Special Notice / Hearing: None__
Vote Required: Majority
To: Honorable Board of Supervisors
From: John T. Keene, Chief Probation Officer
Subject: Agreement with Journal Technologies, Inc. to provide a case management system for adult pretrial and juvenile traffic operations.
RECOMMENDATION:
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Adopt a resolution waiving the Request for Proposal process and authorizing the President of the Board to execute an agreement with Journal Technologies, Inc. (JTI) to provide a case management system for the Probation Department’s Pretrial Services Program and Juvenile Traffic Court for the term of December 1, 2019, through November 30, 2022, in an amount not to exceed $1,342,637.50.
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BACKGROUND:
The San Mateo County Probation Department has operated a Pretrial Services program since 2000. This program provides monitoring and support services to recently arrested clients released on their own recognizance pending his or her next court appearance. Additionally, San Mateo County is one of only a handful of remaining probation departments in California that operates a Juvenile Traffic Court. This specialized program provides youth and his or her family with guidance to reconcile traffic-citation consequences, including opportunities for alternative sentencing programs and services.
In response to a Request for Applications released by the Judicial Council of California (JCC), San Mateo County convened a countywide Pretrial Services Working Group whose members included staff from the Superior Court, Probation, Sheriff’s Office, District Attorney’s Office, Information Services Department, County Manager’s Office, and the Private Defender Panel. This collaborative worked together and submitted an application to the JCC. The application included proposed enhancements to the pretrial court process, particularly within the Probation Department’s existing Pretrial Services program. These enhancements include the implementation of a validated pretrial risk assessment tool and the development of a more robust data collection and case management system. Subsequently, as the application to the JCC was being developed, the Probation Department conducted outreach and scheduled demonstrations with four leading case management system vendors that work with probation departments across the state.
In August 2019, San Mateo County was notified that it is one of the recipients of a grant award in the amount of $6.1 million to implement enhancements to the existing Pretrial Services program, including the implementation of a new case management system.
Through the JCC application process, the Probation Department determined that JTI provides a unique platform that not only can serve the needs of the enhanced Pretrial Services program but also accommodate preexisting Juvenile Traffic Court software needs as well. JTI is a provider of case management software to courts, prosecutors, public defenders, probation and other justice agencies, serving more than 500 courts and agencies in 42 states, including California.
For additional reference, the Solano County Probation Department selected JTI after completing a Request for Information (RFI) in February 2016 to solicit responses for a department-wide case management system. Solano County selected JTI as the primary vendor for their case management and has been in contract with them since that time. Solano County has reported nothing but positive feedback about their experience with JTI. The partnership they’ve had has been collaborative and positive and communication between both Solano County and JTI has been effective from the development of their case management system to project milestones and completion.
DISCUSSION:
Through this agreement, JTI will provide the Probation Department with a robust case management system not only for the enhanced pretrial services program but also for the Juvenile Traffic Court. This new case management system will also allow the Probation Department to administer the Virginia Pretrial Risk Assessment Instrument (V-PRAI) tool, a validated pretrial risk assessment tool used to measure the likelihood of pretrial clients to appear in court if released. The new system allows Probation to collect data required for the grant and share data through the County’s Criminal Justice Integration (CJI) bus, functionality our current legacy Pretrial application lacks. JTI will also provide tools and advanced training that allow Probation to modify the system with minimal vendor engagement. This will better equip Probation to meet evolving program requirements resulting from new JCC requests or Probation’s own data-driven decisions to modify our Pretrial program.
Additionally, through this agreement, the Probation Department will have access to a configured juvenile traffic court system, which includes a DOJ-approved and embedded interface with California DMV to send record updates regarding involved youth. The system will also allow Probation to more efficiently schedule hearings for youth and their families, support payment plans and statewide financial distributions, and provide meaningful data to analyze program outcomes.
The Probation Department is seeking a waiver of the Request for Proposals process in order to execute this contract. It is in the County’s and the Department’s best interest to execute this agreement with the Contractor, JTI, to ensure compliance with the JCC grant award requirements of a timely implementation of an enhanced Pretrial Services program.
The Probation Department requests that the Chief Probation Officer or his designee be granted authorization to execute contract amendments that modify the County’s maximum fiscal obligation by no more than $25,000 (in aggregate), and/or modify the contract term and/or services so long as the modified term or services is/are within the current or revised fiscal provisions.
The term of the agreement is December 1, 2019, through November 30, 2022. The Agreement and Resolution have been reviewed and approved by County Counsel.
PERFORMANCE MEASURE:
|
Measure |
FY 2019-20 Target |
FY 2020-21 Target |
FY 2021-22 Target |
|
Percent of pretrial defendants assessed through the V-PRAI in the case management system |
100% |
100% |
100% |
|
Percent of collected juvenile traffic fines distributed |
100% |
100% |
100% |
FISCAL IMPACT:
The total obligation is $1,343,637.50. During FY 2019-20 and FY 2020-21, the JCC grant will fund $327,500 in implementation and support costs, covering 50% of implementation costs for the Pretrial Services system and 100% of support costs in the second year of the JCC grant in FY 2020-21. The remaining $1,016,137.50 will be covered by County funds which have been included in the FY 2019-20 Adopted Budget and will be included in the FY 2020-21 and FY 2021-22 Recommended Budgets.