Cotati City Council
Agenda Staff Report
Item type: CONSENT CALENDAR (ACTION)
To: City Council
Subject: Fiscal Year 22-23 City Vehicle Replacement
Date: August 23, 2022
Written by: Damien O'Bid, City Manager
Recommendation
It is recommended that the City Council adopt a motion authorizing the City Manager to approve the purchase of budgeted vehicles and authorize the City Manager to execute any necessary agreements to carry out the approved purchases, including upfitting and electric vehicle infrastructure, not to exceed the authorized budget amount by fund.
Background
On June 28, 2022, the City Council adopted the Fiscal Year 2022/23 budget. Included in the budget is funding for programmed vehicle replacements. To meet the City Council’s climate change goals and objectives while simultaneously reducing operating costs, the City has prioritized the purchase of battery electric vehicles if available in any given vehicle category. All electric vehicles charged at City facilities use 100% renewable Sonoma Clean Power, as all electricity purchased by the City is Evergreen.
Analysis/Discussion
In Fiscal Year 2021/22, the City purchased the first battery electric police patrol vehicle and installed charging pedestals in the Police Station vehicle lot. The patrol vehicle is currently being upfit and is expected to enter service soon. While other police agencies have used electric vehicles in administrative or traffic enforcement roles, the City’s patrol vehicle is only the second fully upfitted police patrol vehicle known to staff in the United States (Fremont being the other).
While more battery electric vehicles are coming to market each year, choices and availability are still limited in light vehicle categories, and essentially non-existent in heavy vehicle categories.
Globally, automakers are racing to increase production, but are limited by on-going supply chain shortages, limits on available production capacity, and battery supply (generally in the case of traditional vehicle manufacturers). For longer trips, high speed charging networks (i.e. Level 3 DC Fast Chargers) are still relatively spotty outside of Tesla’s extensive fast charging network.
However, it is expected that Tesla will gradually open its’ proprietary charging network to other auto brands in North America, as they have already done in most of Europe. In short, things are moving fast, but choices are currently still limited.
In the light sedans/small SUV categories, Tesla Model 3 and Model Y currently account for approximately 70% of all battery electric vehicle sales in North America. Far behind that is the Ford Mach E and VW ID.4, and then an assortment of other vehicles, such as the Chevy Bolt, Polestar 2, Kia EV6, Hyundai Ioniq 5, and VinFast VF8. Light trucks are currently limited to the Ford F-150 Lightning, Rivian R1T, and GMC Hummer EV, all of which are currently very expensive and limited in supply. With the transition to battery electric vehicles, it is expected that a variety of Chinese electric vehicle brands will also begin to enter the North American market in the next 1-2 years and significantly displace the market share of the traditional automakers.
The highest priority vehicles to convert to battery electric are police patrol vehicles, due to their high usage. The current internal combustion engine (ICE) patrol vehicles have an average fuel efficiency of 9 miles per gallon (mpg), are more expensive to operate and maintain than a battery electric vehicle (BEV) and have a lower resale value at end of life. BEV’s also do not emit any emissions and would be recharged on municipal electricity, which is 100% renewable Sonoma Clean Power Evergreen. Although the BEV is more expensive to purchase upfront, based on fuel savings alone, it is expected be less expensive to operate over its service life.
To reduce maintenance costs, improve safety, and lower emissions, the City is continuing to cycle out older vehicles that are reaching the end of their service life. As the City purchases new vehicles, the vehicles and equipment at the end of their service lives are retired and sold per our fixed asset policy.
Vehicles are purchased under a pooled vehicle bid, which generally results in the best possible purchase price. Police vehicles and Public Works utility trucks arrive from the dealer without being “upfitted”. This primarily consists of adding light bars, radios, and other similar items specific to each agency, and therefore is not pre-installed. The upfit is part of the total cost of the car and is performed by a third-party installer. In general, third-party equipment has been very delayed due to general supply chain issues, often delaying the upfit of a car 4-6 months.
Financial Considerations
In the Fiscal Year 2022/23 budget, the following table indicates the vehicles planned for replacement and the initial amounts budgeted:
Description General Fund Water Fund Sewer Fund Total
CH176PW- John Deer Model 955 - Loader Backhoe $ 8
,750
$ 1
3,125
$ 13,125 $ 3
CH206PW-John Deere - 27D Mini Excavator $ 2 5,000
,100
$ 1
6,450
$ 16,450 $ 3
CA004PD-Ford - Police Interceptor $ 45,000 $ - $ - 5,000 $ 4 CA005PD-Ford - Police Interceptor Utility SUV $ 56,000 $ - $ - 5,000 $ 5 CM006PD-Harley - Roadking $ 30,000 $ - $ - 6,000 $ 3
CC153CM-Toyota - Prius $ 30,000 $ - $ - 0,000 $ 3
CE210CM-Ford - F 150 $ 48,000 $ - $ - 0,000 $ 4
CE207PW-Ford - F 250 $ - $ 2 8,000
4,000
$ 8,000 $ 3
2,000
CK161PW-Shamrock Hydro Flusher $ - $ - $ 50,000 $ 5
Total $ 219,850 $ 5 0,000
3,575
$ 87,575 $ 361,000
With supply chain shortages, general inflationary pressures, and the higher initial purchase price of most electric vehicles, it is anticipated that the purchase of some vehicles may need to be delayed to stay within the budget. Therefore, staff will need to determine which vehicles are in need of replacement this year, and which can be safely and economically postponed to a future year.
If authorized, vehicle purchases would stay within the indicated budgeted amounts in each fund, targeting the highest use and most polluting vehicles for BEV.
Environmental Issues
The action of purchasing replacement vehicles does not constitute a project as defined by California Environmental Quality Act Guidelines Section 15378; therefore, no further environmental review is required.