FOR THE COUNCIL MEETING OF NOVEMBER 21, 2023
COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT
TO: City Council
FROM: Interim City Manager Alex Posada
Prepared by: Interim Director of Finance Xenia Bradford
SUBJECT: Consideration of Approving an Amendment to the Professional Services Agreement with Lance, Soll, and Lunghard LLC
Description:
The City Council will c onsider approving a second amendment to the agreement with Lance, Soll, and Lunghard LLC for professional consulting services.
Environmental Notice: The activity is not a “Project” as defined under Section 15378 of the California Environmental Quality Act State Guidelines; therefore, pursuant to State Guidelines Section 15060(c)(3) no environmental review is required.
RECOMMENDATION:
Authorize the Interim Director of Finance to execute a second amendment to the Agreement for Professional Services with Lance, Soll, and Lunghard LLC for Financial Consulting Services, and further authorizing the Interim Director of Finance , or their designee, to enter into extensions and modifications consistent with the terms of the Agreement.
BACKGROUND:
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and staff turnover, the City determined a need for professional accounting services to prepare the Fiscal Years 2020 -21, 2021 -22, and 2022-23 Annual Comprehensive Financial Reports (ACFR). On February 10, 2023, the City requested proposals for acc ounting consulting services. The City selected Lance, Soll, and Lunghard LLC and entered into an agreement for such services on March 27, 2023. The City has since completed preparation of the 2020-21 ACFR with the assistance of Lance, Soll, and Lunghard LL C. Per the City’s purchasing policy, agreements exceeding a total value of $75,000 require City Council approval. The requested second contract amendment will allow the City to complete the outstanding Fiscal Years 2021-22 and 2022-23 ACFRs. The total value of the agreement is proposed to be increased from $75,000 to $180,000 (an additional $105,000) with the term of the agreement expiring on June 30, 2024.
DISCUSSION:
The City is required to prepare Annual Comprehensive Financial Reports. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and high staff turnover, the City is in the process of preparing the 2 Fiscal Year 2021-22 and 2022-23 Annual Comprehensive Financial Reports. In order to bring the City current in its financial reporting, the City determined it requires additional resources. The City elected an agreement for accounting professional services on a one- time basis to complete the work. The proposed second amendment to the agreement with Lance, Soll, and Lunghard LLC increases the agreement value to a total of $180 ,000 which is determined to be appropriate to complete the scope of work.
Alternative(s)
The City Council could not approve the second agreement amendment, which will delay completing the Fiscal Years 2021 -22 and 2022-23 ACFRs. The delay will also continu e to impact future reporting periods including timely preparation of the Fiscal Year 2023-24 ACFR.
The City Council could direct staff to seek another consultant, which is not recommended as Lance, Soll, and Lunghard LLC was selected through a competitive bid process, and through the Fiscal Year 2020 -21 ACFR preparation, the consultants have built the tools specific to the City of Santa Maria to be able to prepare the next two reports more efficiently.
Fiscal Considerations
The second agreement amendment is within the already appropriated current Fiscal Year 2023-24 budget. No additional appropriations are requested.
Impact to the Community
The amended agreement will enable the City to provide the community with timely financial reporting.
Attachments
ATTACHMENT A – LSL CPAS Agreement_Amendment 1_08.2023
ATTACHMENT B – Proposed Second Amendment_LSLCPAS_11.2023