From:Michael Brown
To:City Council
Cc:Erica Inderlied; Fleishman, Dave; James Lewis
Subject:City Council Meeting of March 7, 2023
Date:Monday, March 6, 2023 9:39:49 PM
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Honorable Ed Wagge Mayor and March.pdf
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Honorable Ed Wagge, Mayor and Members of the City Council:
Please see the attached letter opposing the debarment of V Lopez & Sons Construction from bidding on City of Pismo Beach projects.
Item 11a on the Pismo Beach City Council agenda of March 7, 2023.
1 Honorable Ed Wagge Mayor and March, 6 2023 Members of the City Council Re: Lopez Brothers City of Pismo Beach
760 Mattie Road
Pismo Beach, CA 93449
Dear Mayor and Council:
COLAB of Santa Barbara County and COLAB of San Luis Obispo County are separate private not-for-profit government watchdogs and business advocacy associations that represent almost 2,000 businesses, farms, ranches, product specific associations, and public spirited individuals in both counties. We have known the Lopez Brothers (Lopez) for many years.
We ask that you reject adoption of the Resolution of debarment and instead continue to conduct mediation in good faith. Should mediation fail, the most appropriate remedy would be a trial on the facts in the San Luis Obispo Superior Court.
As you well know, debarment of a contractor from bidding in one jurisdiction will result in rejection of bids in other localities, the State, and even on Federal and private projects. In other words, debarment is the most serious punishment, and from the standpoint of a construction company, it is the equivalent of the death penalty in criminal law.
Since the City has not adopted its own Responsible Bidder Ordinance, by what objective standard will the Council determine that Lopez has actually violated responsible bidder standards to the point that it should be debarred? In the absence of a City Ordinance, the Council could look to the State Public Contract Code:
1103. “Responsible bidder,” as used in this part, means a bidder who has demonstrated the attribute of trustworthiness, as well as quality, fitness, capacity, and experience to satisfactorily perform the public works contract. The Legislature finds and declares that this section is declaratory of existing law.
Did Lopez Brothers deliberately mislead the City and/or violate any of the criteria above?
1104. No local public entity, charter city, or charter county shall require a bidder to assume responsibility for the completeness and accuracy of architectural or engineering plans and specifications on public works projects, except on clearly designated design build projects. Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit a local public entity, charter city, or
2 charter county from requiring a bidder to review architectural or engineering plans and specifications prior to submission of a bid, and report any errors and omissions noted by the contractor to the architect or owner. The review by the contractor shall be confined to the contractor’s capacity as a contractor, and not as a licensed design professional.
Relatedly, Lopez has provided the City with a number of sample provisions used by other jurisdictions to determine if debarment is justified. The City council could apply any of these or some amalgam of them to inform its decision. This would provide objective criteria for your findings.
Generally, these require findings by the City or other jurisdiction of fraud, bribery, dishonesty, conspiracy, and failure to follow State mandated affirmative action hiring requirements.
The record clearly does not demonstrate any such violations.
Sincerely yours,
Andy Caldwell
Executive Director COLAB
of Santa Barbara County
Michael F Brown
Government Affairs Director
of COLAB of San Luis Obispo County