HomeMy WebLinkAbout2000-05-22 City Council (20)City of Palo Alto
City Manager’s Report
TO:HONORABLE CITY .COUNCIL
FROM:CITY MANAGER DEPARTMENT: UTILITIES
DATE:MAY 22, 2000 CMR: 245:00
SUBJECT: UPDATE ON UTILITIES CUSTOMER INFORMATION SYSTEM
This is an informational report and no Council action is required..
BACKGROUND
In 1997, the City Council approved a contract with Systems and Computer Technology
Corporation (SCT) for acquisition and implementation of a Customer Information System
(CIS). On October 4, 1999, Council approved an amendment to the SCT contract to
provide additional resources to supplement City staff and ensure that a Y2K compliant
CIS was operational before December 31, 1999. (CMR:363:99).
DISCUSSION
On November 15, 1999, the new CIS went live and all previously identified milestones
critical to system cut-over, including data conversion of customer accounts, job process
testing, system testing, key account testing and end-user training were successfully
completed. Final integration and posting of financial transaction data to .the City’s
integrated finance and accounting system (IFAS) is scheduled for completion by June 2,
2000. The legacy Utility Billing System (CUBIS) has been retired and all new
transactions and customer billing occur on the new CIS.
In addition to being fully Y2K compliant and providing documented system code, the
new CIS provides a host of new capabilities including:
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Ability to quickly add new rates and services;
Support for green pricing, contract rates and standby rates;
Ability to bill for telecommunications services; ¯
Ability to
Ability to
Ability to
Ability to
Ability to
consolidate multiple bill statements mailed to one address;
accept automatic payments by electronic bank drafts;
accept credit card payments;
automatically generate service orders;
look up accounts by customer name;
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¯Automated posting of over the counter payments;
¯Ability to record actual revenue in general ledger from unbundled rate components;
¯Ability to identify specific summer and winter charges during a seasonal rate change.
The funding.appropriated for development by SCT and other outside consultants for the
Utilities Customer Information Services Capital Improvement Program project totals $2.3
million, of which $2.04 million has been expended.
In addition, as part of the 2000-01 Proposed Budget, two Capital Improvement Program
(CIP) Projects are requested to fund software licenses and provide additional
enhancements. CIP 9905, Conceptual Design for Utilities Bill Printing Process, will be
used to provide special customer information enhancements on utilities bills and enable
the bills to be viewed and printed from the Internet. CIP 9357, Utilities Customer
Information System - Phase III, will be used to provide the infrastructure for customer
account access, expanded staff access and electronic bill payment through the Internet
and the telephone. These enhancements will expand access by customers through the
Internet and phone, providing access 24 hours a day, seven days a week. In addition, the
2000-01 proposed budget includes recommendation of $200,000 for an HP9000 server to
provide redundant hardware to support enhanced reliability, testing and data analysis.
This additional server is critical to the long-term vitality of the Utilities Customer
Information System.
PREPARED BY:Rod Massey, Manager, Information Technology
Randy Baldschun, Assistant Director of Utilities
DEPARTMENT HEAD:
DEPARTMENT HEAD:
Director, Utilities
S
/Director, Administrative Services
CITY MANAGER APPROVAL:
EMILY HARRISON
Assistant City Manager
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