City Council
Staff Report
From: City Manager
Report Type: CONSENT CALENDAR
Lead Department: Library
Meeting Date: November 18, 2024
Report #:2409-3469
TITLE
Approval of General Services Contract Number C25192518 with Califa Group in an Amount Not to Exceed $330,000 to Provide Procurement of Discounted Library Products for a Period of Three (3) Years; CEQA status – not a project.
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends that Council approve and authorize the City Manager or their designee to execute Contract No. C25192518 (Attachment A), with Califa Group, to provide consortium/broker service that provides procurement of discounted library products for a term of three years and a total amount not-to-exceed $330,000.
BACKGROUND
In 2003, Califa Group was founded as a nonprofit library membership consortium with initial funding from California State Library. Califa is the only library consortium open to all public libraries in California. There are currently more than 230 member libraries. Califa acts as a broker between these libraries and approximately 75 different library vendors. Califa negotiates discounted group pricing for the products sold by these library vendors (primarily e-content products such as e-books, e-audiobooks, streaming video, streaming music, databases, and e- learning products).
Palo Alto City Library (PACL) has been a member of Califa since Fiscal Year 2006. In Fiscal Year 2023, PACL established a two-year contract with Califa, which will expire on December 31, 2024. This contract was for $80,000 annually, totaling $160,000 over two years. Staff seeks to establish a new three-year contract for a total of $330,000 from January 1, 2025, through December 31, 2028.
ANALYSIS
E-content is popular with PACL patrons. In the last year, usage of e-content increased by 37.5% from the previous year.
Califa provides PACL with many of our most popular e-content offerings including:
•Research databases used by students for homework and anyone looking for reliably sourced information: A to Z, Gale, Ebsco, Proquest and Oxford •Genealogy tools: HeritageQuest and Ancestry
•Language learning: Mango Languages
•Museum passes: Discover & Go
•News: Wall Street Journal
•Technology ebooks: O’Reilly
•Career development and training: LinkedIn Learning
•Comics for all ages: Comics Plus
•Craft workshops and classes: Creative Bug
Califa’s brokering service provides discounted group pricing that is on average 10-15% lower than what the City would pay if we purchased directly from the vendors.
Some of these products are only available through Califa. Vendors such as Wall Street Journal have established licensing agreements with Califa that are specific to libraries. PACL is only able to make the digital version of Wall Street Journal available to its patrons by purchasing it from Califa.
Recently, the California State Library experienced significant budget reductions. As a result, public libraries lost state funded access to popular eLearning products, including LinkedIn Learning. Califa has negotiated discounted agreements with LinkedIn that will allow PACL to continue to provide uninterrupted access to this popular resource to the Palo Alto community Califa is the only consortium that offers this brokering service in which PACL is eligible for membership. Library consortiums typically limit membership to specific types of libraries and/or a specific geographic area. Other examples of library consortia include the Statewide California Electronic Library Consortium which serves academic, research and medical institutions, and the Southern California Library Cooperative which serves public libraries in Los Angeles and Ventura Counties.
When researching alternatives, staff did not locate a comparable service that is accessible to the Palo Alto City Library. As a result, an exemption to competitive solicitation pursuant to Palo Alto Municipal Code section 2.30.360(d) was approved by the City Manager.
FISCAL/RESOURCE IMPACT
Funding for the first year of this contract is available in the Library Department's Fiscal Year 2025 Adopted Budget. An additional appropriation of $30,000 per year is needed for years two and three of this contract and will be included in the Fiscal Year 2026 base budget, and will be subject to Council approval of the Fiscal Year 2026 budget. Future years of the contract are subject to the annual appropriation of funds.
STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT
Staff has ongoing stakeholder engagement with the public on all library collections, including e- content purchasing, through a website feedback form, email, and phone calls.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
Approval of contracts to purchase library materials does not constitute a project under the California Environmental Quality Act guidelines 15061(b)(3).
ATTACHMENTS
Attachment A: Califa Group Contract C25192518
APPROVED BY:
Gayathri Kanth, Library Director