HILLSBOROUGH, NJ — Mayor Catherine Payne addressed questions about the township's recent approval of a three-year agreement to transition municipal software operations from Spatial Data Logic, or SDL to GovPilot.
The GovPilot contract was approved at the Aug. 25 Township Committee meeting for $423,454 for 2026 through 2029.
At Tuesday's meeting, Payne explained the change after questions from residents at the previous meeting.
Payne said the township is making the switch because of reliability problems with the current platform.
She said residents had raised concerns about instability and outages, and said the updated GovPilot system addresses those issues.
Payne also said the move is tied to the township's effort to improve access to municipal records and reduce the need for formal Open Public Records Act requests.
"GovPilot's public-facing GIS and property profile map allow residents to search by address or block lot view, and download public documents related to a property," Payne said. "By placing these documents directly on an interactive map at the front end of our OPRA portal, we can provide instant access to frequently requested documentation."
According to Payne, the township's IT director and township clerk reviewed the options with frontline teams in building, planning and zoning, health, and the clerk's office.
She said department staff "unanimously endorsed this move," citing GovPilot's interface, stability and public-facing features.
Cost was another issue raised by residents.
Payne said remaining on SDL was projected to cost $123,500 annually, plus another $13,000 to $15,000 per year for website hosting starting in 2027.
Whereas standard annual pricing for GovPilot is $173,000. However, Payne said the township negotiated a three-year agreement with a 2027 cost of $135,000 and annual discounts of $35,000 to $40,000.
Payne said that pricing would save roughly $120,000 over three years and keep costs in line with what the township has been paying.
She also said the agreement removes per-user fees and allows unlimited users and modules, which the township does not have under SDL.
Payne gave a year-by-year comparison during her remarks.
SDL for 2026 is $116,450, while GovPilot is $122,633. For 2027, Payne said SDL would have been between $136,500 and $138,500, while GovPilot will be a flat $135,000.
The contract also includes an exit clause, which allows the township to cancel with 30 days notice if funds are not annually appropriated.
She said migration begins immediately "to ensure seamless service for our residents."
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