Upgrades to the county’s technology systems are among the focuses of the proposed 2015 budget, which was presented to the Cass County Board of Commissioners by Administrator Roger Fraser last week.

More than $1.5 million worth of capital projects are listed on the document submitted to the commissioners, including a $347,000 expenditure for a new imaging system. The board will vote on the proposed budget during their next meeting, on Aug. 21.

The requested funds for an imaging system are the largest of the several capital projects detailed in the budget, Fraser said. With such technology in place, the county courts and other offices will be able to create electronic versions of documents that can be sent remotely between departments.

“We’ve been toying with that idea within the organization for several years,” Fraser said. “We’ve been working on grant funding that we haven’t been able to nail down. We believe that our ability in the future, to be more efficient and less expensive in terms of the people we employ, is directly related to our ability to have better technology and imply that in more ways.”

Another major technological need that Administrator suggested the county address are upgrades to existing tax software, as requested by the Treasurer, in the amount of $350,805. That and $150,000 worth of improvements to Dodd Park are among the projects that the county would seek alternate funding for in 2015, should the budget be passed by the board.

Fraser also proposed that the county invest $200,000 in the Economic Development Commission to develop a new program to encourage business growth in the county. The funding for this would come from a .1054 millage, which, per Public Act 88 of 1913, would not require a public vote since it would be in support of economic development activities.

“My suggest is that you only exercise that option after a full vetting in the community of the program, what it is that is being proposed, and how it impacts the community, both in a positive way and from a tax standpoint,” Fraser said.