June 16, 2026
City Clerk's Office
DATE: June 16, 2026
TO: Mayor Martinez and Members of the City Council
FROM:
Pamela Christian, City Clerk
Subject:
Contract with eScribe Software Ltd. for Agenda
Preparation and Management System
FINANCIAL IMPACT: The proposed $56,251.20 expenditure for the first year of the contract is included within the approved Fiscal Year 2025-2026 City Clerk’s Office budget, with an eight
percent increase each subsequent year (Account String:
01141013-400209).
PREVIOUS COUNCIL
ACTION:
April 27, 2021
STATEMENT OF THE
ISSUE:
The current contract with our agenda management
system provider (eScribe) will expire on June 30, 2026, and in order to avoid service disruption and potential
compliance risks, City staff recommend a sole-source
contract with eScribe to continue prior services.
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
APPROVE a sole-source contract with eScribe Software
Ltd. for agenda management software and related
support services for the production and publication of City Council agendas and agenda packets, for a three-year
term from July 1, 2026, through June 30, 2029, in an
amount not to exceed $56,251.20 for the first year, with annual increases of up to eight percent in each
subsequent year – City Clerk’s Office (Pamela Christian 510-620-6513).
AGENDA
REPORT
June 16, 2026
DISCUSSION:
The City of Richmond contracted with eScribe on April 27, 2021, when our previous agenda management system (SIRE) sunset. The transition from SIRE to eScribe was a major undertaking. The current contract with eScribe expires June 30, 2026, and staff recommend approving a sole-source contract with eScribe for an additional three years to continue prior work.
Transitioning to a new agenda management system would require extensive data migration, staff time and retraining, and reconfiguration of public-facing systems, resulting in service disruption and potential compliance risks. It is recommended that the City of Richmond continue with eScribe for an additional three years to allow staff time to research other potential agenda management systems currently used by other jurisdictions that may be more suitable for the needs of the City of Richmond.
DOCUMENTS ATTACHED:
Attachment 1 – Original Contract
Attachment 2 – Two-month extension to original contract Attachment 3 – New three-year contract
Attachment 4 – Sole-Source