City Council
Report
City Council Meeting: September 26, 2023
Agenda Item: 5.F
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To: Mayor and City Council
From: Christopher Smith, Acting Chief Information Officer, Information Services Department
Subject: Approval of Agreements with Zones and Hewlett Packard for City Computer Equipment
Recommended Action
Staff recommends that the City Council:
1. Adopt a finding of Categorical Exemption pursuant to Section 15061(d)(3) (Common Sense Exemption) of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines.
2. Authorize the Procurement Manager to issue a change order to purchase order #22400546 in the amount of $100,588 with the Hewlett Packard Corporation for computer equipment for the Information Services Department. This would result in a revised purchase order total not to exceed $350,588.
3. Authorize the City Manager to negotiate and execute an agreement with Zones Corporation for computer equipment and installation services for the Information Services Department. This recommended award is made as an exception to the competitive bidding process pursuant to Section 2.24.250 (c) and is for a fiveyear total amount not to exceed $7,864,000 with future year funding contingent on Council budget approval.
4. Authorize budget changes as outlined in the Financial Impacts & Budget Actions section of this report.
Summary
The City maintains a fleet of approximately 2,000 laptops and desktops for staff and at public kiosks. The City suspended its Computer Equipment Replacement Program (CERP) in 2020 as part of the City’s fiscal rightsizing following the COVID-19 pandemic.
This means that more than half of today’s computer fleet is over four years old, resulting in increased computer failures and repairs and security vulnerability as technology ages. Staff now proposes to restart CERP in FY 2023-24, replacing 25% of the City’s 2 of 5
computer fleet annually. Staff also seeks to replace approximately 100 mobile data computers (MDCs) used by the Santa Monica Police Department in their vehicles. To do this, staff requests authorization to enter into a five-year agreement with Zones to purchase computer equipment and associated services supporting the deployment and decommissioning of equipment as well as authorization to modify the City’s existing purchase order with Hewlett Packard to ensure the City can continue to purchase computer equipment on an emergency basis until the program can be restarted early next year.
Discussion
The City operates a modern, secure technology infrastructure supporting the City’s departments and staff to conduct their work and provide services to the community. A key part of this technology infrastructure is desktop and laptop computers for staff and at public kiosks.
The City has historically replaced its computers every four years to ensure that they are secure, work reliably, and up to date. However, the City suspended CERP in 2020 due the financial impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. This means, over 1,000 of the City’s computers are now over four years old and staff are relying on fragile and outdated computers while there have been enormous demands added to the City’s technology environment to support online meetings and collaboration, new software systems, enhanced cyber and information security protection, and other factors. Since 2022, the City has piggy backed off the State of California’s National Association of State Procurement Officials (NASPO) participating addendum to procure computer equipment from Hewlett Packard on an as-needed, emergency basis. The proposed modification to the current purchase order with Hewlett Packard Corporation would exceed the City Manager’s threshold and requires Council approval.
Staff now propose to restart CERP to ensure staff and public kiosks have reliable computer equipment that supports the modern ways of working while meeting the City’s technical and information security requirements. Additionally, the MDCs installed in the 3 of 5
Santa Monica Police Department’s vehicles are now over eight years old and staff seek to replace this equipment at this time.
In assessing the marketplace, staff evaluated computer equipment from the top manufacturers and determined that Dell laptops and desktop computers best meet the City’s technical requirements for computing. Staff also examined recent competitive bids completed by local agencies and identified a bid conducted by the Port of Los Angeles that was awarded to Zones. Zones currently provides the City’s 24/7 first tier computer support and some disaster recovery services and therefore knows the City’s computing environment. Zones has offered the City a 60% minimum discount on Dell equipment as part of this proposed agreement.
Vendor Selection
Agreement with Zones for Computer Equipment Replacement Program Exception to Competitive Bidding
Staff recommends Zones to furnish and provide computer equipment and installation services as an exception to competitive bidding per Santa Monica Municipal Code Section 2.24.250 (c). This request is leveraging competitive pricing piggy backing off the City of Los Angeles Harbor Department Bid Number F-1137, formal request for cooperative agreement for IT Equipment, Supplies and Related Services. Zones is offering Dell laptop, desktop and MDC computers at a 60% to 66% discount from the manufacturer’s suggested retail price.
They are also providing configuration, deployment, and decommissioning services of the computer equipment. Additionally, Zones currently provides the City’s 24/7 first tier computer support and some disaster recovery services and therefore knows the City’s computing environment.
c. competitive procedures were followed by a governmental agency, federal, state, county, city, joint powers agency, special district, or cooperative purchasing agency and the goods or services are supplied to the City at the same or better price Change order to Purchase Order with Hewlett Packard
Exception to Competitive Bidding
Staff recommends Hewlett Packard to furnish and provide computers on an as needed basis as an exception to competitive bidding per Santa Monica Municipal Code Section 2.24.250 (c).
This request continues to leverage competitive pricing piggy backing off the State of California’s Participating Addendum under the NASPO ValuePoint Computer Equipment, Peripherals & Related Services contract (Master Agreement – State of Minnesota, extended through October 31, 2023). The discounts offered through this agreement range between 18% and 28% off baseline list, with additional discounts on bulk orders. c. competitive procedures were followed by a governmental agency, federal, state, county, 4 of 5
city, joint powers agency, special district, or cooperative purchasing agency and the goods or services are supplied to the City at the same or better price Environmental Review
The award agreement and purchase order modification to provide computer equipment and related services and purchase order modification to provide computer equipment is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to Section 15061(b)(3) of the CEQA Guidelines. The award agreement is covered by the common sense exemption which states that CEQA does not apply, where it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility that the activity in question may have a significant effect on the environment.
The agreement and purchase order will allow the City to continue to procure computer equipment and related services. Therefore, it can be seen with certainty that the agreement would not result in adverse physical impacts on the environment, and as such, is categorically exempt from CEQA.
Financial Impacts
Staff seeks authority to approve funding from the Information Services & Technology Replacement Fund and the General Fund to award an agreement with Zones for the purchase of computer equipment and associated deployment services and to issue a change order to the purchase order with Hewlett Packard for the purchase of computer equipment on an as-needed basis.
Award of the agreement to Zones and modifying the purchase order with Hewlett Packard requires the following budget change:
FY 2023-24 Budget Change
Appropriate Funds
Fund Account Number Amount
Information Services &
Technology Replacement
C7100030.689000
CERP 658,000
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The appropriation from the Information Services and Technology Fund, as previously contributed by the City’s other funds, is required to ensure funds are available in the CERP capital account to fund projected replacements.
Agreement Request: Zones
FY 2023-24
Request Amount
Future Years
Amount CIP Account # Total Contract Amount
685,000 6,744,000 C7100030.689000
CERP 7,429,000
410,000 C0105830.689000
Mobile Data Computer Replacement 410,000
25,000
C0107810.689000
Bulk Process Improvement,
Modernization, & Digitization
25,000
1,120,000 6,744,000 Total 7,864,000
Purchase Order Modification Request: Hewlett Packard
Purchase
Order #
Current Authorized
Amount
FY 2023-24
Request Amount CIP Account # Total Revised Amount
22400546 250,000 100,588 C7100030.689000
CERP 350,588
Future year funding is contingent on Council budget approval.
Prepared By: Christopher Smith, Acting Chief Information Officer Approved Forwarded to Council
Attachments:
A. HP OAKS INITIATIVE FORM
B. ZonesLLC_Santa Monica_OAKS INITIATIVE FORM