REPORT/RECOMMENDATION TO THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
OF SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY
AND RECORD OF ACTION
July 27, 2021
FROM
BRENDON BIGGS, Director, Department of Public Works - Solid Waste Management
SUBJECT
Title
Agreement with S. Groner Associates, Inc. to Perform Public Education and Outreach Tasks
End
RECOMMENDATION(S)
Recommendation
Approve agreement with S. Groner Associates, Inc., in the amount of $1,125,000 to provide public outreach and educational services to assist the San Bernardino County in complying with Senate Bill 1383 titled Short-lived Climate Pollutants and Organic Waste Reduction law (SB 1383) and other State laws for the period of August 1, 2021 through June 30, 2026, with the option to extend the Agreement for two additional one-year periods.
(Presenter: Brendon Biggs, Director, 387-7906)
Body
COUNTY AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER GOALS & OBJECTIVES
Pursue County Goals and Objectives by Working with Other Agencies and Stakeholders.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
Approval of this item will not result in the use of Discretionary General Funding (Net County Cost). The Agreement amount is projected at an annual cost of $225,000 per year; however, the contractor may exceed that annual amount, if necessary, to complete the necessary assigned tasks. In no case, however, will the amount exceed $1,125,000 in the five-year Agreement period. The Agreement costs will be funded with fee revenue collected by the Department of Public Works - Solid Waste Management Division (SWMD). Sufficient appropriation and revenue are included in the SWMD 2021-22 budget and will be included in future recommended budgets.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
The Solid Waste Management Division (SWMD) has been tasked with being the lead County agency to ensure County compliance with Senate Bill (SB) 1383. SB 1383 is the most significant waste reduction mandate to be adopted in California in the last 30 years. SB 1383 regulations require a prescriptive approach in order to meet statewide organic waste reduction targets. The County will be required to take specific actions including, but not limited to, providing organic waste collection to all unincorporated area residents and businesses and conducting outreach and education to all affected parties, including generators (residents and businesses), haulers, processing facilities, edible food recovery organizations, cities, and County departments.
This agreement with S. Groner Associates, Inc. (SGA) will allow SWMD to achieve compliance with SB 1383 by providing experienced staff to accomplish the public outreach and education requirements of SB 1383. In addition, SGA will also be tasked with strengthening our social media outreach efforts, participate in community events to raise awareness and educate, and implement methodologies to measure and track the performance of the outreach efforts. The knowledge and skills required to perform these tasks are unique and hiring SGA will assist with future compliance efforts.
This public education and outreach effort will include print, electronic, and potentially up to 45 in-person outreach workshops. The consultant will also provide expertise as it pertains to SWMD social media pages and web sites, including our specialized Zero Waste Communities website that current staff have limited knowledge in managing and maintaining. The results of activities performed by SGA in each calendar year will provide guidance on the type, focus and extent of the outreach and educational components implemented in the following year(s) and will also be reported to CalRecycle to demonstrate compliance with SB 1383 and other State law requirements.
On February 24, 2020, the San Bernardino County Flood Control District (District) released Request for Proposal (RFP) No. PWG120-LANDD-3714 on the San Bernardino County Electronic Procurement Network, to solicit a vendor to provide public education and outreach services. On March 26, 2020, five proposals were received, the proposals were evaluated by a selection committee which conducted a thorough evaluation of the proposals, and SGA was selected as the most qualified vendor. Contract negotiations were conducted to determine a fair and reasonable cost for the scope of services and the resulting District Contract No. 20-544 was approved by the Board of Supervisors on June 23, 2020 (Item No. 113).
SWMD recommends availing themselves of the District Contract No. 20-544 through use of the Participation Clause in subsection C.28 of the District contract in order to enter into a separate agreement for like services with SGA. SWMD prepared a scope of services and forwarded it to SGA. Contract negotiations were conducted with SGA to determine a fair and reasonable cost for the services while using the same payment terms as outlined in the District Contract No. 20-544.
SWMD may terminate the Agreement in whole or in part upon 30 calendar days’ written notice to SGA. If the Agreement is terminated in this manner, SGA shall receive equitable compensation for services rendered and expenses incurred prior to the effective date of termination.
PROCUREMENT
Not applicable.
REVIEW BY OTHERS
This item has been reviewed by County Counsel (Jolena Grider, Deputy County Counsel, 387-5455) on July 1, 2021; Finance (Jessica Trillo, Administrative Analyst, 387-4222) on July 6, 2021; and County Finance and Administration (Matthew Erickson, County Chief Financial Officer, 387-5423) on July 12, 2021.