HOUSTON – Every Tuesday morning, KPRC 2 Investigates is here for you with ‘Pop-Off Politics.’ It’s our weekly segment on KPRC 2+, where we break down at least one agenda item.
This week, we are back in the City of Houston evaluating an agenda item tied to Versaterm.
It’s the third time the city is trying to have a healthy discussion on the communication system for the Houston Police Department.
The first week it was pulled, last week it got tagged, and now the city council looks to vote on the matter.
The total cost for the system is not expected to exceed $31,164,011.34. It will be a seven year deal with one year options up to the tenth year.
Executive Director Ray Hunt with the Houston Police Officers’ Union tells us the move is to branch away from the current Motorola system used for records keeping.
“It was never brought to my attention. We contacted the two cities that currently utilize the system and their union representatives told us the troops say it’s ‘decent’ but that management doesn’t like it because it’s difficult to retrieve information,” he says.
Hunt adds Austin and San Antonio are already using the system.
If the vote goes through, HPD will be the largest police department in the state to use the new record-keeping software. The current system is about a decade old.
City documents state, “As part of the implementation plan, HPD will migrate data from existing systems, conduct extensive training session, provide follow up user support, and conduct performance testing to ensure a smooth transition.”
The council will take up the more than $31 million matter on Wednesday morning.
Is there something on your city council agenda that concerns you? Send Mario an email at mdiaz@kprc.com.