City Council
Staff Report
From: City Manager
Report Type: CONSENT CALENDAR
Lead Department: City Manager
Meeting Date: December 11, 2023
Report #:2310-2162
TITLE
Approval of Contract Amendment Number 1 to Contract C23187506 with Momentum for Health to Extend Term by Eight (8) Months at No Additional Cost to the City, Revise the Not-to- Exceed Amount Down by $68,294 to $1,931,706 and Compensation Language, Provide Quarterly Invoicing, and Revise the Schedule of Rates; CEQA Status – Not a Project.
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends that the City Council approve and authorize the City Manager or their designee to execute Amendment Number 1 to Contract C23187506 with Momentum for Health to extend term by eight (8) months through September 30, 2024, revise the not to exceed amount by lowering $1,931,706 and compensation language to match grant terminology, provide for quarterly invoicing and revise the schedule of rates (Attachment A).
BACKGROUND
In the wake of national conversation on policing, the City launched its Race and Equity framework which included many action items related to citywide diversity, equity, and inclusion as well as specific changes within the Police Department, as summarized in the April 3, 20231 Council report. While setting up its Psychiatric Emergency Response Team (PERT) program in 2020, the City Council expressed a desire to see additional investments in alternative response programs to divert lower acuity calls from law enforcement to mental health professionals or those with lived experience.2 A program in Oregon, known as CAHOOTS (Crisis Assistance 1 April 3, 2023, Council Consent Report.
https://cityofpaloalto.primegov.com/meetings/ItemWithTemplateType?id=1852&meetingTemplateType=2 2 Council Minutes October 26, 2020, https://www.cityofpaloalto.org/files/assets/public/v/1/agendas-minutes- reports/agendas-minutes/city-council-agendas-minutes/2020/october-26-2020-city-council-meeting-sense- minutes.pdf; Council Action Minutes November 16, 2020,
https://www.cityofpaloalto.org/files/assets/public/v/1/agendas-minutes-reports/agendas-minutes/city-council- agendas-minutes/2020/november-16-2020-city-council-meeting-action-minutes.pdf
Helping Out on the Streets)3, was generally seen as the best practice model for this work. Staff researched options related to alternative response programs for Palo Alto.
On July 16, 2021, Representative Anna Eshoo announced she was successful in securing $5 million for local projects in Palo Alto, including $2 million for the mental health alternative response pilot program.4 The City then applied to the related Notice of Funding Opportunity from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) when it became available and received notice of award, totaling $2 million, in September 2022.
In November 2022, Santa Clara County launched that program, an alternative response program called TRUST (Trusted Response Urgent Response Team), serving three locations: San José, Gilroy, and North County. The North County location is operated by Momentum for Health and is based in Palo Alto. The County program is authorized for up to five years5 and consists of a call center team and three location-based, onsite field teams.
On April 3, 2023, City Council approved the acceptance of federal grant funding from SAMHSA to augment the North County TRUST with a pilot program and a contract with Momentum for Health to administer the program.6 The pilot program provides outreach and engages with the community to inform and educate about the new alternative response services, provides needed ongoing support to individuals in crisis, and trains individuals in mental health first aid to make referrals to behavioral health services and alternative response program/community mobile response. Ongoing support activities will include necessary follow-up after initial interactions, case management, and assistance in system navigation.
ANALYSIS
The grant agreement originally required the funding to be spent within 12 months of its award.
On October 3, 2023, SAMHSA granted the City of Palo Alto a 12-month extension of the deadline to expend the federal grant monies funding the pilot augmenting TRUST. The original contract with Momentum for Health is set to expire on January 31, 2024. Staff recommends extending the contract with Momentum for Health to mirror SAMHSA’s new deadline of September 2024. This will allow the pilot program time to be more fully implemented—e.g., 3 https://www.eugene-or.gov/4508/CAHOOTS
4 July 16, 2021, U.S. Rep. Eshoo, press release. https://eshoo.house.gov/media/press-releases/rep-eshoo-secures- funding-local-projects-expand-education-mitigate-traffic- and?utm_source=Coronavirus+Updates&utm_campaign=bf8b72539a- EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2021_07_22_11_39&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_d8eda03e5f-bf8b72539a- ; August 8, 2021, Council Info Report. https://www.cityofpaloalto.org/files/assets/public/v/1/agendas-minutes- reports/reports/city-manager-reports-cmrs/year-archive/2021/id-13474.pdf 5 The contract duration is four years but is authorized for one annual renewal. 6 April 3, 2023, Council Consent Report.
https://cityofpaloalto.primegov.com/meetings/ItemWithTemplateType?id=1852&meetingTemplateType=2 increased time and opportunities for outreach encounters and education, case management, and mental health first aid trainings.
Additionally, this amendment accomplishes the following:
1. Adjusts the invoicing schedule.
Rather than following a monthly invoicing schedule, invoicing will occur quarterly. The complexity of navigating federal reimbursement and the multiple processes involved are time consuming. It is more time efficient to engage in this process quarterly.
2. Revises the compensation language.
The language in Exhibit C, Compensation does not mirror the language in the grant materials (i.e., the SAMHSA Detailed Budget). Staff has added language used with SAMHSA to increase clarity and reduce confusion.
3. Increases the rates for one position and adds one new position on the schedule of rates.
With the advent of a new fiscal year and to help address hiring challenges, the rate for promotores is being increased from $26.72 to $32.00.7 The original eight promotores proposed was ambitious and is being adjusted to six, particularly given the nationwide hiring challenges for mental health personnel. Staff believes these changes can be absorbed while still ensuring this work is within budget and meets the earmark goals and objectives. Additionally, when a program manager left Momentum, a program director stepped in and took up that work to ensure no gaps in service delivery. To account for this type of situation, the program director position has also been added to the schedule of rates.
4. Corrects an error relating to the contract amount.
The Momentum for Health contract amount of $1,931,706, as listed in the April 2023 staff report, is correct. The remainder of the $2,000,000 in earmark money, $68,294, is allocated for evaluation of the services Momentum is providing. The Momentum contract that was approved by Council in April 2023 incorrectly indicated the full earmark amount of $2,000,000. This amendment corrects that error and revises the Momentum contract to match the grant budget at a not-to-exceed amount of $1,931,706.
FISCAL/RESOURCE IMPACT
There is no additional fiscal impact to the City with the adoption of this Amendment Number 1 of the contract with Momentum Health. The contract is fully funded through existing federal earmark monies. Other resource impacts include percent of an existing staff person’s effort to manage compliance with SAMHSA guidelines and reporting, including successful implementation of the project’s goals and objectives. This effort is assigned to an Assistant to 7 Per SAMHSA, any changes less than 25 percent of the authorized funded amount do not require prior approval. the City Manager and represents approximately 0.10 full time equivalent (FTE) level of effort.
This does not change with this contract amendment.
STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT
City staff continues to meet with Los Altos, Mountain View and County representatives, and provides regular updates to Los Altos and Mountain View representatives on the progress of the pilot.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
Council approval of the amendment to the contract does not constitute a project under the California Environmental Protection Act (CEQA).
ATTACHMENTS
Attachment A: Amendment No. 1 to Contract C23187506
APPROVED BY:
Ed Shikada, City Manager