What is a Public User? 

A Public User is a citizen of your community that has a FrontDesk account. A Public User can either create their own account or they can be activated by an Agency User who has permissions to activate them.

Your costs are based on the number of active Public Users you have.

What are the types of Active Public Users?

1. Active Login: The citizen signs up for a Public User Account and has an active long, confirmed their email, and confirmed their mobile number. 
   1. They can pay bills online, receive electronic bills, use all features and notification preferences, and no longer eligible to receive printed bills from SimpleCity.
2. Active Internal: The Agency User activates a Public User Account to access all features for Public User Management. 
   1. The Public User does not have an active login
   2. They can still receive printed bills from SimpleCity and cannot pay online. 
   3. The user cannot receive electronic bills or notifications.
3. Active Internal AutoPay: The Agency User activates a Public User Account to be able to set the citizen up for auto-payment within FrontDesk and access Public User Management features. 
   1. The Public User does not have an active login
   2. They will still receive printed bills from SimpleCity
   3. All utility bills payments will occur automatically in FrontDesk and sync with SimpleCity
   4. They cannot receive electronic bills or other notifications from FrontDesk
4. Active Login AutoPay: The citizen signs up for a Public User Account and has an active login, has confirmed email and number, and have access to all features of Public User FrontDesk

How do I activate a Public User?

A Public User can be activated in one of two ways:

1. They can create an account on their own through FrontDesk.
   1. This enables all messaging and billing through FrontDesk.
2. An Agency User can activate them through FrontDesk. This enables access
   
   1. This enables access to the account record and messaging with that Public User. 
   2. Billing still occurs through SimpleCity Fund Accounting Desktop Software until either the Agency User activates AutoPay on the Public User's behalf OR the Public User has created their FrontDesk account.
   3. Once a Public User has been activated, they will remain active for a minimum of 30 days. 

Creating an Account

Any citizen may create their own account through FrontDesk. Once an account is created, they are an active Public User. To create an account:

• Open FrontDesk > Choose "Don't have an account? Create Now" > Follow prompts to create an account
  • This includes adding utility bill account number
• Any Utility Bill customer from your agency can enter their Account Number to ensure their utilities are correctly linked to their account to pay bills.
• A public user doesn't need to be a current Utility Billing customer, they can create an account without linking an Account Number

Activating an Existing Public User Account

Agency users can activate a Public User's account.

• If you have SimpleCity Utility Billing Desktop Software, all customers will automatically be created as Inactive Accounts.
• You have access to basic information about each of your customers, even if they aren't activated.
• To activate a Public User to see/modify account information, edit, or update details, or send them messages via FrontDesk:
  1. FrontDesk > Public Users > Select Public User by clicking their record
     1. If user isn't activated, you will see basic info, the rest will appear as locked
     2. To activate their FrontDesk account, click "activate public user" button in the top right

Enrolling a Public User in AutoPay or Electronic Notifications

• Once a Public User is activated: FrontDesk > Public User > Select user > Payment Preferences
• Click "edit" next to Payment Preferences section.
• Toggle the switch for AutoPay to be on and enter the necessary payment details.
• To enroll users in electronic messaging, click "edit" next to Notification Preferences. 
  • From there, enable email or text notifications, as long as the user has a valid/confirmed telephone number and email address.
  • When finished, click "save"

Creating a Brand New User Account

1. To create a brand new Public User who is not available in your system, click "Add Citizen"
2. Fill out first name, middle name (optional), and last name
3. Click "add citizen" 
4. You can now edit information about that Public User

How do I remove a Public User?

To remove a Public User account, you can make that account inactive or archive the account.

Making a Public User Account Inactive

This disables their account, removes access to FrontDesk, and limits what you as an Agency User can access from that account.

The following conditions must be met before they are inactive:

• No outstanding balance or invoice addressed to the user
• The user does not have AutoPay enabled in their payment settings
• No status change for that user in the last 30 days

Once they are made inactive, their account is disabled and detailed info will appear as locked. 

All stored data will remain associated with the inactive user.

An Agency User can still view or download their files, but cannot add new ones. 

1. FrontDesk > Public Users > Select user 
2. Click "Mark Inactive" 
3. Confirm you wish to make them inactive

You can make them active again by selecting "Activate Public User"

Archiving a Public User Account

If a Public User no longer exists and you have no need to view their account, you may remove the account completely. 

To archive an account:

1. Follow steps above to make a public user account inactive
2. An option appears to archive the account
3. Click the link and confirm you are sure

Once a public user account is archived, the number/email associated will be deleted too. 

Within 24 hours, all additional data, including private and share files, will be removed. 

The only thing that will remain is the basic directory info without the email and password.

All PDF copies, receipts, and invoices will be kept for the previous 12 months only, after that year, all files will be permanently deleted