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Goals of the On-Call CBO List
● Leverage the expertise and connections of CBOs in order to conduct more robust community engagement
● Streamline the work of City staff to initiate partnerships with CBOs without having to go through the lengthy RFP process each time. ● Provide “an opportunity for capacity building and shared learning among CBOs and their staff.”
● OEDCA’s stated hope: to get “as many organizations as possible on our on- call list for staff to be able to work with”—especially small, local CBOs.
Process Used to Select CBOs for the On-Call List
● Each complete application was reviewed by a panel of 3 City staff who each rated the applications in 9 categories.
● OEDCA proposed that the cutoff score should be 75 points and recommended that the 22 CBOs that scored at least 75 be awarded Master Agreements (not to exceed $250,000 each); 8 CBOs that scored below 75 would not be included on the on-call list at all.
● A formal protest from Mothers Out Front, showing how its application provided evidence to justify more points than given in certain categories, was denied.
Mismatch between the Goals and the Process
● With the goal of getting “as many organizations as possible on the list,” this was not meant to be a highly competitive process in the sense of grading on a curve where only the best win. Rather, it was meant to be an inclusive process to include as many CBOs as possible with different areas of expertise. ● Limiting the on-call list to the 22 strongest CBOs denies the desired capacity- building opportunity to other CBOs (newer, smaller, and currently less-staffed) who may benefit from it the most.
● The intention give greater weight to local and small businesses was thwarted by an overly narrow definitions of these terms that meant that a CBO too small to have a San José Business Tax License was excluded from being considered either local OR small when it clearly is both. Being local is irrelevant to size.
The dilemma posed by the results
● Limiting the number of CBOs on the list to 22 unnecessarily omits some CBOs, like Mothers Out Front and others, that have unique expertise that some City departments would like to tap.
● None of the CBOs on the list has the same focus on climate and expertise in educating the public about the benefits of electrification that Mothers Out Front offers.
● These departments are now considering initiating a new RFP in order to be able to work with Mothers Out Front, expending more staff time and missing the goal of a “streamlined process.”
● The City does not intend to issue a new RFP for 3-5 years.
An Elegant Solution
● Expand the list of on-call CBOs by changing cutoff score:
○ A threshold of 69 would add 4 more CBOs
○ A threshold of 50 would add 8 more CBOs (all with complete applications) Also consider:
● For future RFPs, decouple the status of “small” from “local” so that truly small CBOs are not inadvertently treated as large because they are too small to need a San José Business Tax License.
WIN/WIN/WIN
• A win for City departments who will have a more complete “menu” of CBOs to invite to respond to service orders - saving staff time • A win for CBOs who have much to offer and learn and will grow in capacity • A win for City residents who will benefit from more community outreach