REPORT/RECOMMENDATION TO THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
OF THE COUNTY OF SAN BERNARDINO
AND RECORD OF ACTION
May 18, 2021
FROM
LEONARD X. HERNANDEZ, Chief Executive Officer, County Administrative Office
SUBJECT
Title
Amendment to Contract with Inland Defenders, Inc.
End
RECOMMENDATION(S)
Recommendation
Approve Amendment No. 2 to Contract No. 19-390 with Inland Defenders, Inc. to clarify billing provisions for Superior Court emergency order case proceedings related to the COVID-19 pandemic, as it relates to court-appointed adult indigent defense representation services.
(Presenter: Matthew Erickson, County Chief Financial Officer, 387-5423)
Body
COUNTY AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER GOALS & OBJECTIVES
Improve County Government Operations.
Operate in a Fiscally-Responsible and Business-Like Manner.
Pursue County Goals and Objectives by Working with Other Agencies.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
Approval of this item will not impact Discretionary General Funding (Net County Cost). The proposed amendment provides clarifying language relating to billing for COVID-19 emergency case proceedings. The existing contract amount is anticipated to be sufficient to fund these costs.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Superior Court has issued emergency General Orders continuing or suspending non-emergency court proceedings. Under Contract No. 19-390, Inland Defenders, Inc. has continued to provide court-appointed adult indigent defense representation services for court emergency proceedings and invoiced for services as allowed under the contract’s “Miscellaneous Felony Matter” and “Miscellaneous Misdemeanor Matter” billing codes. Staff has been tracking the COVID-19 related expenses internally. Due to the volume of COVID-19 emergency proceedings, Amendment No. 2 is recommended to establish new specific COVID-19 emergency proceedings billing codes, at the same rates as the miscellaneous matter billing rates, to provide efficient expense tracking and documentation during the duration of the Superior Court’s COVID-19 emergency orders.
PROCUREMENT
On June 11, 2019 (Item No. 26), following the completion of a competitive procurement process, the Board of Supervisors (Board) approved Contract No. 19-390 for the provision of adult indigent defense representation services to Inland Defenders, Inc., effective through June 30, 2024. On June 2, 2020 (Item No. 16), the Board approved Amendment No. 1 to the Contract to clarify provisions for Special Fee billing and approval.
REVIEW BY OTHERS
This item has been reviewed by County Counsel (Julie Surber, Principal Assistant County Counsel, 387-5455) on April 21, 2021; Purchasing Department (Michelle Churchill, Lead Buyer, 387-8258) on April 22, 2021; Finance (Allegra Pajot, Administrative Analyst, 387-5005) on April 28, 2021; and Finance and Administration (Kelly Welty, Deputy Executive Officer, 387-5423) on April 28, 2021.