BOARD AGENDA MEMORANDUM
SUBJECT:
Title
Amendment No. 2 to Agreement No. A3896F with Governmental Advocates, Inc., for State Lobbying Services, Resulting in a Total Not-To-Exceed fee of $334,000.
End
RECOMMENDATION:
Recommendation
A. Approve Amendment No. 2 to Agreement No. A3896F, with Governmental Advocates, Inc., for state lobbying services to ensure continuity in the District’s ability to accomplish its state policy and legislative goals; and
B. Authorize the Interim Chief Executive Officer (ICEO) to sign Amendment No. 2 to extend the term by one year to expire on August 31, 2018, and to increase the not-to-exceed amount to $334,000, for a total increase of $109,200.
Body
SUMMARY:
Governmental Advocates, Inc., is under contract with the District to provide assistance in lobbying at the state level, commencing on September 1, 2015, and continuing until the contract expires, which was initially set for August 31, 2016. Under the contract, the District may extend the term for two one-year periods upon written amendment executed by both parties. The District extended the term for the first of the one-year periods with Amendment No. 1, which was effective on September 1, 2016, and expires on August 31, 2017. This Amendment No. 2, if approved by the Board, would extend the term of the contract by the second allowed one-year period, and would make other changes necessary for this extension.
Specifically, Amendment No. 2 would make the following four changes to the contract.
1. Increases the total payment for services performed pursuant to the scope of services of the contract (the not-to-exceed amount), from $224,800 to $334,000.
2. Sets a payment schedule for a monthly fixed fee amount of $9,100 per month, in keeping with the original contract approved in 2015.
3. Changes the expiration date from August 31, 2017 to August 31, 2018.
4. Extends the completion date of Task No. 1 for state lobbying services from August 31, 2017 to August 31, 2018.
All other terms and conditions of the contract and Amendment No. 1 would remain in full force and effect.
Background
Since 2005, the District has utilized a contract lobbying firm to assist the District in accomplishing its state policy and legislative goals in Sacramento. Prior to that, the District relied only on in-house lobbyists, which created significant gaps in the District’s legislative program.
To help address these gaps, the District issued a public Request for Proposals (RFP) for contract lobbying services. The firm selected through that process, Governmental Advocates, Inc., was the successful proposer in numerous subsequent public RFP processes, and continues to represent the District today. The current contract, under which the District pays a flat retainer each month, is managed by the Assistant Officer in the Sacramento Government Relations Office, who is responsible for assigning issues to the consultant and monitoring and evaluating performance. Although the scope of the Agreement is purposefully broad, in general the District utilizes the consultant only on the highest-priority issues.
The services provided by the consultant are needed to allow the District to:
1. Provide supplemental communication to the Governor’s office and other administration officials, the Assembly and Senate leadership, legislators outside the Santa Clara County delegation, and other state regulatory entities;
2. Efficiently respond to peaks in workload that are inherent in the legislative process;
3. Achieve maximum participation and coverage on legislative and regulatory issues; and
4. Provide sufficient resources in Sacramento to support and advance the District’s legislative and policy agenda.
EL-5 Compliance
Board Policy EL-5.1.2 states that the CEO shall not enter into a consultant service contract greater than $225,000 unless authorized by the Board. This consultant contract amendment requires Board approval because the amended extension amount exceeds $225,000.
Board Policy EL-5.7 does not allow the District to enter into a consultant contract without considering the consultant’s past performance.
Since being awarded its first contract with the District in 2005, Governmental Advocates, Inc., has shown outstanding ability to advance District priorities and legislative issues when unexpected challenges have occurred. Their firm has repeatedly achieved the desired outcome of legislative and policy success and has considerable District-specific expertise that has proven valuable on numerous occasions. Building on this foundation, staff recommends that the ICEO be authorized to extend this firm’s contract.
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
This is the second amendment issued under this agreement and adequate funding is available in the project budget to cover the proposed amount. This amendment increases the current Board authorized not to exceed amount from $224,800 to $334,000, an increase of $109,200.
CEQA:
The recommended action does not constitute a project under CEQA because it does not have a potential for resulting in direct or reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment.
ATTACHMENTS:
Attachment 1: Amendment No. 2
Attachment 2: SCVWD Agreement No. A3896F
Attachment 3: SCVWD Amendment No. 1 to Agmt No. A3896F
UNCLASSIFIED MANAGER:
Manager
Rachael Gibson, 408-630-2884