1 STAFF REPORT
DAT
E: September 10, 2024
T
O: Justin Hess, City Manager
F
ROM: Mandip Kaur Samra, General Manager, Burbank Water and Power VIA: Frank Messineo, Acting Assistant General Manager, Power Supply BY: Jason Maruca, Legislative Analyst
S
UBJECT: Approval of a Professional Services Agreement with The Ferguson Group for Federal Representation and Advocacy Services
RE
COMMENDATION
Approve the General Manager of Burbank Water a nd Power (BWP), as designee of the City Manager, to enter into a Professional Services Agreement (PSA) with The Ferguson Group (TFG) for federal representation and advocacy services.
BACKG
ROUND
In 2023, BWP completed a Request for P roposal (RFP) for federal advocacy services.
After an exhaustive process, TFG was chosen to provide federal advocacy and grant writing services. The federal advocacy services agreement covers both BWP and the City of Burbank.
DI
SCUSSION
Over the last year, TFG has effectively advocated for both BWP and the City of Burbank.
TFG provided legislative updates and individualized reports, and advocated on various issues for BWP, including distribution transformers, the National Drinking Water Standard, and Community Project Funding Requests. With assistance and guidance from TFG, the City currently has two priority projects advancing towards a federal appropriation – BWP’s Chloramine Disinfectant Boosting System ($1,105,800) and the new Central Library ($2,500,000). TFG was also critical in securing high-level meetings in Washington D.C. with Senator Padilla and the head of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Superfund to discuss regulatory changes impacting the Burbank Operable Unit (BOU).
WATER AND
POWER
2 On the grant funding side, TFG has consistently alerted staff to federal funding opportunities. With TFG’s grant writing support, BWP was able to secure $36,049,120 in California Energy Commission (CEC) Distributed Electricity Backup Assets (DEBA) grant funding for the Magnolia Power Plant (MPP). Additionally, TFG worked extensively with BWP staff on a complex $50 million Grid Resilience and Innovation Partnerships (GRIP) to replace two aging substations (Downtown and Willow). Awards for this grant are slated to be announced in the Fall of 2024.
Over the past year, TFG met with each city department individually, as well as with City Council members, to ensure a comprehensive understanding of the City’s goals and priorities. TFG developed productive working relationships with staff and delivered professional and reliable services that are critical to the City’s ability to develop and advance improvements in policy, legislation, and regulations.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
As this activity is administrative, it has no potential for resulting in either a direct physical change in the environment, or a reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment, and as such, is not a “project” subject to the requirements of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) 14 Cal. Code Regs § 15378. Any future “project” that is connected to a grant will be separately presented to City Council and any applicable CEQA review will be presented for such future project.
FISCAL IMPACT
The total cost for the three-year PSA is up to $752,640. The PSA is split between Federal Advocacy Services ( $302,640) and Grant Writing Ser vices ( $450,000). Grant Writing Services are optional and may not be spent. The funds for this PSA for Fiscal Year (FY) 2024-25 is budgeted within BWP’s Electric Fund (Fund 496), and the City Manager’s Office General Fund (Fund 001) has budgeted $50,000 for grant writing services. The remaining two years will be budgeted accordingly during each budget cycle thereafter.
The yearly breakdown for the PSA is as follows:
FY 2024-25 FY 2025-26 FY 2026-27
Federal Advocacy Services $96,000 $100,800 $105,840
Optional Grant Writing Services Up to $150,000 Up to $150,000 Up to $150,000
CONCLUSION
Staff requests that Council authorize the General Manager of BWP, as designee of the City Manager, to enter into a Professional Services Agreement with TFG for federal representation and advocacy services.
3 ATTACHMENTS
Attachment 1 – Professional Services Agreement with The Ferguson Group