P.A.G.E.: Pocatello Terminates Transition to New Financial Platform; $500K Spent on Project

(Pocatello for Accountable Government Entities, October 27, 2025)

1. ARPA FUNDS – Although day-to-day City operations are under the authority of the Mayor, termination of this federally-funded project requires a formal TERMINATION Agreement which requires Council approval. The Mutual Termination Agreement signed in July 2025 was NOT brought to Council during a publicly noticed meeting. Given this is an incomplete project & what was completed is not being used – is it eligible for ARPA
2. WASTED FUNDS – Actual cost of this project FAR EXCEEDS the $521,455.50 paid to Central Square since that total does not include the cost of all the staff time and effort. Staff worked on this project for at least 20 MONTHS and included the hiring of a new employee in October 2023 to specifically lead/facilitate this project.

1. The system was operational and undergoing testing at the beginning of 2025—it was being used concurrently with the old system per statements made in meetings. The decision was made to delay a full switch-over until October 1st to ensure a cleaner auditing process for FY25 without the complication of two systems.
2. The project included some fixes to reporting capabilities. We saw evidence of new EXCEL expenditure reports within Next Request (requested by previous councils but extremely difficult/labor intensive under the old system.) Hopefully this component is not impacted.
3. Based on some records requested/received, and statements made during budgeting earlier this year, the new “Finance Enterprise” system was INCOMPATIBLE with Utility Billing. Since this was known at the start of the project, and clear in both the presentation and contract documentation (available online), this fact should not have had any impact.
4. When converting to a new system, it’s not uncommon that all components cannot be brought together simultaneously. Conversions are often done in phases to make the project more doable and to spread the cost. It is also not uncommon that additional modules are required to bring other pieces into the system.
5. In his 03/09/23 presentation, the CFO highlighted the importance of shifting to a system that would bring the City into the 21st century and provide accurate and timely information. The new system would have modernized the Finance system, provided timely access to information, spreadsheets, etc. A quick online search reveals the “Finance Enterprise ERP” is used by cities of various sizes and is not specific to very large cities. The Finance Enterprises’ ERP strength per its website is it “. . . connects every process—finance, HR, payroll—into a single, scalable system.” Scalable means that the system that can grow with the City.
6. From speaking with outside experts, typical frustrations with such conversions originate from data not being in the correct format or not transferring easily or accurately, requiring labor-intensive efforts to ensure information accuracy. With time and additional assistance, these predictable obstacles can be overcome.