Township plans IT consolidation and shifts ARP-funded items back to operating budget

Council members and staff used the April 8 budget workshop to review IT and administration budget lines and to explain a move to centralize IT under a single cost center.

Staff said after‑hours and on‑call IT coverage previously paid by outside vendors or charged to individual departments (for example, police department overtime) will be consolidated so the township knows total IT costs. The change aims to capture a fuller picture of IT spending, including on‑call responses and software licensing. Council asked how overtime had been handled previously; staff said some after‑hours work was paid through police‑department budgets and an outside vendor and that the consolidation is intended to make future costs clearer.

Council also discussed ARP funds that covered computer maintenance and certain laptops during the COVID period. Staff said ARP paid for earlier laptop replacements and for a portion of the NetDoc implementation in the legal office; these ARP‑funded items are expected to return to operating lines in future budgets once ARP availability ends. A $9,150 computer‑maintenance line in this year’s worksheet was confirmed as paid from ARP this budget cycle.

Other administrative items discussed included moving an administrative support position from the mayor’s office into administration, copier rental and maintenance being budgeted as a new recurring expense, and questions about when certain IT expenses will reappear in operating budgets after ARP funding is exhausted. No formal action or final vote on these reclassifications was taken at the workshop.