REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE ON INFORMATION
TECHNOLOGY AND AUTOMATION
The Honorable,
The Board of Commissioners of
ATTENDANCE
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Present: |
Chairman Beavers, Commissioners Daley, Peraica, Schneider
and Steele (5) |
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Absent: |
Vice Chairman Gorman, Commissioners |
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Also
Present: |
Commissioner Quigley; Brandon Neese – Deputy County Clerk;
Catherine Maras O’Leary – Chief Information Officer; Geetha Lingham –
Information Technology Director, Cook County Clerk’s Office; Scott Hilkert – Managing
Principal and Chief Operating Officer, Catalyst Consulting Group, Inc. |
Ladies and
Gentlemen:
Your Committee
on Information Technology and Automation of the Board of Commissioners of Cook
County met pursuant to notice on
Your Committee
has considered the following item and, upon adoption of this report, the
recommendations are as follows:
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283662 |
COOK COUNTY CLERK, David Orr, by Clem Balanoff, Director
of Elections, transmitting a Communication: requesting authorization for the Purchasing Agent to enter
into a contract with CATALYST
CONSULTING GROUP, INC., Reason: Catalyst Consulting Group, Inc. has worked
with the Cook County Clerk’s office for over three years and developed the www.voterinfonet.com and www.cookctyclerk.com websites. The company has gained a thorough
understanding of the general operation and the special information technology
needs of the Elections Division.
Catalyst Consulting Group, Inc. is familiar with the office’s hardware
and software and its special security and redundancy requirements. Estimated Fiscal Impact:
$98,580.00. Contract
period: Approval of this item would commit Fiscal Year 2007 funds. *Referred to the
Committee on Information Technology and Automation on |
Brandon Neese delivered the following remarks: This contract pertains to day-to-day
operations in the Election Division of the
Chairman Beavers stated that he was under the impression
that there would be a representative from the company that supplied the County
with its newest election equipment, and that this representative would be
providing an explanation as to the recent malfunctioning of the equipment at
election time.
Mr. Neese replied that this contract is a separate issue; it
has nothing to do with the tabulation and transmission of election data.
Commissioner Daley inquired as to what databases the vendor
would be working on.
Mr. Neese replied that they would primarily work on the
Voter Registration Management System, which also involves the applications
which operate the websites.
Commissioner Daley inquired how the poll sheets are edited
to reflect deaths.
Mr. Neese replied: He
is provided, on a monthly basis, with death records from the Vital Records
Department. His Office adjusts the
database accordingly.
Commissioner Schneider inquired as to what the effects would
be if this contract were not approved.
Mr. Neese replied: Given
their small information technology staff (only three at the senior level), the
Office of the
Commissioner Steele inquired as to who would maintain these
systems after the contract expires.
Mr. Neese replied that he expects maintenance through this
vendor to cost approximately $25,000 per year, as it has historically.
Scott Hilkert, Managing Principal and Chief Operating
Officer, Catalyst Consulting Group, Inc., stated that it is his company’s goal
that this technology be self-maintaining.
He further stated that the two information technology professionals in
the
Commissioner Peraica asked when Catalyst Consulting Group,
Inc. was formed.
Mr. Hilkert replied that it was formed in 1992.
Commissioner Peraica inquired whether this technology would
address the issue of lag time in updating election information on
Mr. Hilkert replied that the proposed technology would
preclude the need for manual transfer of information into the database, and
that this would cut lag time.
At Commissioner Peraica’s request, Brandon Neese agreed to
confer with the State’s Attorney’s Office regarding any investigations they are
conducting into voter fraud, and to submit this information to the Chair.
Commissioner Peraica asked Mr. Hilkert to clarify the
enhancements.
Mr. Hilkert clarified that the chief enhancement contained
in the contract consists of a “read-only” election-management system, which
would remove much of the strain from the now –struggling database.
Geetha Lingham, Information
Technology Director, Cook County Clerk’s Office, stated: One of the major applications being offered
by the vendor involves duplicating the database contained in the server onto a
web service. This is a one-time
application which the Information Technology Department will be able to
maintain. This application will lead to less
down time for the database.
Offering her recommendation of the
Item, Catherine Maras O’Leary, Chief Information Officer, noted that the proposed
technology would integrate well into the County’s overall information
technology structure, and that Office of Information Technology personnel would
be able to perform the necessary maintenance.
Chairman Daley inquired whether eventually these operations
will be completely in-house.
Ms. Maras O’Leary replied in the affirmative.
Commissioner Schneider inquired as to what opportunities for
cost savings through consolidation exist pertaining to information technology
contracts.
Ms. Maras O’Leary replied:
The County is in the first stage of the Portal Project; one of the
objectives of this Project is cost consolidation. Recently, cost consolidations have been
achieved with the State’s Attorney’s Office and also with the Office of the
Chief Judge. The Office of Information
Technology reviews items before they are submitted to the Cook County Board,
looking for opportunities for cost saving through consolidation.
Chairman Beavers asked the Secretary to the Board to call
upon the registered public speaker.
1. George Blakemore – Concerned Citizen
Commissioner Steele,
seconded by Commissioner Schneider, moved the approval of Communication No.
283662. The motion carried.
Commissioner Daley
moved to adjourn the meeting, seconded by Commissioner Steele. The motion carried and the meeting was
adjourned.
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Respectfully
submitted, Committee
on Information Technology and Automation xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx William
M. Beavers, Chairman |
Attest:
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Matthew B.
DeLeon, Secretary