'Vision becomes reality': Fort Bend County rolls out mobile app

Have you been wanting to do your Fort Bend County business or get information from the county on a smartphone?

Now there's an app for that. The myFBC mobile app is now available on Apple and Android app stores and via links at the county's website.

"This has been a priority for my administration since I took office in January of 2019," Fort Bend County Judge KP George said in a July 29 Twitter post. "It is an honor to finally see the vision become the reality because of the hard work and dedication of our Information Technology Staff."

George has been Fort Bend County judge since January 2019 and is executive of the county's governing body as he presides over the Commissioners Court. George is also director of the county's office of Homeland Security and Emergency Management.

The county's website describes the myFBC app as "a one-stop source to find information about Fort Bend County."

Information available on the app includes the location of the county's nearest animal shelter and how to look up public records, in addition to watching Commissioner's Court live feeds and receiving emergency alert notifications. The app also allows county residents to look up their election precinct, find out who their elected officials are and get real-time data on wait times at their local polling locations on election days.

Residents can also report a lost pet, report a pothole and provide other information to the county via the myFBC app. App users also may file taxes and send messages to county officials. The app is secure and already is being used by the county's 3,000 employees.

"myFBC allows users to submit requests, so you can rest assured your neighborhood is as taken care of as you are," the website states.

The app grew out of increased demand for public information during the still ongoing pandemic, Fort Bend County Chief Information Officer Robyn Doughtie said in a State Scoop news story about the myFBC app.

One of the app's features, traffic-monitoring in county neighborhoods, was recommended by a county resident, according to a news story.

“That’s something we’re really proud of, that we own it," Doughtie said. "A lot of times you’ll see an app and a company name associated with it, but for this one, it was developed by Fort Bend County. It did make it more cost effective in the long and short term."