ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT
MEETING DATE: February 25, 2026 AGENDA CATEGORY: Consent - Agreements TO: Honorable Mayor and City Council
FROM: Christian Clegg, City Manager
DATE: February 18, 2026
SUBJECT: Agreement with Harder+Company Community Research, Inc. (not to exceed $130,000) to evaluate the CalVIP grant program.
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommend approval of the agreement.
BACKGROUND:
In July 2022, the California Board of State and Community Corrections (BSCC) awarded the City of Bakersfield a multi-year, $3,114,625 California Violence Intervention (CalVIP) Cohort 4 grant (Grant Award #BSCC 873-22) to implement a Socioeconomic Model focused on using a public health approach to expand on the City’s gun violence reduction efforts.
On October 19, 2022, the City entered into an agreement (No. 2022-221) with Harder+Company Community Research Inc., with a term of December 31, 2025, using CalVIP Cohort 4 funding to measure and document progress toward grant-funded objectives through qualitative and quantitative methods.
BSCC has since approved an extension of the CalVIP Cohort 4 grant period and authorized the City to extend program costs utilizing approved and unexpended CalVIP funds, thereby allowing Harder+Company Community Research, Inc. to continue providing services for the period of December 31, 2025 through December 31, 2026.
Under the direction of the City’s program management, Harder+Company Community Research Inc., will continue to work with: 1) Work in concerted effort with City, the Bakersfield Police Department, and other partners, to collect data that can be used to ensure quality implementation and sustainability of CalVIP Cohort 4; 2) Work with the City to integrate evidence-based treatment models into prevention, case management and life coaching; and 3) Work in collaboration with the City and it’s gun violence network partners to measure and document progress to maintain effectiveness and assess the impact of program efforts.
As per BSCC’s policies and procedures, the City’s CalVIP grant award provides a comprehensive description of Harder+Company Community Research Inc.’s, role and responsibilities under the terms of the grant.
FISCAL IMPACT:
COUNCIL GOAL:
Safety and Resilience
ATTACHMENTS:
Agreement