According to the State Contracting and Procurement Registration System, the department spent $4,830,604 (with rounding) on the following items from Jan. 1 through March 31:
- $1,820,486 for Esri CAD software licenses, maintenance and support in a March 5 contract with System Solutions DVBE Inc. This was for proprietary goods and not subject to competitive bidding.
- $972,585 for radio gear (BKR5000 Command, Tier III, Single-band, BKR5000-T3BC-1, Black, APCO P25 Digital, GPS, Bluetooth, Top LCD Display, Front Color Display, Full Keypad, BK Technologies Portable Radio) in a Feb. 7 cooperative agreement contract with 49er Communications Inc.
- $848,192 for training-related expenses for firefighters, engineers, captains and battalion chiefs, in a March 29 proprietary contract with TargetSolutions Learning LLC.
- $803,697 for radio equipment (BKR5000-T3BC-1, BKR 5000 CMD Radio Unit Model III Top Display & Front Display, Full Keypad) in a March 18 cooperative-agreement contract with Cross Connections Emergency.
- $385,644 for Sitecore Experience Platform license in a Jan. 3 competitively bid (small-business option) contract with SymSoft Solutions LLC.
In comparison, CAL FIRE spent $2,548,523 on its five largest buys of IT goods in the first quarter of 2023.
CAL FIRE’s charge is “fire prevention and protection, emergency response, and stewardship of natural resource systems,” and its technology operations are led by Scott Gregory, CAL FIRE’s deputy director for technology. Gregory was among the speakers at the California Public Sector CIO Academy* in March, where he spoke about how stepping away from the hardware and software to look at the political and societal landscapes can make a huge difference.
*The California Public Sector CIO Academy is hosted by Government Technology, Industry Insider — California’s sister publication.
The periodic reports of spending on IT goods and services by agencies and departments in state government are compiled by Industry Insider — California as a way of highlighting procurements and trends.
