REPORT/RECOMMENDATION TO THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
OF SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY
AND RECORD OF ACTION
June 27, 2023
FROM
JEANY ZEPEDA, Director, Children and Family Services
SUBJECT
Title
Contracts for Service of Process Services
End
RECOMMENDATION(S)
Recommendation
Approve fee-for-service contracts with the following agencies to provide Service of Process services for court notices, in the aggregate amount not to exceed $825,000, for the period of July 1, 2023 through June 30, 2026:
1. American Eagle Attorney Service, Inc.
2. Team Legal, Inc.
(Presenter: Jeany Zepeda, Director, 387-2792)
Body
COUNTY AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER GOALS & OBJECTIVES
Provide for the Safety, Health and Social Service Needs of County Residents.
Pursue County Goals and Objectives by Working with Other Agencies and Stakeholders.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
This item does not impact Discretionary General Funding (Net County Cost). The cost of the contracts with American Eagle Attorney Service, Inc. (American Eagle) and Team Legal, Inc. (Team Legal) will not exceed $825,000 and is funded 100% through 2011 Realignment funds. Adequate appropriation and revenue have been included in the Human Services Administrative Claim 2023-24 budget and will be included in future recommended budgets.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
Children and Family Services (CFS) is required and obligated to serve parents or dependents with notice of proposed actions by the Juvenile Dependency Court. In these cases, CFS uses a contract agency to serve the required notices. Service of Process is the procedure by which a party gives appropriate notice of legal action to another party to respond to the proceeding before the court. In this instance, Service of Process is the personal delivery of the State of California, Superior Court notice(s) to all parents and prospective parents of dependent children that a lawsuit has been initiated against them or there is other pending legal action. The recommended contracts with American Eagle and Team Legal will provide Service of Process services for these cases.
The recommended contractors will be paid based on the geographic location of the Service of Process services provided. Services provided outside San Bernardino County are paid at a higher rate. CFS currently has approximately 5,500 children in out-of-home placement. CFS has provided these services through contracted vendors since 1999.
Contractor performance will be monitored by County staff to ensure compliance with the administrative, program, and fiscal terms and conditions of the contract. American Eagle and Team Legal will cooperate with the County in the monitoring and evaluation of their contracts and will comply with any and all reporting requirements established by the contract. American Eagle and Team Legal charges must be for eligible services under this funded program. CFS will review invoices and other documents submitted by the contactors to ensure the charges are for eligible services prior to payment. The County reserves the right to request additional program and/or fiscal reports to facilitate this monthly review. The contracts may be terminated by the County immediately in the event funds are not available to the County and without cause by the County by serving written notice to the contractors 30 days in advance of termination.
PROCUREMENT
On April 10, 2023, the County Administrative Office approved and authorized the release of a joint Request for Proposals (RFP) No. HSSA23-HSSA-4744 to solicit proposals from interested and qualified vendors for the provision of Services of Process services for CFS and the Department of Child Support Services (DCSS) via the County Electronic Procurement Network (ePro).
Four agencies attended one of two mandatory proposal conferences conducted on April 18, 2023 and April 20, 2023. Vendors interested in proposing services for both CFS and DCSS were required to submit separate proposals. Four proposals were received in response to the RFP by the established deadline. Two proposals did not meet the minimum requirements and were determined non-responsive due to missing or incomplete documents, such as proposal description and fee schedules. Proposals, from American Eagle and Team Legal, met the minimum requirements and continued through the evaluation process for CFS Services of Process services.
An evaluation team comprised of representatives from CFS, Human Services (HS) Auditing, and HS Program Development Division, reviewed and evaluated the proposals based on the criteria included in the RFP. Those criteria included, but were not limited to qualifications and experience, financial review, technical review, and cost.
Based on the evaluation results, American Eagle and Team Legal are recommended for contract award to best meet the needs of CFS.
REVIEW BY OTHERS
This item has been reviewed by Human Services Contracts (Patty Steven, Contracts Manager, 388-0241) on May 24, 2023; County Counsel (Kaleigh Ragon, Deputy County Counsel, 387-5455) on May 25, 2023; Purchasing (Michelle Churchill, Supervising Buyer, 387-2148) on May 30, 2023; Finance (John Hallen, Administrative Analyst, 388-0208) on June 5, 2023; and County Finance and Administration (Cheryl Adams, Deputy Executive Officer, 388-0332) on June 8, 2023.