Inspector Recovers $250,000 in Business License Fees in 1st Year Back
Upland, CA was missing out on hundreds of thousands of dollars per year in unpaid business license fees. Something needed to be done. And Marsie Grady was the one to do it. A longtime City of Upland employee, Marsie had the experience, drive, and institutional knowledge to get the train back on the tracks. In her first year back as the Utility Billing and Business License Inspector she recovered over $250,000 in fees. And that was during a pandemic.
Once a rural citrus producer, the affluent City became more residential and commercial when, in 1954, the San Bernardino Freeway connected it to Los Angeles 36 miles to the west. In 2021, its population grew to an all-time high of 77,000 residents. Throughout its rise, City employees have tirelessly upheld Upland's motto "The City of Gracious Living."
Marsie recently shared Upland's business licensing journey with Comcate hoping to help others learn from Upland's journey.
What happened to business licensing in Upland?
In 2014, all of our business licensing was outsourced to a third party company that assumed the roles of business license enforcement and inspections. We had some complaints with the company that we contracted with. We looked into it and found so many issues and realized that nothing was being followed up on from a compliance perspective.
In 2020, my role was created with additional responsibilities and a new reporting structure. I used to report to the Police as a business license inspector. Now, I report to Finance. At the same time, Senate bill 205 became effective in January of that year. The bill authorized cities to withhold business license certificates if a business was missing its stormwater permit.
What's your strategy for reducing non-compliance?
We're seven years down the rabbit hole. Right now, I'm fixing a lot of mistakes between business owners and our contracted company. For example, I'll find an account where the business paid, but the business license company didn't change their status in the system to generate and mail the certificate.
When I first started back, I requested reports from the contract company of accounts that were delinquent or had a "discovery" status, meaning they'd been identified as operating, but didn't have a business license. These reports represented 700-800 accounts. The contractor wasn't in Upland and didn't know that a particular business had moved out of the City whereas I was in the field everyday and knew. So, being here in the field every day helped.
What was your approach to business licensing before software?
When I did this job years ago, it was all paper and pen - Microsoft Word and personal calendars. The same was true for Code Enforcement up until a few years ago. Every inspection involved a paper form on which I'd record the date, what I did, and who I spoke with. I'd take pictures that I printed on paper and attached to my cases. Then I'd go into my calendar and schedule my next inspection.
Upland, CA Business Licensing replaced paper and pen with Comcate software and iPads
It was a nightmare. If we had an inquiry about a case first we'd have to find out who was working on it. If they weren't in the office, we'd have to go into a drawer where everything was filed by street alphabetically and dig through. And if the code enforcement officer had the case with them, we couldn't provide any update whatsoever. All we could do is take a message. It was not a good system and in 2019 when we chose Comcate's Code Enforcement Manager to modernize and streamline our processes.
Today, when there's a question, anyone in the office can look up the case and see its status and details. They just grab their iPad, pull up the case, and handle it right then and there. I think Comcate is great. I absolutely love it.
How did business licensing come to use Comcate's Code Enforcement Manager?
When I came into this job I saw an opportunity to use Comcate for business license inspections. After all, it too involved casework, enforcement, and compliance. I recommended the software to my supervisor, Comcate gave us a price that was approved, and we started implementation right away. It was just a matter of plugging in a few violations and getting new letterhead over to Comcate. The whole process was quick and simple.
My Comcate rep has been awesome from the time we started shopping for a solution up until now. If we have any questions he's very responsive and very professional. He's a cool guy.
How has Comcate improved your efficiency?
I'd say that I'm between 25%-50% more efficient using Comcate over a manual process. Everything is recorded electronically and I'm not dealing with paper, file cabinets, and staplers anymore. And questions about my cases can be answered when I'm in the field or off duty.
I also like to show data and numbers. At any given time I can show how many cases I have open, what I'm working on, what I've done, and what I've closed. I even do a monthly report that includes my Comcate stats. I love this program. It's very user-friendly and super easy.
We also look more professional when we're filling public records requests or providing court documentation. We're not pulling out a four inch thick case file of handwritten notes that have to be filtered through anymore. Today, it's all presentable, and understandable, and flows well. With Comcate, it's professional.
Marsie Grady relies on Comcate’s Business License Enforcement Manager to record activities electronically.
At the click of a button Comcate provides reporting statistics on cases, inspections, and other key activities.
What's your advice for people considering software to handle business licensing enforcement?
In 2021, you need to move forward with technology. Our old system was so archaic and unorganized. Comcate made our jobs so much easier from day one. Because the software flowed so well and followed our processes we were never confused. Comcate just makes your job so much easier.
