PISMO BEACH COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT
Agenda Item #12.A
SUBJECT/TITLE:
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY (IT) PROJECT UPDATE
RECOMMENDATION:
No action required; information only.
BACKGROUND:
This staff report updates the Council on the status of the upcoming five-year strategic planning process and key IT projects. The highlights of the key IT projects include projects during fiscal year (FY) 2022. In addition, this report also provides key customer service metrics regarding the performance of the City’s IT help desk.
Upcoming IT Strategic Plan
The upcoming Five-Year IT Strategic Plan began in late 2019, but was put on hold due to the plethora of changes in how the City uses technology to deliver and provide services to residents, visitors, and business. In the aftermath of the stay-at-home orders issued in March 2020, it became apparent that the IT priorities of the City had shifted when compared to the input had been collected prior to the COVID-19 global pandemic. City staff decided to put the IT Strategic Planning process on hold until there was a more certain short-term future. The overall IT sector is experiencing increased uncertainty due to equipment shortages and development delays caused by the pandemic. As a result of staffing shortages and other priority projects, staff expects to complete the IT Strategic Planning process in August 2022 and come back to the Council in September 2022 to present the new Five-Year IT Strategic Plan and Assessment recommendations.
Highlights of Key IT Projects
Police Radio Upgrade
Per the California Department of Justice Information Services (CJIS) Bulletin No. 20-09- CJIS, all California law enforcement agencies are required to have a plan to comply with sections 5.10 and 5.13 of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s CJIS Security Policy regarding the encryption of personally identifiable information. In order to meet this requirement for an encrypted communications channel, the City needs to add an encrypted radio channel for the Police Department. Currently, the City only has a single radio channel for the Police Department and needs to maintain an unencrypted radio channel for interoperability with surrounding agencies. This hybrid configuration will allow the City to meet current requirements and the anticipated requirements if California Senate Bill 1000 (SB 1000) passes. SB 1000 will require law enforcement agencies to use a hybrid radio configuration by January 1, 2024. The city’s geography requires the use of three transmitter sites to provide adequate coverage and the City’s radio channel is setup as a split channel. A split channel means that users must switch channels at the north and south ends of the city to receive the radio channel. Moving to a simulcast Council Agenda 8-2-2022 12.A-1
channel would make it so users would not need to change channels depending on where in the city they are.
Based on these needs, in December 2021 the City received a $470,000 grant from the federal government to upgrade the City’s radio system. Included in this project is the creation of an encrypted radio channel, simulcasting both the existing and new radio channel, new mobile and handheld radios, and a new communication link to provide dispatchers priority access to the City’s radio channels. Simulcasting is a technology that allows the City to have the same or better coverage than the City’s existing split channel, makes more efficient use of available radio spectrum, and ensures users receive the best audio available at their location. All of the mobile and handheld radios have been programmed and delivered. The City’s radio vendor is working on the APCO P25 FCC coordination needed to add an additional law enforcement radio channel. Installation of the new antenna systems started in July 2022. Almost all of the equipment for the project has been delivered and is currently being configured. One critical piece of equipment has been delayed due to global shipping issues. If this equipment is delivered by the current delivery estimate, the project is expected to be finished in October 2022.
SCADA Radio Upgrade
The City utilizes a 900 MHz radio network to provide real-time data logging, remote control, and alarming of the City’s water and wastewater systems. This radio network provides communication to all the City’s water and wastewater facilities and is critical to the efficient operation of those facilities. The current radios are out-of-date, have exceeded their expected lifetime, and are no longer supported by the manufacturer. The out-of-date radios have also been identified as a security vulnerability. New radios were purchased to replace the existing 900 MHz radios and they have been undergoing configuration and testing the past few months. Installation of the new radios is scheduled for the week of August 1st. The new radios have the latest security features, provide more efficient use of available radio bandwidth, and utilize backup cellular connections if the main radio connection stops working. They also have more user-friendly interfaces that will make it easier for City staff to replace radios in the event of a failure. Having up-to- date radios ensures system reliability and allows staff to respond as quickly as possible to any problems.
Mobile Command Vehicle
The City’s mobile command vehicle (MCV) is a high-tech communications hub that allows Police Department staff to access their systems from anywhere in the city. There are 6 radios, 4 computers, 8 LCD screens, and 1 camera installed within or on the MCV. This allows for 2 dispatch stations with access to the City’s radio channels as well as those of surrounding public safety agencies. One computer is available to write reports or for general purposes. The last computer is installed under the conference room table to provide access to the City’s surveillance cameras or any other information command staff needs. The MCV is also equipped with a video switcher that allows staff both inside and outside the MCV to see the same information at the discretion of command staff. One application of this is to allow dispatch staff and those outside the MCV see live video from the Police Department’s drone. The camera on top of the MCV is on an extendable mast Council Agenda 8-2-2022 12.A-2
that provides Police Department staff with better local situational awareness. The live video feeds from the drone and the City’s other surveillance cameras provides command staff with an unprecedented real-time view of what is happening. After each of the first two deployments of the MCV, Police and IT have met to debrief on what improvements need to be made and how to make operations more efficient.
Security Improvements
This past year, the cyber security environment was very challenging. IT responded to security alerts requiring the City to block internet traffic from Russia. IT has also been auditing and hardening all systems to ensure the City’s multi-layered cyber security systems are operating as efficiently as possible. One part has been deploying new VPN software to ensure all network communications are authenticated and encrypted. The new VPN software will allow IT in the future to provide multi-factor authenticated logins, increased single sign on capabilities, and user specific security profiles. Moving to multi- factor authenticated logins will make credential harvesting less of a problem, decrease the City’s cyber liability risk, and decrease the need for users to change passwords.
In the past, the City has conducted an annual email phishing and credential harvesting test. These tests consist of IT sending out phishing and credential harvesting emails and tracking how many users open them. Due to recommendations from the California Joint Powers Insurance Authority (CJPIA), which provides the City’s cyber liability insurance, IT is now conducting quarterly email phishing and credential harvesting tests. Each test is conducted using multiple emails so that users do not all receive the same one. This decreases the chance of users figuring out and letting others know that a test is going on.
In addition, users are offered additional cyber security training if they click on one of the test emails. IT is closely following all cyber liability recommendations from CJPIA.
Part of the City Hall security project was to add keyless entry doors and upgraded surveillance cameras to City Hall. This system allows the City to have locked physical barriers between public spaces and staff work areas. The City Hall security project also provided physical security for the City’s IT systems and increased the cooling efficiency of the City Hall IT room. Access is provided by a smart card that can also double as the City’s employee identification card or emergency operations center identification card.
The smart cards provide a higher level of security that physical keys, because if one is lost IT can deactivate that card to ensure it is not used. It also provides a log of when and what card used to enter the building. The upgraded surveillance cameras now tie into the Police Department’s systems and ensure the City complies with its requirements to retain surveillance video. If there is a problem at City Hall, Police can remotely view the City Hall cameras to see what the issue is before they arrive.
IT Survey Results
Every year, IT staff sends out a survey to canvass City employees on the effectiveness of the City’s IT helpdesk. Staff city-wide can contact the IT helpdesk via phone, email, webpage form, or in person. In order to respond to these requests on a timely basis, the City contracts out the helpdesk to CITIG. The IT Manager manages the CITIG contract and also responds to helpdesk issues as needed. This year IT received 41 complete Council Agenda 8-2-2022 12.A-3
survey results, the highest amount ever in the 8 years IT has conducted this survey. This past year, survey respondents gave the City’s IT services an overall satisfaction rating of 90%. This is lower than the 95% rating from the previous year. Of the overall satisfaction rating, 44% gave a very satisfied rating, a noteworthy decrease from the 77% rating from the previous year.
Due to the increased reliance on technology for most employees, the City increased help desk support by increasing the onsite visits from monthly to weekly. Unfortunately, this past year there has been significant staff turnover at CITIG and getting the new help desk staff trained on City-specific systems is likely why the “very satisfied” rating dropped. The IT Manager continues to work with City’s help desk provider to improve response times and user interactions. IT staff are going through the survey results and reaching out to resolve any issues that may have led to dissatisfied interactions
Next Steps
This year (FY 2023), City staff are planning to resume the new five-year strategic planning process. This process will re-evaluate the projects that have been cancelled, look at where technology is headed in the near future, and position the City to make use of the available technology to provide the highest level of customer service while ensuring security of the City’s systems and business continuity in the event of disruptions.
FISCAL IMPACT:
There is no fiscal impact from receiving this report as it is information only.
ALTERNATIVES:
None.
ATTACHMENTS:
None.
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Very Satisfied Satisfied Neutral Dissastisfied Very Dissastisfied Chart 1: IT Survey Results for 2022
Overall Satisfaction
Council Agenda 8-2-2022 12.A-4
Prepared by: Meeting Date: August 2, 2022
Jason Takagi, Information Technology Manager
Submitted by: Nadia Feeser, Administrative Services Director Acting City Manager Approval:
Council Agenda 8-2-2022 12.A-5