecutor's Office records/document management system, otherwise known as Prosecutor by Karpel, in the amount of $85,000.00
recommendation
BOARD ACTION REQUESTED:
To approve a budget amendment for an additional $25,000 in the Service Contracts line item 1010-296.01-801.004 for FY 24-25 and authorize the annual payment to Karpel Solutions for the cost of the Prosecutor’s office records/document management system, otherwise known as Prosecutor by Karpel, in the amount of $85,850.00.
BACKGROUND:
The Prosecutor’s office purchased the electronic data management system “Prosecutor by Karpel” from Karpel Solutions through the Genesee County’s RFP process in 2022. The resolution approving the purchase is 2022-110. This system is the records and document management system for the Prosecutor’s office case files that replaced the traditional physical case file system. Part of the contract with Karpel is receiving 2TB free storage for documents, video, and audio, and then anything over that amount is $500 per TB of storage. Video and audio files take up a lot of storage space and, recognizing this, the Prosecutor’s office put out an RFP for a video/audio management system that would be more efficient and cost effective than using the Karpel platform which is not as useful for storage of large video and audio data such as body worn camera video, police chases, interviews, etc. From the RFP, the company NICE Justice was selected as the vendor. The NICE Justice contract was signed in November 2024 (RESO-2024-1180). Meetings started for the setup of the NICE Justice program at the end of December 2024 and have continued weekly since then. As of the writing of this document our “Go-Live” date for NICE Justice has not yet been determined. As we continue to have to store video and audio in the Karpel system, the increase in cost for Karpel has increased exponentially. NICE is more efficient due to the option of long- term and short-term storage, along with the cost effectiveness that goes with it.
DISCUSSION:
While reviewing and before purchasing Prosecutor by Karpel, the Prosecutor’s office was made aware of certain annual fees that would be charged to maintain the services and products provided by Karpel Solutions. The Prosecutor’s office included a budget request for these fees in the FY 24-25 budget as part of the annual budget process. These fees are prorated by Fiscal Services as the bill does not align with our fiscal year. After receiving the invoice for Karpel this year, our office realized that we did not expect or plan accordingly to cover the expenses incurred. Our office thought we would have NICE Justice in place and would have all video and audio moved into storage with them, thereby decreasing some of the costs with Karpel. Our office needs an additional $25,000 budget now to cover FY 24-25 costs and then we will also need to make adjustments to FY25-26 requests at budget hearing or file another Legistar request to the BOC thereafter. Once NICE Justice is live, our office plans to move all video and audio into the NICE system, thus reducing the costs for Karpel next year. NICE Justice does not charge by the amount of storage we use, but by the number of cases and we have already agreed on pricing for the first 3 years (RESO-2024-1180).
IMPACT ON HUMAN RESOURCES:
None
IMPACT ON BUDGET:
An additional $25,000.00 is being requested for FY24-25 from general fund.
IMPACT ON FACILITIES:
None
IMPACT ON TECHNOLOGY:
None
CONFORMITY TO COUNTY PRIORITIES:
Conforms to promote safe communities. The use of Prosecutor by Karpel is a resource that the Prosecutor’s office has selected to help track all Prosecutor cases throughout the criminal justice system.
resolution
TO THE HONORABLE CHAIRPERSON AND MEMBERS OF THE GENESEE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS, GENESEE COUNTY, MICHIGAN
LADIES AND GENTLEMEN:
BE IT RESOLVED, by this Board of County Commissioners of Genesee County, Michigan, that the request by the Office of the Prosecuting Attorney to authorize a budget amendment, said amendment being necessary to increase the FY 24-25 Service Contracts line item 1010-296.01-801.004 by $25,000.00, and authorize the annual payment to Karpel Solutions for the cost of the Prosecutor’s office records/document management system, in the total amount of $85,850.00, is approved (a copy of the memorandum request and supporting documentation being on file with the official records of the July 16, 2025 Finance Committee of this Board), and the Chief Financial Officer is directed to record the attached budget amendment.