City Council Memorandum
TO: HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL DATE: OCTOBER 18, 2022 FROM: FINANCE DEPARTMENT WARDS: ALL SUBJECT: PURCHASING RESOLUTION REVISION OF THE CITY’S CENTRALIZED PURCHASING SYSTEM ADMINISTERED THROUGH THE FINANCE DEPARTMENT’S PURCHASING DIVISION ISSUE:
Approve an amended and revised Purchasing Resolution to implement recommended changes to the City’s Centralized Purchasing system regarding agreements for Professional Services.
RECOMMENDATIONS:
That the City Council:
Approve an amended and revised Purchasing Resolution to implement recommended changes to the City’s Centralized Purchasing system regarding agreements for Professional Services; and Repeal Purchasing Resolution 23812.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
City Charter Section 1105, Centralized Purchasing, and the City’s Municipal Code Chapter 3.16, Centralized Purchasing requires the City to have a Centralized Purchasing System. Section 601(d) of the City Charter, Powers and Duties of the City Manager, requires the City Manager to prepare rules and regulations governing contracting/purchases, subject to approval of the City Council.
City Charter section 1202(b) authorizes the Board of Public Utilities to “[a]uthorize, and let public works contracts in compliance with Section 1109, within the limits of the budget of the Department of Public Utilities, any purchase of equipment, materials, supplies, goods or services, or any acquisition, construction, improvement, extension, enlargement, diminution, or curtailment of all or any part of any public utility system when the amount exceeds $50,000, and authorize the City Manager, or his designee, to execute contracts or issue purchase orders for the same.” BACKGROUND:
On May 17, 2022, the City Council heard a presentation on the background and adoption of Measure MM, which authorized the Board of Public Utilities to let certain contracts, including agreements for services. Based on that discussion the Council requested an amendment to the City’s Centralized Purchasing System policies and procedures so that the City Council would also review the awards for agreements for Professional Services.
Based on direction from the City Council on May 17, 2022, regarding professional services agreements, the Board report is presented as an approval of the expenditure and recommendation to the City Council for approval of the execution of the professional services agreement. Implementation of this practice has begun; the proposed revised Purchasing Resolution will update the Purchasing Resolution provisions to match this practice.
DISCUSSION:
The attached proposed amendments to the Purchasing Resolution clarify the process for the award and execution of agreements for Professional Services. Section 508 has had paragraph (d) added to clarify “Contracts for Professional Services procured through Formal Procurement shall be awarded by the City Council. Where the Using Agency is the Public Utilities Department, the award shall be reviewed by the Board of Public Utilities for recommendation prior to award by the City Council.” The Board of Public Utilities will continue to review proposed agreements for Professional Services to approve the expenditure as required by Charter section 1202(b) and make a recommendation to the City Council on the award of the contract.
Other minor revisions have been made to address typos and clarify the award process for Formal Procurement.
STRATEGIC PLAN ALIGNMENT:
The amendments and revisions of the Purchasing Resolution supports Strategic Priority 5 – High Performing Government and specifically, Goal 5.3 – Enhance communication and collaboration with community members to improve transparency, build public trust and encourage shared decision-making.
The recommended Purchasing Resolution revisions align with each of the five Cross-Cutting Threads as follows:
Community Trust – The Purchasing Resolution is the City’s procurement policy that incorporates transparency to ensure that deviations from fair and equal treatment are detected early and also makes such deviations less likely to occur. It protects the integrity of the bid process and the interest of the organization, stakeholders, and the public. The revisions incorporate clarifications and additions to the policy that support open and frequent communication between procurement and the supplier.
Equity – Adoption of the Purchasing Resolution amendment ensures that policy and practices align so vendors desiring to participate in the City’s procurement process have a clear understanding of how that process will work.
Fiscal Responsibility – The Purchasing Resolution clarifications and additions fully support this cross-cutting thread by ensuring consistency of policy with practice.
Innovation – The amended Purchasing Resolution incorporates the global best practices of public procurement of leadership through stakeholder relationships and continually improving the effectiveness of Procurement.
Sustainability & Resiliency – The recommended Resolution changes support sustainability through the acquisition and disposition process which is embedded in all procurement decision making. The framework considers economic factors, environmental and social impacts of the City’s spending.
FISCAL IMPACT:
There is no fiscal impact associated with the recommendations in this report.
Prepared by: Jennifer McCoy, Purchasing Manager
Certified as to
availability of funds: Edward Enriquez, Interim Assistant City Manager/Chief Financial Officer/City Treasurer
Approved by: Edward Enriquez, Interim Assistant City Manager/Chief Financial Officer/City Treasurer
Approved as to form: Phaedra A. Norton, City Attorney
Attachments:
Redlined Purchasing Resolution No. 23812
Resolution
Purchasing Resolution Revision ● Page 2