Department of Facilities & Fleet
Reference: Request for Waiver of Procurement Procedures for Equipment Purchase
To: Mayor Gregory Mills and Members of City Council
Through: Michael P. Martinez, City Manager
Prepared By: Patrick Rome, Director of Facilities & Fleet
Date Prepared: April 4, 2023
PURPOSE
To request Council's approval to purchase equipment valued at more than $100,000 through auction, direct purchase, or other means outside of the normal procurement process.
BACKGROUND
The 2023 Budget for the Public Works Department includes funds for the purchase of a Digger Derrick truck. This is a piece of mobile equipment used to drill holes for setting of poles and is an important piece of equipment for the operations of the Public Works Department. As this is a piece of equipment, the purchase is facilitated by the Department of Facilities & Fleet. Pictured below is an example of a Digger Derrick truck.
A new vehicle of this type can cost nearly $400,000 and has a lead time of up to 3 years. The City is attempting to purchase a slightly used model for roughly half of that cost. Changes to emissions regulations in California have resulted in California businesses selling their slightly used models at discounted prices, and the City is working to take advantage of these sales.
Vehicles and equipment are often purchased through state award or other cooperative bidding agreements which satisfy the requirements for competitive procurement. However, in order to purchase a used Digger Derrick vehicle, the City will need to purchase from a private seller or purchase through an auction. This technically constitutes a sole source purchase. Sole source purchases above $100,000 require the approval of City Council.
Because of the long lead time on new vehicles and limited availability of used vehicles, City staff find it necessary to be able to respond quickly to options like auction purchasing which don't allow time for individual Council approval. Therefore, sta...
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