REPORT/RECOMMENDATION TO THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
OF SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY
AND RECORD OF ACTION
December 17, 2024
FROM
SHANNON D. DICUS, Sheriff/Coroner/Public Administrator
SUBJECT
Title
Agreement with Ontario Reign Hockey Club, LLC for Advertising Services
End
RECOMMENDATION(S)
Recommendation
Approve Advertisement Agreement with Ontario Reign Hockey Club, LLC, including non-standard terms, for the provision of advertising services, for the period of January 1, 2025 to April 20, 2025, in the amount of $27,000.
(Presenter: Kelly Welty, Chief Deputy Director, 387-3760)
Body
COUNTY AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER GOALS & OBJECTIVES
Operate in a Fiscally-Responsible and Business-Like Manner.
Provide for the Safety, Health and Social Service Needs of County Residents.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
Approval of this item will not result in the use of additional Discretionary General Funding (Net County Cost). The cost of the advertising services through Ontario Reign Hockey Club, LLC’s (Reign) Advertisement Agreement (Agreement) will be funded within the Sheriff Coroner/Public Administrator’s (Department) existing 2024-25 budget (4431811000).
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
The Department’s Employee Resources Division (ERD) provides the Department with state-wide recruitment services. ERD is tasked with soliciting potential candidates by participating in local job fairs, safety fairs, and career days, and using advertising services including, but not limited to, digital and radio advertising, working with local sports teams, and static display ads for malls, campuses, and military bases.
Reign, a professional ice hockey team in the city of Ontario, California, has placed in the top ten in attendance-at-home games during the 2023-2024 season of the American Hockey League, making them a viable option for increasing the Department’s marketing efforts and visibility. This is the first time that the Department will advertise at the Reign’s venue, and will do that during 18 regular season home games.
The recommended Agreement with Reign includes terms that differ from the standard County contract terms. The non-standard terms are as follows:
1. Except for claims involving equitable or injunctive relief, all disputes arising under the Agreement must be settled by binding arbitration.
• The County standard contract does not require arbitration.
• Potential Impact: Binding arbitration decisions are not appealable. In addition, disputes that might otherwise be settled in small claims court would incur arbitration costs that could exceed the costs of a small claims action, and the Agreement amount.
2. The prevailing party is entitled to recover attorneys’ fees and costs if a legal dispute is resolved in arbitration.
• The County standard contract requires each party to bear its own costs and attorney fees, regardless of who is the prevailing party.
• Potential Impact: If arbitration is used to resolve a dispute between the parties, the prevailing party could be awarded costs and attorneys’ fees, which could exceed the total Agreement amount.
3. The County may not terminate the Agreement for convenience.
• County Policy 11-05 requires that the County have the right to terminate the contract, for any reason, with a 30-day written notice of termination without any obligation other than to pay amounts for services rendered and expenses reasonably incurred prior to the effective date of termination.
• Potential Impact: The County can only terminate the Agreement during the term if Reign has a bankruptcy or reorganization petition filed against it, makes an assignment for the benefit of creditors, becomes insolvent, or is otherwise unable to pay its debts when due, or for an uncured breach by Reign. Any attempted termination by the County without cause could result in payment liability for the full Agreement amount, which could result in payment liability where no funds are available due to lack of allocation or loss of funding.
4. The County is required to indemnify Reign against claims arising directly or indirectly from or out of any breach by the County of its covenants or obligations under the Agreement, or negligence or willful misconduct by the County, except where attributable to Reign’s negligence or willful misconduct, and the County agrees to protect, defend, and indemnify Reign harmless from and against any and all claims arising directly or indirectly from or out of the advertising content.
• The County standard contract does not include any indemnification or defense by the County of a contractor.
• Potential Impact: By agreeing to indemnify Reign, the County could be contractually waiving the protection of sovereign immunity. Claims that may otherwise be barred against the County, time limited, or expense limited could be brought against Reign without such limitations and the County could be responsible to defend and reimburse Reign for costs, expenses, and damages, which could exceed the total Agreement amount.
5. The Agreement does not include certain standard County insurance requirements, including Professional Liability coverage, Policies primary and non-contributory, Severability of interests, Deductibles and self-insurance retention, Failure to procure coverage, and Insurance review; further, the County's general liability endorsements were removed.
• The County standard contract requires contractors to carry appropriate insurance at limits and under conditions determined by the County’s Risk Management Department.
• Potential Impact: The County has no assurance that Reign will be financially responsible for all claims that may arise under the Agreement, which could result in expenses to the County that exceed the total Agreement amount.
While these are notable exceptions to the County’s standard contract language, the Department recommends approval of the Agreement with Reign, including non-standard terms, for the provision of advertising services to assist with recruitment efforts.
PROCUREMENT
This Agreement is non-competitive as Reign is the sole provider, controller, and manager of the advertising elements that the Department will be given rights to use at the team’s games during the 2024-2025 American Hockey League season.
REVIEW BY OTHERS
This item has been reviewed by County Counsel (Grace B. Parsons, Deputy County Counsel, 387-5455) on November 19, 2024; Purchasing (Jason Cloninger, Lead Buyer, 387-0321) on November 18, 2024; Risk Management (Greg Ustaszewski, Staff Analyst II, 386-9008) on November 18, 2024; Finance (Erika Rodarte, Administrative Analyst, 387-4919) on November 21, 2024; and County Finance and Administration (Robert Saldana, Deputy Executive Officer, 387-5423) on November 22, 2024.