Collaborative Government Blog

As many of you already know, The Kansas Collaborative was nominated last year for the IBM Innovations Award in Transforming Government. This was an international competition and though we did not win, the efforts of The Collaborative caught the attention of the Ash Institute at the Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University. As a result we were invited (as the founders and project managers of The Kansas Collaborative) to participate in the second international meeting of the Global Network of Government Innovators March 31 – April 2, 2008. Kathleen attended as the representative of The Kansas Collaborative and was joined by over 450 participants from the private and non-profit sectors, as well as federal and sub-national governments from more than 50 countries.

This was truly an international event including presentations from Vicente Fox Quesada, former President of Mexico, and Thomas Vilsack, former Governor of Iowa.

There was so much information to absorb so here is just a sampling of the insights from this gathering of global innovators.

• It takes both market-based economics and transparent government to grow the economic prosperity of countries. Corruption and lack of transparency in government are the biggest obstacles to development. The rule of law is a critical precursor to transparency and freedom of information.
  
• Citizen participation in government is key. There are important differences in citizen engagement between developing and developed countries. 68% of participants felt their country’s local governments engage citizens effectively or moderately effectively with 31% reporting minimally effective engagement or none at all.
  
• Facilitating innovation within government requires a mindset that encourages reasonable risk-taking and allows for mistakes. How these are handled in an atmosphere of transparency is important to determining if innovation continues or not.
  Certainly The Kansas Collaborative and your involvement provide one avenue for transparency and reasonable risk-taking.

We are committed to using these insights as well are our membership now in the Ash Institute’s 7,000 member network of Global Government Innovators to inform and share the work of The Kansas Collaborative with a global audience. Thanks to each of you for your support and continued participation.

Until next month…

Kathleen and Joel

Regional Project Brings over $71,000 of Assistance to Local GIS Efforts

In our March article we shared the five key goals and outcomes for the South Central Homeland Security Regional Council GIS project. In this article we want to share how a majority of the funding is being spent.

The goal for this regional GIS project is to make available critical GIS data layers to emergency responders (especially Incident Management Teams) so important landmarks, streets, infrastructure, shelters, etc. can be quickly located in an emergency by both those familiar and unfamiliar with the effected area.

We have finished the data inventory and gap analysis. These results will aid counties in determining priority GIS data layers that need to be developed. During this process, a consistent theme has been the need for software, equipment and training to help local governments “build” critical GIS data layers. Following is how help is being provided through a grant from the South Central Homeland Security Regional Council:

Equipment purchases:

• Eleven counties will receive single-use ArcView software including two additional years of maintenance
  
• Two counties will receive an ArcReader Extension
  
• One county will receive a Maplex Extension
  
• Four counties will receive Mapping Grade GPS units
  
• ArcView software with the two additional years of maintenance is being provided to the regional 911 back-up site and the Incident Management Team trailer
  
• The region will acquire four additional Mapping Grade GPS units that will be available to counties within the region to use in building critical GIS data layers
  
• Two 1 terabyte external hard drives will be acquired to provide regional data layers to the Incident Management Team and the regional 911 back-up site
  
• 24 USB flash drives will be purchased so that the critical GIS data layers can be made available to emergency responders literally “at their fingertips”

Training opportunities:

• Beginning hands-on GIS training is being provided throughout the region. 13 individuals attended the 2-day training in Pratt. 24 individuals are set to attend this same training in Wichita in May.
  
• A one-day “hands-on” GPS training is being provided three different times within the region.

The 19 counties in the South Central region are Barber, Barton, Butler, Comanche, Cowley, Edwards, Harper, Harvey, Kingman, Kiowa, Marion, McPherson, Pawnee, Pratt, Reno, Rice, Sedgwick, Stafford and Sumner.

What can you do?
If this information piques your interest as being important to your jurisdiction, take a minute and share this article with your county’s representative on your Regional Homeland Security Council. This is a project that can be easily replicated in other Homeland Security regions. For more information on replication, please contact Jessica Frye, Kansas Adjutant General’s Department, Geospatial Technologies Section.

Joining The Kansas Collaborative in this South Central regional GIS collaborative effort are the following state and federal partners: Kansas Adjutant General’s Department – Division of Emergency Management, State GIS Policy Board, Data Access and Support Center (DASC) and the U.S. Geological Survey. Shelly Abbott-Becker, KAC Board member, was also instrumental in gaining local buy-in for this effort. Documents related to this project can be found here.

Until next month…

Kathleen and Joel

Hamilton County Saved $250,000 on a 1R Paving Project.

The Kansas Collaborative has been saying for some time that the 1R Project could mean real savings to counties. Now we are beginning to get the documentation to back up this belief. As you read this article remember that KDOT has well over fifty projects every year that can produce savings if the road superintendent and the commissioners are willing to do their homework. The Kansas Collaborative and KDOT will do everything we can to let you know when KDOT will be in your county. Now enjoy reading about how Hamilton County took advantage of such a situation.

Delmar Hammond, Road Superintendent of Hamilton County, used the information provided by the 1R Project Notification Initiative of the Kansas Collaborative to save the county $250,000 on an 11 mile paving project located approximately 9 miles south of Coolidge. This initiative involves the advance notification of KDOT highway projects so that locals can take advantage of the economies involved in having a highway contractor move into the county.

Hamilton County is located next to the Colorado border west of Garden City, and has a population of 2,600. There is rarely a highway contractor set up in the county, so it is difficult to obtain good pricing on county projects. If a contractor bids a county project he has to include the mobilization cost of moving his operation to the county for just one project. Hamilton County needed to overlay 11 miles of road to some dairies that was getting heavy truck traffic. The estimated cost of the paving project was $2 million.

In 2006 Delmar was informed of upcoming KDOT projects in Hamilton County and he began forming a plan on how to use this knowledge to reduce the cost of the county’s paving project. He worked with his consulting engineer, Jon Halbgewachs of Kirkham Michael, to schedule the letting at the optimum time to receive the best bids. There were actually two highway contractors working in the county when the bids were received for the project, and they received 6 bids. The low bid was from APAC at a bid price of $1,750,000, APAC was one of the contractors working on a KDOT project in the county. This bid was $250,000 less than the initial estimate made two years earlier. This was a win-win situation, with APAC not having to include mobilization for the county project they could do the work cheaper and still make a profit.

Hamilton County also utilized the State Transportation Revolving Fund to finance the project rather than selling bonds locally. Use of the revolving fund resulted in a lower interest rate as well as legal fees involved in selling the bonds.

We want to congratulate Delmar Hammond and the County Commissioners on the success of their project. We hope that many other counties will take advantage of the 1R Project. Please feel free to call Norm Bowers (785-272-2585) or Joel Wright (816-914-5344) if you have questions.

GIS: Shifting to a Regional Focus for 2008

Last month we mentioned that our GIS (geographic information systems) efforts would be taking a regional focus for 2008. This turn follows funding that has been provided by the South Central Homeland Security Regional Council in response to a proposal by The Kansas Collaborative. This South Central project is already getting some attention from other Homeland Security Councils as they begin to recognize the importance of GIS information to disaster planning, response and recovery.

This regional GIS project has five key goals and outcomes:

1) Inventory current GIS efforts (software, hardware and data layers) within each county in the region so policymakers and responders know what is available where.
With this web-based information, you would know what information is available not only in your county but in the neighboring counties as well. You can’t actually view or download data, you will be able to tell, for example, that “street centerlines” are in GIS format in a neighboring county and who to contact for more information.

2) Provide on-going education about the power of GIS as an information management system supporting responders.
Four sub-regional stakeholder meetings are being held within the region for responders, GIS personnel and other policymakers. One of the primary purposes is to identify the information (and thus, data layers) that are most important to have available to responders.

In addition, two “Introduction to GIS” courses (ArcView-based) are being provided (April 15 and 16 in Pratt and May 12 and 13 in Wichita). This training will be provided at no cost to participants, though travel costs will need to be covered by participating counties. Entities within the South Central region have enrollment priority but open seats will be given to counties outside the region. For more information contact Jessica Frye, Kansas Homeland Security GIS Coordinator, at 785-274-1426.

3) Identify gaps in critical data layers.
A project support team, facilitated by The Kansas Collaborative, will compare the region’s current GIS inventory results with that of “critical data layers” as identified through the sub-regional stakeholder meetings. A report on the “gaps” in data layers will be provided to the regional council along with recommendations of how to close the gaps.

4) Make recommendations on closing gaps in critical data layers.
Funding was provided by the South Central Homeland Security Regional Council to provide for the purchase of some software and hardware to help county governments close important data gaps. We anticipate GIS software and GPS units will be the primary items purchased.

5) Provide for the purchase of a regional server so GIS data that needs to be shared across the region can be easily accessible to Incident Management Teams and others when an emergency situation arises.


What can you do?
If this information peaks your interest as being important to your jurisdiction, take a minute and share this article with your county’s representative on your Regional Homeland Security Council. As Adjutant General Tod Bunting has noted, the goal is to have “critical data layers statewide backed up in multiple locations.”

Joining The Kansas Collaborative in this South Central regional GIS collaborative effort are the following state and federal partners: Kansas Adjutant General’s Department, State GIS Policy Board, Data Access and Support Center and the U.S. Geological Survey. Shelly Abbott-Becker, KAC Board member, was also instrumental in gaining local buy-in for this effort. Documents related to this project can be found here.

Until next month…

Kathleen and Joel

One additional note, The Kansas Collaborative: February 2008 Overview is available on the KAC website.

GIS: What’s New To Help You

“GIS (geographic information system) is the next important information management system for government.” A bold statement and one that captures the conclusion we have reached in our roughly two year journey in facilitating state/local GIS efforts.

The power of this technology to “knit together the courthouse” was demonstrated at the KAC annual pre-conference workshop, “Maximizing Your Use of GIS.” Thanks to a collaborative effort between The Kansas Collaborative and Jefferson County, this workshop highlighted uses of GIS in planning and zoning, emergency services, road and bridge and beyond. In fact the real power was in seeing the connections between departments and the efficiencies gained when information was shared and paperwork eliminated. Four county commissioners also discussed their county’s journey and experience with GIS (Coffey County Commissioner Kimberly Skillman-Robrahn, Dickinson County Commissioner Joe Nold, Jefferson County Commissioner Dave Christy and Rooks County Commissioner Pat Hageman) with each concluding in their own way that this technology is important to an effective courthouse and is worth the investment.

An important and lasting resource came from this workshop, the Map Book as we all fondly refer to it. The Map Book again was the result of a collaborative effort with the Jefferson County GIS Department and is now available via download from our web site. Visit the Resource Center, GIS and click on the link called “Maximizing Your Use of GIS – Map Book.” You will then be linked with the Jefferson County GIS home page. At the bottom of their home page in a blue box is the file for the GIS Map Book. It is worth the time to download and worth the time to study.

There are a couple other new resources in the GIS portion of the Resource Center to assist you in your GIS efforts. Check out the Aerial Imagery Guidelines and the Digital Color Orthoimagery Scope of Work documents. The first document provides a good overview of aerial imagery and the second provides a document you can utilize as a contract with an aerial imagery vendor if you are acquiring 6 inch color imagery. Your resulting imagery will meet national map standards. The E-911 Board has been provided both documents.

In our March article we will talk more about our 2008 GIS efforts. Suffice it to say that the funding for our statewide GIS efforts has come to a conclusion. We have, however, secured some funding for a regional strategy in partnership with the South Central Homeland Security Regional Council. We think these efforts will prove to be an important pilot for other Homeland Security regions. Stay tuned next month for an update on what we are doing there.

Until next month…

Kathleen and Joel

Potential Savings Information
The Transportation Breakthrough Team of The Kansas Collaborative has been working to create savings by taking advantage of the presence of KDOT in a county and city doing overlay projects. Every year there are multiple opportunities to create this cost savings coordination between KDOT, counties and cities. The team understands that it will require additional work to gather information, check out the bidding requirements and much more. Now we have some documentation of savings that can be achieved when you do this extra work. Wayne Blackbourn, the Coffey County Engineer has filed the following report that needs to be shared among commissioners and public works around the state. Please give him a call if you have questions. Let’s figure out how we can turn the presence of KDOT into savings for your county.

The following list of projects was bid this year with the intention of capitalizing on the cost savings to the county from contractors working in the county on state projects. The project A2701-C shows a direct benefit from the Bid of SeKan ($251,049.30) to Apac ($348,275.46) saving the county $97,226.16. Part of the savings is from the mobilization cost of $64,000 as per bid on the state project K031-106 KA 0660-01. The other project A2702-C was sent out for bid just after Killough Construction had completed project U075-016 K 9793-01. So, mobilization was not a factor in the bidding process for project A2702-C.


Project No. A2701-C
Published April, 27, 2007
BM-2 Asphalt Mix Commercial grade asphalt Quantity 5,914 Tons. Total length was 2 miles and 27 foot wide.
Included in the Asphalt unit price was mobilization, traffic control, selected milling and temporary pavement markings.

Received bids on May 17, 2007 from Apac-Shears, (Emporia) Bid of $58.89 per ton total bid $348,275.46, Se-Kan (Gas) Bid of $42.45 per ton total bid $ 251,049.30. Killough Construction (Ottawa) Bid of $47.85 per ton total bid $282,984.90 Low Bid was Se-Kan for $42.45 per ton total bid $ 251,049.30.

Piggyback Project: State Project K031-106 KA 0660-01 Surface Recycle & Bituminous Overlay, length of project was 29.61 miles. Se-Kan was low Bid at $1,587,493.06 Bid item mobilization= $64,000.00

Project No. A2702-C
Published August 03, 2007
BM-2 Asphalt Mix Commercial grade asphalt Quantity 12,200 Tons. Total length was 7 miles and 26 foot wide.
Included in the Asphalt unit price was mobilization, traffic control, selected milling and temporary pavement markings.

Received bids on August 22, 2007 from Apac-Shears, (Emporia) Bid of $48.21 per ton total bid $588,162, Se-Kan (Gas) Bid of $46.97 per ton total bid $ 573,034.00. Killough Construction (Ottawa) Bid of $48.40 per ton total bid $590,480.00 Low Bid was Se-Kan Bid of $46.97 per ton total bid $ 573,034.00

Piggyback Project: State Project U075-016 K 9793-01 Grading & Bituminous Surfacing, length of project was 0.29 miles. Killough Construction Inc was low Bid at $294,283.85 Bid item mobilization= $11,100.00


As Wayne concludes, “The cost savings to the counties on mobilization are measurable and should be utilized by sharing information between the State, Counties and the Contractors.” If you need any additional information on these savings, please contact Wayne Blackbourn, Coffey County Engineer, at 620-364-2441.

Until next month…
Kathleen and Joel

For those of you that attended the KAC pre-conference workshop we coordinated on “Maximizing Your Use of GIS” we hope you gained as much insight as we did about the uses of GIS as an important information management tool for your county. We also hope each of you had the opportunity to stop by The Kansas Collaborative booth at the KAC annual conference. Here are a few highlights from our work this year.

1. County Jail Savings on Inmate Health Care Costs from the enactment of HB 2893.
   Savings to date: Just under $3 million which reflects an average savings of 69.2%.
   For more information, visit the Resource Center, Health Care Costs for Incarcerated Populations Breakthrough Team. Two documents are available for download:
   • Claims Processing Information: Form and information on how to have Correct Care Solutions (KDOC’s health care provider) adjust your medical bills to reflect the Medicaid rate
   • Claims Summary Report: An up-to-date savings report
   
   
2. Medical Supplies Purchasing.
   The Health Care Costs for Incarcerated Populations Breakthrough Team is now working to reduce medical supplies costs. Data is being gathered from county jails, health departments, and ambulance services to determine the top 20 to 25 items purchased. Options for reducing these costs will be provided.
   If you would like to participate in the data gathering stage, please contact Kathleen Harnish-Doucet at kathleen@teamtechinc.com.
   
   
3. E-911 Aerial Photography acquisition and contracting assistance.
   The Kansas Collaborative’s Geographic Information Systems Breakthrough efforts include a recent request to provide technical assistance to counties and to the E-911 Board. Three efforts are underway:
   • Aerial Imagery Guidelines have been developed and can be downloaded from the Resource Center, GIS Breakthrough Team.
   • Contracting guidelines have been developed to assist you in leading contractual relationships. These can be found in the GIS Guidebook document on our web site.
   • Specifications for acquisition of 6 inch color aerial imagery (orthoimagery) were presented to the E-911 Board at their November meeting. These specifications allow consistency in aerial imagery so land area can be flown once but the data used multiple times. Download the document “Digital Color Orthoimagery Scope of Work” from our web site. Attach it to your next aerial imagery acquisition. Share it with your Sheriff and Dispatcher as they look to utilize E-911 money for aerial imagery purchases.
   
   
4. Transportation Breakthrough Team
   Watch for a detailed update on this effort on the December Blog.

Until next month…
Kathleen and Joel

Posted by Kathleen at 12:21 PM. Filed under: General

• Permalink

The KAC annual conference in November always reminds us of the formal launch of The Kansas Collaborative. For those that we there in 2005 you will recall that the success of the Prescription Drugs for Inmate Populations Breakthrough Team sparked the decision to formalize state/local collaboration. In November 2005 the Declaration of Commitment to The Kansas Collaborative was signed by Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius, the President of the Kansas Association of Counties and the Executive Director of the League of Kansas Municipalities. Our firm, as founders of The Kansas Collaborative, also serves as the project managers with the KAC as our fiscal agent.

As you know, The Kansas Collaborative is committed to fostering cross-government collaboration that improves government efficiencies by solving problem, saving money and networking leaders. Over $13.5 million has been saved to date as a result of the work of The Kansas Collaborative’s Breakthrough Teams, which focus on a common challenge and breakthrough to solution implementation.

Make sure you are “up to date” and “in the know” about the opportunities to solve problems, save money and network by participating in The Kansas Collaborative’s activities at this year’s annual conference.

• The pre-conference workshop on Sunday, November 18, “Maximizing Your Use of GIS” is a direct follow-up to the work of the Collaborative to help state and local governments implement geographic information systems in a coordinated fashion. This workshop is designed for Commissioners and Department heads that want to understand the full capability of GIS as an important decision- and policy-making tool. Jefferson County has worked hard to pull together easy to understand illustrations that will include an invaluable “map book” that beginners (that includes us) can understand!
  
• On Monday look for two workshop sessions related to transportation. The first one (8:00 – 9:30am) focuses on the Local Road Engineer services including what has been accomplished so far, priorities for going forward and discussion of current issues. The other session (4:00 – 5:00pm) concerns utilization of state purchasing contracts and advance notification of KDOT construction projects. This session will include reports from those that have utilized these programs and answers to questions on how counties can be more involved in these initiatives.
  
• On Sunday and Monday be sure and visit our extended booth near the KAC registration table. By stopping in you will have the opportunity to get the latest information on all the ways your county can benefit from the efforts of The Kansas Collaborative’s Breakthrough Teams:
  
  1. Health care purchasing: Medical supplies savings opportunities for your health department, ambulance service and county jail.
     
  2. Transportation: Check out KDOT’s overlay project schedule to see if your county has the opportunity to gain important negotiating information for your local road work. You can also check out the project-notification process and purchasing options.
     
  3. Geographic Information Systems (GIS): Don’t miss an opportunity to find out more about what the state has to offer (free back-up services for GIS data, the data inventory project, technical assistance, vulnerable populations database and more) and to get copies of the latest technical assistance guides for aerial photography and GIS implementation.

One last comment…we recently submitted an application for the 2007 Kennedy School of Government’s Innovation Award. In the application we were asked to articulate what we thought was the single most important achievement of The Kansas Collaborative. From our perspective, it is the catalytic role the Collaborative is playing in changing “how” government does “what” it does in Kansas. As you know, it is not new to put a county person on a state team. It is not new for county commissioners to hear from or meet with a state agency head. What is new, we believe, is a concerted effort to formalize linkages and view the roles of state and local government within the context of a larger system. We continue to see “breakthroughs” when state government steps up to its technical assistance role so county governments can take responsibility to find the best option for your local situation.

See you at the conference…

Kathleen and Joel

If your county’s name is listed HERE you have a great opportunity to save money this summer by working with KDOT when they are in your county doing overlay projects. The KDOT Area Engineer should have been in contact with you. If you haven’t been contacted please call KDOT as soon as possible.

Now read on to find out more details about how this money saving opportunity works.

• Advance notice of projects is so that counties have the opportunity to take advantage of KDOT contractors being in the area. They may be able to perform work that is not normally done by local contractors, or at least provide for more competition if the project is bid.
  
• In many rural areas of the state there is no permanent hot mix plant or adequate number of contractors to competitively bid paving, sealing and certain types of road projects. Typically hot mix plants are located in the area only when there is a large paving project and more often than not this is a contract with KDOT.
  
• All local governments in the county need to have advance notice of the KDOT projects so they can budget for possible street work or buy hot mix or other materials from the contractor.
  
• KDOT, county and city cooperation in this area has the potential to significantly reduce the cost of local projects.

Here is what you need to do:

1. Examine the KDOT maps of 2008 projects and see the projects in your county. You can find the KDOT maps in the Transportation Section of the Resource Center then scroll down to the transportation section. There is also a Fact Sheet that can be downloaded which explains the process in more detail, and answers frequently asked questions.
   
2. Contact your KDOT Area Engineer as soon as possible. You can find out specific details about contractors, hot mix plant locations, timing, equipment to be on site, etc. Remember, bidding statutes are not superseded, and it is up to you to determine the most appropriate way to proceed.
   
3. Take time to let communities in your county know about this opportunity. They can also save money in the same way.

The Health Care Purchasing Breakthrough Team is now at work on savings for medical supplies. This is the team that brought to you the prescription drug savings for inmate populations as well as partnered with the Kansas Sheriffs’ Association on legislation to obtain Medicaid rates for inmate medical care. To date these two efforts have saved over $12.5 million statewide with 35% of those savings accruing to local governments.

This collaborative medical supplies purchasing effort is available to any unit of local government that purchases medical supplies so for most counties this includes the local health department, jail and government-based ambulance services. An initial look at some local pricing versus what is available via the state contract indicates an average potential savings of 23% with a range of savings per item from a negative savings to over 80%.

The team decided that our initial work would be to notify local governments of the availability of the state’s contract through MMCAP. We will want to get feedback over this next year to see if this contract is working or needs adjustments to meet local needs. Here’s some basic information if you are interested.

• MMCAP is a multi-state purchasing alliance…see www.mmcap.org.
  
• McKesson won the MMCAP bid for medical supplies…meets “proof of bid” criteria. Current contract runs through 2008.
  
• McKesson contract focuses on manufacturers of products. McKesson has several manufacturers as part of their contract.
  
• There is a core list of 4,000 products with firm prices for one year at a time. Price adjustments are made with MMCAP approval.
  
• Non-core products: Discount based on a % off catalog.
  
• Offers on-line ordering and products can be returned within 30 days.
  
• There is a KC warehouse so orders received by 1pm are delivered the next day. Some small orders take 2 days for delivery.
  
• MMCAP receives a ½% fee from McKesson for managing this contract. McKesson then applies for rebates from the manufacturers.
  
• Entities can send McKesson a list of current products and they will do a price comparison. Will need Manufacturer number, Manufacturer name, Product description. Contact is Paul Kraske.
  
• Process for signing-up:
  
  1. Go to www.da.ks.gov/purch. Click on “Contract Awards.” Then search by key word “MMCAP” and the Hospital Supplies contract (contract #01299) will be listed. All the information is there to complete the next step.
     
  2. Sign-up as MMCAP member (most health departments already are members.) Go to www.mmcap.org, click on “What is MMCAP & Membership” to get the current Kansas membership list.
     
  3. Receive MMCAP membership number which will provide you access to core list of 4,000 items to do price comparisons.
     
  4. Complete account set-up form for McKesson. Contact is Paul Kraske at 800-328-8111 ext. 6953.
     
  5. Receive McKesson account number which provides you access to entire catalog and pricing information.
     
  6. Open question: If the Ambulance service is a private entity, can they participate in the MMCAP contract?

We have added an “Updates” section to the Home page as well as added more resources to the Resource Center.

Until next month…
Kathleen and Joel

Backing up data

At the request of Randall Allen, this month’s article focuses on just one of the lessons cited by folks that worked in the aftermath of the Greensburg tornado: Back up your data off-site. This same lesson was among those cited by Bj Wooding after the Hoisington tornado in 2001. “Easy and quick access to all types of data is essential in this type of disaster. The information needs to be maintained in digital format and also in paper format to some degree with back ups stored in different locations OR warehoused at the central DASC site.”

As The Kansas Collaborative has traveled the state talking about GIS (geographic information systems), the state’s Data Access and Support Center (DASC) has been either mentioned or a representative has been there with us. Backing up your GIS data at DASC is free and can be tailored to fit your needs and desires:

• Archive and Backup Only
  
• Restricted Distribution of your data with your permission
  
• Public Access of Your Data

Download the DASC brochure “Sharing Data” by visiting the Resource Center, GIS Breakthrough Team. You can also contact Eileen Battles at DASC at 785-864-2000 or battles@kgs.ku.edu to get additional information or visit the DASC site.

From the Greensburg tornado…

• D.J. McMurray, Pratt County Appraiser and one of the many people responding and still responding to the needs of the people of Greensburg, “Backing up your AS400 nightly off site is very important. What I am reminded of as I assist Kiowa County is that every county is set up differently. It is very helpful to folks coming in to assist to have a lockbox somewhere that contains information on what data is backed up where and what the files are called. The lockbox should also hold all the security codes. Using DASC (the state’s Data Access and Support Center) for all GIS back-up makes sense because all of us in the GIS community just know to go there for GIS data. Finally, remember to back-up the stand alone PCs. Individual PCs often contain important information that is needed not just in the immediate crisis but as the rebuilding moves along.”
  
• Bruce Hardesty, R & S Digital and early “on the scene” to volunteer to help with data retrieval, “When we went to help in Greensburg the first thing we knew we could do was try and get data from DASC. If the data is there then we can immediately begin to help by getting the data layers and producing the information needed for responders and for FEMA.”
  
• Bj Wooding, Cartographer, Barton County and GIS Policy Board member, “DASC is definitely the one place everyone should have a fairly recent (at least annual) copy of their data whatever its state of development. It should also be backed up locally, at an adjoining county, especially if it has a similar setup (AS400, CAMA, GIS, mode of operations) or at least in another city in the county that has computer capabilities.”

We did get the question “What data layers or information is most important to have available during a disaster response?” In Bj’s debrief of the 2001 tornado, she noted “It was decided that the tax/ownership parcel map with the digital orthophoto under laid would be the most useful at first….It is estimated that by using the GIS and CAMA systems, the damage estimate figures were derived two to three weeks faster than they would have been without it.” Bruce Hardesty, R & S Digital, noted from the 2007 tornado that ownership parcel maps linked to CAMA data was the most helpful in determining who lost what and the value associated with that property loss.

There is also something The Kansas Collaborative needs your help with…
Over the next several months, The Kansas Collaborative will be assisting GIS policy makers in completing a web-based on-line inventory of who has what data layers. We hope you will welcome our questions and help us together find the answers. This isn’t about someone watching what is or is not happening but rather a responsible response to lessons from disasters…knowing what information is where can make all the difference in how fast folks can help.

Each of you will have web access to the inventory results so you will have one more way to help your neighbors should they need you. My years at Kinsley High School taught me the resilience and the camaraderie of the people in the western part of our state. You are all in our thoughts and our prayers.

Until next month…
Kathleen and Joel

NOTE: The Guidebook to County GIS Implementation is now available for download in the Resource Center, GIS Breakthrough Team. Funding for this project was provided by the Information Network of Kansas. We welcome your feedback.

This is an article on the new position of the Local Road Engineer written by Norm Bowers:

The Latest News from Your Local Road Engineer
By Norm Bowers

Last summer the Transportation Breakthrough Team of The Kansas Collaborative began to work with the KAC Board, the Kansas County Highway Association and the Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT) to realize a dream that was held by many county engineers and road and bridge people, i.e. to develop a service that provides information not easily available to the counties and looks out for the counties’ interests at the state level. The dream is now a reality. The work of the Local Road Engineer started in late March, 2007 and now is well underway. This service is a pilot project funded for one year by KDOT and the KAC. The service does not offer site specific engineering, but seeks to assists counties through the following seven major areas. Specific services are outlined below:

Area No. 1. Represent the county’s interest with federal and state regulatory agencies: The local road engineer will work with federal and state agencies when new regulations are proposed to see that the counties’ viewpoint and interests are represented.

Area No. 2. Represent the counties with special interest groups like the Kansas Contractors Association, Land Surveyors, and Consulting Engineers to name a few. We have had misunderstandings with these groups in the past, which resulted in legislative proposals that were not favorable to counties. We want to avoid those conflicts in the future if we can, and one point of contact and better communications will help.

Area No. 3. Improve communications between KDOT and the counties. KDOT is in the same business as our road departments, and we generally have similar interests and needs. KDOT is a big organization and any agency in KDOT may at times need to contact a county or counties, or get input from counties, and we hope to be able to facilitate that process.

Area No. 4. Legislative Advocacy In the legislative area credible technical testimony is needed on short notice to counter proposed legislation that is detrimental to counties. Should road related proposals come forward we could better provide information on short notice and coordinate testimony by knowledgeable county officials like your engineers and supervisors.

Area No. 5. Preparing templates for use by the counties. Rather than each county having to figure out how to deal with a new issue, a statewide template can be provided that can be modified for local conditions. So rather than each county trying to independently figure out what to do, we can furnish a model plan with instructions on how to tailor the plan to local conditions. This will not only save you folks a lot of time, but will give you confidence that what you are doing meets regulations as well as not being out of line with what other counties are doing.

Area No. 6. Clearing House or State of the Practice. It is important for each county to know what other counties in the state are doing. This information is helpful to answer inquiries, determine standards of care, planning, and just to keep abreast of current issues and practices. It will take a while to compile information to have a good clearing house, but we will get started and with time this can be a very useful service.

Area No. 7. Compile Road and Bridge Laws and Administrative Regulations. We need to compile all the road and bridge laws and regulations so they are easily found by both experienced and new department directors. It will take a number of years to complete this task, but we will get started this year.

The Collaborative Connection.
The Local Road Engineer is also assisting with two other Collaborative projects, including the Project Notification Sharing, and the Joint Purchasing Project. Norm has fact sheets and FAQ’s on these two projects, and is available to answer any questions you might have on making these projects work for your county. When KDOT receives bids on equipment, Norm will notify the counties with the information.

Having a county presence at the state level is already beginning to pay dividends. For instance, when KDHE proposed changing regulations related to the Clean Water Act, county comments were provided which helped to avoid a new requirement on construction projects for an operation and maintenance plans on roads and bridges, and a Water Pollution Prevention Plan for each project.

Here are three quick points to put a wrap on this article:

• Beginning next month I will be writing an article monthly in the County Comment. It will be under the title “On the Road.” Look for it!
  
• Feedback will be critical to the success of this program. Please send feedback to me personally or through either Randall Allen at the KAC or Joel Wright at The Kansas Collaborative.
  
• The last paragraph begins to illustrate the benefits of this position to counties. As mentioned in the first paragraph, this pilot is funded for one year. We intend to demonstrate in the next 12 months why it makes good business sense for counties to fund the Local Road Engineer service long-term.

Norm Bowers

Health Care Supplies Purchasing: More Savings Options to Come

The Health Care Cost Breakthrough Team (the team that brought you options first for reducing inmate pharmaceutical costs and then medical costs) is working on our next project…looking at how we might provide local governments with options to reduce costs on health care supplies.

Holding to our value of being “data driven,” the team did a pricing comparison on a sampling of medical supplies currently purchased by some local governmental entities. These included Douglas County Jail, Halstead EMS, Harvey County Health Department, Hesston Emergency Services, Jefferson County Ambulance, Jefferson County Health Department, Home Health & Hospice, Juvenile Justice Authority, and Rice County EMS.

Comparing current costs to costs on the MMCAP contract with McKesson (you might remember the MMCAP contract from our pharmaceutical work), savings vary widely per item (3% to 94%) with an average savings potential of 24%. Our team meets on Wednesday, May 16, to discuss “next steps” and to explore additional options. We’ll keep you posted and certainly welcome your participation in future meetings.

If you have the opportunity to thank the current team members, please do so. They continue to work tirelessly on behalf of “government working together for better results.”

• Debbie Donaldson, Sedgwick County
  
• Eileen Filbert, Jefferson County
  
• Betsy Gillespie, Johnson County
  
• Lee Harmon, Juvenile Justice Authority
  
• Chris Howe, Division of Purchases
  
• Mike Kearns, Riley County
  
• JoRene Kerns, Correct Care Solutions
  
• Dennis Kriesel, Kansas Association of Counties
  
• Ken Massey, Douglas County
  
• Viola Riggin, Kansas Department of Corrections
  
• Craig Simons, Harvey County
  
• John Waltner, Harvey County

Until next month…
Kathleen and Joel

The Kansas Collaborative: Transportation Breakthrough Team
Using the State Contract to Save Money

We have only begun to use the resource of the state contract to save money for counties.

Here is an example from Seward County of how it is done. This example comes from Mary Bloomer, the Seward County Administrator, and shows how you can leverage state contract pricing to purchase a vehicle through a local dealership.

“Our Road and Bridge Supervisor, Tony Herrman contacted the state to see which business was awarded the state contract for vehicles. He was advised the state contract holder for vehicles was Shawnee Mission Ford, Inc., in Shawnee, Kansas. Tony then contacted them to see what the state pricing was for a Ford F-250 truck and they advised him what the contract price was and sent him the pricing information. We then went through our regular bid process that we have in place with the county. A request for bids was advertised in our official county newspaper 2 consecutive weeks and was also hand delivered to each of the dealerships in our area. Tony also advised the dealers that he had received information regarding what the state contract pricing was and encouraged them to submit a bid and hoped they could be competitive with the state contract so that we could keep the bid in county.

We received 5 sealed bids (one sealed by us in the form of the state contract bid as received from Shawnee Mission Ford). The state contract was low bid. The Ford dealership was second best bid. Once the bids were compared, Tony contacted the Ford dealership here in town and advised him if they could meet or beat the bid of the state contract pricing we would like to award the bid to them. They reviewed the bid and readjusted their pricing – it was $64.00 less that the state contract price. The Board awarded the bid to our local Ford dealer. It was a win-win situation for us and our dealership.”

There are over 100 different contracts that can be used to save counties money.

Large equipment is another arena that the Collaborative has focused on to provide opportunity to save money.

Mark Clements at the KDOT Purchasing Department is keeping us informed of all the large equipment bids coming through KDOT. These contracts are not listed on the State Contract list and there is a limited time to purchase equipment off of these contracts. Contact Norm Bowers if you are interested in the specs for the crawler loader, sweeper, or arrow board listed below. Norm also has information on a Flashing Light Trailer and Equipment Transport Trailer. Mark Clements from KDOT will keep updating us on large equipment bids that are available to local units of government and we will get the word to you.

RFQ #10180 Crawler Loader
Vendor: Murphy Tractor and Equipment
Contact: Bill Buckles
Phone: 316-945-1015
Model: 2007 Deere 655C Series II
Cost: $157,726.00
Unit has to be ordered within 120 days

RFQ #10168 Self propelled non-pickup type Sweeper
Awarded to: Berry Tractor and Equipment
Contact: Ken Wasinger, 800-864-4509.
Model: Superior DT80CT
Price: $35,262.00
Price is honored on units ordered by May 1, 2007 plus differential on freight

RFQ #010169 Arrow Board, Skid Mounted and Trailer Mounted
Skid Mount Awarded to: Ver-Mac
Contact: Kimberly jack, 888-488-7446
Models: VM-368425LTG and VM-4825LTM
Price: $1,475.00 & $1,325.00
Pricing good for 6 months.

Geographic Information Systems (GIS)
In late February we spent one week traveling 1,100 mile across Kansas. As usual, we found great things and great people everywhere we went. The purpose of this trip was to follow-up on our Phase II GIS efforts across the state. We are creating a “GIS Implementation Guidebook” which we will make available to everyone when it is done but we wanted to share these ideas now.

Saving Money: Some Ideas

• Coordinate aerial photography. Many counties did this in February/March. Dickinson County estimates they saved nearly $30,000 in joining with others. In the future, look for us to work with you on coordinating schedules statewide.
  
• Avoid duplicating efforts. Find out what your Sheriff or Dispatcher already has digitized. Check with your Emergency Manager to see what data layers are already done at the state level. Check with your cities to see what they are doing or planning to do.
  
• Utilize addressing standards so data will “match” with others. These can be found at http://www.kansasgis.org/docs/uploaded/2address.pdf or just visit www.kansasgis.org and look in the documents section.
  
• Edge-match your data with neighboring counties so future data sharing will be easier. Require your vendor to do this or do it yourself.
  
• Make sure you reference the state contract if buying ESRI products. The state has a master contract which should help you save money. You can access the details including pricing at http://www.da.ks.gov/purch/adds/2005MPA.zip. When you purchase from ESRI, please reference Contract Number 2005MPA1199.
  
• If you are wondering about security protocols around certain data sets, check out this decision tree on classifying data sets for security… http://www.fgdc.gov/policyandplanning/Access%20Guidelines.pdf

GIS Training Opportunities
Everywhere we go folks tell us that GIS training is needed. Here are some resources:

• Through an Information Network of Kansas (INK) grant, the Collaborative is offering a “Basic GIS Boot Camp” for ESRI users. The first one was offered in Colby on March 1 – 2. The second training is set for April 25 – 26 in Garden City. The cost is just $30/person to cover food. Contact us if you are interested in sending someone.
  
• With the INK grant money, we are also considering developing a “tricks of the trade” course for users beyond the “beginning stage.” Watch for information on this.
  
• Is there interest in an AutoCAD training course? If so, at what level? Let us know.
  
• Judy Cady, GIS Coordinator for Osborne County, began with no GIS experience. Her advice to beginners? In week one of your work, complete the ESRI online course, Planning for a GIS. Enroll in online GIS concepts classes. She is taking one from Fort Hays State University at http://www.fhsu.edu/virtualcollege/. She is also taking “Basic Mapping” and “Reading Legal Descriptions and Understanding Deeds” taught by Susan Williams, Kansas Department of Revenue, susan_williams@kdor.state.ks.us. Join the Kansas Association of Mappers at www.kam.to.

A good starting point for working cross-department on GIS efforts is to share with folks the document “County Department Uses for GIS.” This can be downloaded from our Resource Center at www.kansascollaborative.com under the GIS Breakthrough Team section.

Until next month…
Kathleen and Joel