Burnet County approves $1 million in unbudgeted IT upgrades
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The Burnet County Commissioners Court approved up to $1 million in spending for major information technology upgrades to address its aging fiber optic cable system, cybersecurity issues, and network connectivity. The approved funds were unbudgeted for this fiscal year, and the decision was made by a split 4-1 vote of the court.
Specifically, the $1 million will be used to run modern fiber cable from the county’s new technology department headquarters, which is currently under construction at 127 E. Jackson Street, to the County Courthouse and the Sheriff’s Office. The funds will also be used to configure firewalls, facilitate data storage, and increase government security, which are all badly needed according to the county’s new IT director, Greg Harris.
“(The need for the upgrades) wasn’t foreseen until we decided to move the IT department into the new building (at 127 E. Jackson Street),” Harris told DailyTrib after the court’s decision. “It really showed us the state of our infrastructure. (The upgrades are needed) to ensure that the county is protected from a security posture and that we have ownership of our own data and we are able to allow the employees to work at a speed that is conducive to providing a service to our constituents.”
Harris, who was hired in June 2025 and brings 30 years of experience in technology experience, said the new IT department would likely be completed in March or April and that the $1 million in upgrades would come soon after.
Before the court made its decision, Burnet County Judge Bryan Wilson questioned the lack of analysis behind the proposal, and ultimately voted against it.
“We’re being asked to spend a million dollars on something, of tax payer money, that was not clearly identified in the board packet,” he told DailyTrib following the vote.
Wilson asked for a third-party analysis before the funds would be approved, but the other four members of the court– Precinct 1 Commissioner Jim Luther, Precinct 2 Commissioner Damon Beierle, Precinct 3 Commissioner Chad Collier, and Precinct 4 Commissioner Joe Don Dockery– approved the proposal from the IT director.
Wilson’s main complaint was that the court often uses third-party professional services for planning analysis on things like road work, building improvements, and other expensive projects, and that it sould be the same for the IT upgrades.
With the funds for the project unbudgeted this fiscal year, the money was transferred from the buildings fund line item. This was also determined by a vote of the court with Wilson being the sole opposer.
Pct. 3 Commissioner Collier, was a strong supporter of the IT upgrades and Harris’ proposal, drawing upon his own 25 years of experience in telecommunications infrastructure.
“(The upgrades) are needed,” he told DailyTrib. “It’s just like our road infrastructure. We need to build it up and get it into the 21st century. We are very fortunate to have Mr. Harris as our IT director.”