Title
Staff Report for an Ordinance Amending Section 1-6-225 of Article 2 of Chapter 1-6 of the San Leandro Municipal Code Relating to Purchasing By Competitive Bid
Staffreport
SUMMARY AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Staff recommends that the City Council review and consider the proposed Ordinance which would amend the Municipal Code to expand preferences given to local businesses in City purchasing and contracts. Should the Council choose, a motion can be made to pass the ordinance to print.
BACKGROUND
Earlier this year, the City Council authorized a consulting services agreement with the San Leandro Chamber of Commerce. One component of the scope of services for that agreement is the development of a "Local Business Preference Policy" that would update the City's public contracting and purchasing ordinance to provide more opportunities for San Leandro based businesses to be awarded City contracts.
To complete this work, the Chamber formed a "Local Inclusion Policy Working Group" to provide feedback to City staff and policy recommendations. The Working Group is chaired by former City Councilmember Surlene Grant and includes current City Councilmember Diana Souza along with representatives from local businesses, nonprofits, business coalitions, regional chambers of commerce, organized labor, and others. City staff and the City Attorney have also provided ongoing feedback to the Working Group. The group has met several times over the past three months and has reached general agreement about an ordinance for City Council consideration.
The Chamber of Commerce contract also requires the Chamber to provide the City with "findings based on research of comparable programs in other communities." That information will be forwarded to the City Council once it is received by staff.
Current Policy
Both the existing City ordinance and standard procedures place an emphasis on purchasing from local San Leandro businesses whenever possible. A recent staff ana...
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