City Council
Report
City Council Meeting: August 11, 2026
Agenda Item: 4.B
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To: Mayor and City Council
From: Anuj Gupta, Director of Transportation, Department of Transportation, Transit Maintenance
Subject: Authorization to enter into a Third Modification to Agreement #11364 with Gillig to Purchase Battery Electric Buses for the Department of Transportation Recommended Action
Staff recommends that the City Council:
1. Adopt a finding of Categorical Exemption pursuant to Section 15302 (Replacement or Reconstruction) of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines;
2. Authorize the City Manager to execute a third modification to agreement #11364 in the amount of $24,036,756 with Gillig, LLC to furnish and deliver up to forty, 40-foot battery electric buses to the Santa Monica Department of Transportation and authorize a notice to proceed to Gillig, LLC in reference to the agreement and modification. This will result in an amended agreement with a new total amount not to exceed $88,985,302, with future year funding contingent on Council budget approval; and
3. Authorize budget amendment as outlined in the Financial Impacts and Budget Actions section of this report (requires 5 votes.)
Summary
Big Blue Bus (BBB), a division of the Santa Monica Department of Transportation (DOT), operates 195 transit buses covering more than 69 square miles of western Los Angeles County, providing 10 million rides annually. BBB is committed to reducing harmful emissions and pursuing the most environmentally sustainable vehicles to provide transit service to customers and meet DOT’s operational needs. In support of that goal, DOT is converting its fleet of compressed natural gas (CNG) powered buses to zero emission battery electric buses (BEBs). Pursuant to its Fleet Management Plan and Federal Transportation Administration (FTA) guidelines, DOT replaces its buses 2 of 5
after 12 years in service, or 500,000 miles. BBB buses are typically replaced on a onefor-one basis, and 40 CNG buses purchased between 2011 and 2014 are currently due for replacement. DOT has 30 BEBs on order to replace the buses purchased in 2011, but production of those buses has been moved to 2027 to allow for the completion of the next phase of DOT’s electric bus charging infrastructure.
To advance efforts to fully transition the Big Blue Bus fleet to zero emission buses by 2032, staff recommends that the City execute a modification to agreement #11364 with Gillig LLC in an amount not to exceed $24,036,756 for the purchase of up to 40 battery electric buses, including spare parts, training, and warranty. This will result in a new total amount not to exceed $70,837,632. The contract modification is based on the Procurement Manager approved ECB #499 which utilizes a competitively bid agreement awarded to Gillig LLC by the State of Washington.
Discussion
To support the City of Santa Monica’s sustainability goals, DOT presented a Fleet Composition Study to the City Council in April 2018. Based on the study’s findings, Council reaffirmed its commitment to a full transition to zero emissions by 2030. In support of the City’s sustainability targets, DOT has been operating BEBs in its fleet since August 2019 and currently has 34 BEBs in service with 18 of these buses received in 2021 and 15 received in 2025. The BEBs in the BBB fleet have performed well, and staff have received positive feedback from Motor Coach Operators who have driven the buses and customers who have ridden on them.
In preparation for the gradual conversion of its entire fleet to BEBs, DOT has completed a fleet electrification master planning effort and begun construction on charging infrastructure that will provide charging capacity for up to 130 BEBs. The first phase of this construction is scheduled to be completed in mid-2027 and will provide charging for an additional 40 BEBs, and the second phase is scheduled to be completed in late 2028 and will provide charging for an additional 90 BEBs. DOT has partnered with Southern California Edison (SCE) to ensure that energy will be available for the charging of its electric bus fleet through SCE’s Charge Ready Transport program, which provides a rebate for electric bus charging infrastructure.
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Staff recommends the City Council authorize the City Manager to execute a third modification to agreement #11364 with Gillig LLC, pursuant to the same base price as set forth in the terms and conditions in the State of Washington’s Transit Bus Invitation for Bid (IFB) dated March 4, 2020, and subsequently executed contract 06719-01 dated April 1, 2021. This procurement authorizes local government agencies outside the State of Washington to purchase electric buses in accordance with the prices listed in Attachment D of the IFB. Procurement of electric buses using the State of Washington bid would enable the department to meet its goal of timely replacement of vehicles that have reached their 12-year useful life in accordance with BBB’s fleet replacement plan.
Analysis
Base Price for each BEB (February 2021) 813,044
City and DOT technical requirements* 279,302
Delivery 1,898
Pre-tax unit price 1,094,244
PPI Adjustment per WA Contract (2021-2026) 349,271
Spare / Tooling budget (1%) 14,011
Current Pre-Tax Unit Price 1,457,526
Applicable taxes 145,602
Total current not price including taxes 1,603,128
Price for 40 electric buses 64,125,120
Spare Parts 250,000
Training 50,000
Contingency (10%) 6,412,512
Total current unit price including taxes 70,837,632
Previous Council Authorization for 30 buses (12/17/2024) 46,800,876 Total Additional Authorization Request 24,036,756
*City and DOT technical requirements include an additional 7 th high-voltage battery, Clever
Devices hardware/software for the Radio/Computer-Aided Dispatch-Automated Vehicle 4 of 5
Location (CAD-AVL) system, Automatic Passenger Counters, Wi-Fi, electric doors, the BBB seating layout, wheelchair restraints, and passenger surveillance systems.
Environmental Review
The contract modification award for the purchase of electric replacement buses is categorically exempt from CEQA pursuant to Section 15302 of CEQA. Section 15302 exempts Class 2 projects which “consists of replacement or reconstruction of existing structures and facilities where the new structure will be located on the same site as the structure replaced and will have substantially the same purpose and capacity as the structure replaced.” The electric buses would replace existing CNG buses, with essentially the same purpose and capacity of existing CNG buses. Therefore, the contract modification for replacement buses is exempt from CEQA pursuant to Section 15302.
Past Council Actions
Meeting Date Description
4/24/2018 BBB Fleet Composition Study
7/24/2018 Purchase of (1) Prototype Gillig Electric Bus 10/22/2019 Purchase of (18) 40’ Gillig Electric Buses
2/28/2023 Purchase of (15) 35’ Gillig Electric Buses
12/17/2024 Purchase of (30) 40’ Gillig Electric Buses
Financial Impacts and Budget Actions
Staff seeks authority to appropriate $24,036,756 of Federal Section 5307 funds and approve the use of this funding from the BBB Fund to award a contract modification to Gillig LLC for the purchase of up to forty 40-foot Battery Electric Buses as follows:
FY 2026-27 Budget Amendment
Funds to be Appropriated
Account Number Amount
C6004810.689000 $24,036,756
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Federal Section 5307 funds will come on a reimbursement basis to Fund 60 as the funds are guaranteed. The funds will be reimbursed by the FTA as expenses are incurred, which is anticipated to be in FY 2027-28. As such, the revenue will be budgeted during the FY 2027-29 Biennial Budget process.
Agreement Modification Request
Agreement
#
Current
Authorized
Amount
FY 2026-27 Budget
Dept/CIP Account
#
Total Revised
Contract Amount Modified Request
Amount
11364 $64,948,546 $24,036,756 C6004810.689000 $88,985,302 Future year funding is contingent on Council budget approval.
Prepared By: David Nanjo, Administrative Analyst
Approved Forwarded to Council
Attachments:
A. Santa Monica CA (30) 40' BEB PB on State of WA RFP 2020 06719-01 10-8-25 REV 2 (DELIVERY CHANGE TO 2027)
B. Gillig Levine Act Form
C. Gillig Oaks Form
D. CSA_11364_-_(15)_Gillig_35'_BEBs - SIGNED
E. Contract_11364_-_Mod._1 (2)
F. 11364_CSA_Mod. 2
G. Written Comments
H. PowerPoint Presentation