REPORT TO CITY COUNCIL
To:Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
From:Jason Simpson, City Manager
Prepared by:Shannon Buckley, Assistant City Manager
Date:May 14, 2024
Subject: Professional Services Agreement with Spicer Consulting Group, LLC (SCG) for Special Tax Administration Services
Recommendation
Approve and authorize the City Manager to execute the Professional Services Agreement with Spicer Consulting Group, LLC (SCG) for Special Tax Administration Services in an amount not to exceed $656,194.30 annually in such final form as approved by the City Attorney.
Background
On May 31, 2016, the City approved a new professional services firm. SCG has provided all the related services associated with the Assessment, Landscape, Lighting District administration, and Tax Administration process. They perform an excellent service for the City and are a critical member of its Finance Team for compliance and due diligence.
Discussion
The new Agreement with SCG will provide a consolidation of all administrative support services for special financing districts, including the City of Lake Elsinore’s 80 Community Facilities Districts (CFDs), one Assessment Districts (ADs), 26 Landscaping and Lighting Maintenance Districts (LLMDs), one CSA 152, Weed Abatement, and Nuisance Abatement to include handling public inquiries for all districts. Additionally, within this scope of work, SCG will provide assessment district and CFD administration, including preparation of annual reports, delinquency management, calculation of assessment and special taxes, and submittal of assessments and special taxes to the County for placement on the property tax roll, handling of all public inquires related to CFD. Focusing primarily on the Southern Inland Empire, SCG has the expertise and resources to fully support the City’s growth. SCG has a complete data repository, including a direct connection to the County Auditor’s taxing system that will ensure absolute accuracy in levying the special assessments/taxes on the County tax rolls. The staff performed exceptionally and met all deadlines. On April 9, 2024, SCG rolled out the Property Finder Application for the SCG Agreement
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City of Lake Elsinore property owners. Property Finder is a .NET application designed specifically for the City to provide Special District specific information to the public. The development process involved close collaboration between City Staff and Spicer Consulting Group, leveraging the expertise of both entities to ensure the tool's effectiveness and accessibility. Key features of the Property Finder include the ability to search for property tax information using the property address or Parcel Identification Number (PIN), providing a visual illustration of the property in question using Geographic Information System (GIS) including the district boundaries of all of the City’s Special Districts, as well as access to essential tax details such as the current year's tax amount for each District and the maturity year. Additionally, the tool integrates valuable information from the City of Lake Elsinore, Spicer Consulting Group, and the Riverside County Tax Collector, further enhancing its utility and relevance to users.
Property Finder has successfully addressed the challenge of providing accessible property tax information, setting a new standard for property tax administration in California cities hosted and maintained by SCG.
Finally, staff has negotiated these professional services to maintain existing costs. The direct cost-benefit of this action will result in savings to the City of Lake Elsinore property owners.
Fiscal Impact
Fees for these services will be paid as part of the bond and special district resources set aside for administration. Therefore, the City’s General Fund is not impacted.
Attachments
Attachment 1- SCG Agreement
Exhibit A- SCG Proposal