Johnson County, Kansas Connects with the Community

SALT LAKE CITY--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Johnson County, Kansas announces the launch of a county-wide Legislative Information Management System (LIMS) designed to manage the entire legislative process from first introduction of an item through final action and disposition. The system, provided by SIRE Technologies of Salt Lake City, Utah, has enhanced the transparency of policy-making processes, while simultaneously boosting productivity, reducing operating costs and significantly increasing accessibility.

“The use of this technology will help people to connect in new and interesting ways with their county government, and provide better opportunities for them participate in the development this community.”

The solution implemented by SIRE Technologies provides Johnson County and its citizens with comprehensive, timely and convenient information—all available through an electronic portal which can be accessed 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, from virtually any location in the world.

“One of my top priorities has been to bring the people to their county government, and the county government to the people,” said Annabeth Surbaugh, Chairman of the Board of County Commissioners. “This system enables our citizens to access exactly the same information provided to the Board, to read the same reports we have, which provides a greater level of transparency in our policy process.”

The cornerstone of this successful project is SIRE’s Agenda Plus, which streamlines the entire process: from agenda item creation to collaborative workflow processes, from standard and specialized reporting features, to basic and advanced search and retrieval functions that support a “self-service” approach to finding information, the SIRE solution met all of Johnson County’s functional requirements.

“Our agenda management process was like so many other cities and counties; it was a manual system that was paper-driven and incredibly labor intensive,” said Casey Joe Carl, Clerk of the Board of County Commissioners. “And, the process depended on human experience, which had been passed on by word of mouth for many years.” Carl continued, “We were looking for a comprehensive system that would meet all of our requirements. The SIRE solution does just that, and allows us to work more efficiently, accurately, and with a greater degree of control than ever before. The potential of SIRE in our organization—or any organization—is unlimited. It has allowed my office to be what we strive to be: a convenient, reliable source of thorough, accurate and readily available information…all at your fingertips.”

As the county’s chief elected official, Surbaugh says the SIRE solutions have done more than merely automate internal policy processes. To her, the new system actually enhances the ability for citizens to participate in local government decision making. In this way, Surbaugh believes that the county’s LIMS, based on SIRE’s industry-leading agenda management solutions, is actually helping to build community connections.

“The new Legislative Information Management System continues our strong commitment to involve the public in policy processes that are important to the future of Johnson County,” Surbaugh said. “The use of this technology will help people to connect in new and interesting ways with their county government, and provide better opportunities for them participate in the development this community.”