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Home > Blogs > Butler County News and Issues > Archives > 2008 > July > 08 > Entry
Commissioners not willing to ‘give away the store’ for merger study
Butler County Commissioners said they’d be willing to spend a pretty penny to study an expected merger of three departments whose budget exceeds $70 million.
But they’re not willing to go as far as some consultants who are proposing to do the work.
The JournalNews obtained the proposals submitted by companies looking to win the hearts — and pocketbooks — of commissioners to facilitate merging the county’s Department of Job and Family Services, Children Services and Child Support Enforcement Agency. The agencies have approximately 485 employees among them.
The six companies that submitted proposals are from all across the country. And the plans they are suggesting could cost anywhere from less than $100,000 to more than $4 million, according to an analysis of the proposals.
While commissioners Donald Dixon and Charles Furmon agree $4 million far exceeds what the county should be willing to pay for a study, other proposals have fallen within the expected price.
“It’s not going to be inexpensive, but it’s going to be a long way away from $1 million,” Dixon said. “We’re planning to do it a la carte, where all that stuff is going to be negotiated.”
Although it’s still early in the process of making a final decision — which could come next month — Dixon estimated he would be willing to spend between $100,000 and $200,000.
“But I think we could see a seven-figure savings in the merger,” Dixon added. The merger of the three departments has been floated to improve efficiencies and save money. The entire process — including study and implementation — could take more than a year.
The proposals
• On the low end, Cincinnati-based Management Partners compared the work in Butler County to other similar projects it has done ranging in price from $76,000 to $447,500.
• West Chester Twp.-based The Cumberland Group did not provide an estimated price for the study, but said its consultants would be paid $180 per hour and its administrative support team more than $28 per hour.
• Cleveland-based LNE Group — whose West Chester Twp. operation is directed by former GOP Executive Director Scott Owens — suggested the project would cost between $200,000 and $300,000.
• St. Paul, Minn.-based Public Strategies Group compared similar projects costing between $236,000 to $600,000 with Butler County’s request.
• Seattle-based MTG Management Consultants compared similar projects of between $245,000 to more than $442,000. An estimated cost of more than $267,000 is based on a $167 per hour blended hourly rate for its employees.
• Southfield, Mich.-based Plante Moran submitted a proposal that included a study and implementation plan for the merger. With an estimated cost of between $3.14 million and $4.45 million — based on a blended hourly rate of $245 per hour and a timeline that spans 19 months to 29 months of work — Plante Moran is the highest.
“I think some of them go far beyond what we want,” Furmon said. “But not dealing with these departments on a daily basis, we wanted somebody who could really delve into it and let us know.
Still, Furmon said: “We don’t want to give away the store just to get the information we need.”
Permalink | Comments (2) | Post your comment | Categories: County Commission
Comments
By JJ
July 8, 2008 9:34 AM | Link to this
I’d put my money on the LNE Group getting the project, it’s the Good Old Boy Politics with Scott Owens in the middle of things again.By welaaliexia
August 13, 2008 4:26 AM | Link to this
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