BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 495
Page 1
ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB
495 (Gordon)
As Introduced February 23, 2015
Majority vote
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|Committee |Votes |Ayes |Noes |
| | | | |
| | | | |
|----------------+------+--------------------+--------------------|
|Local |9-0 |Maienschein, | |
|Government | |Gonzalez, Alejo, | |
| | |Chiu, Cooley, | |
| | |Gordon, Holden, | |
| | |Linder, Waldron | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
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SUMMARY: Increases, from $25,000 to $50,000, the amount for which
the East Bay Regional Park District (EBRPD) or the Midpeninsula
Regional Open Space District (MROSD) may enter into contracts
without a formal bid process. Specifically, this bill:
1)Authorizes the general manager of the EBRPD or the MROSD, with
the approval of their respective boards, to bind those
districts, in accordance with board policy, and without
advertising, for the payment for supplies, materials, labor, or
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other valuable consideration for any purpose, including the new
construction of a building, structure, or improvement in amounts
not exceeding $50,000.
2)Requires all expenditures authorized pursuant to 1), above, to
be reported to the respective district's board of directors at
its next regular meeting.
EXISTING LAW: Allows the general manager of a park and/or open
space district, with the approval of the district's board, to bind
the district, in accordance with board policy, and without
advertising, for the payment for supplies, materials, labor, or
other valuable consideration for any purpose other than new
construction of a building, structure, or improvement in amounts
not exceeding $25,000, and for the payment for supplies,
materials, or labor or other valuable consideration for new
construction of a building, structure, or improvement in amounts
not exceeding $25,000.
FISCAL EFFECT: None
COMMENTS:
1)Bill Summary. This bill increases the dollar amount for which
the EBRPD and the MROSD may contract, without a public bid, for
supplies, materials, labor, or other valuable consideration for
any purpose, be it for new construction or for
non-construction/maintenance work. This bill is sponsored by
the EBRPD and the MROSD.
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2)Author's Statement. According to the author, "AB 745 (Levine),
Chapter 42, Statutes of 2014, raised the cap for non-bid
maintenance contracts for most Regional Parks and Open Space
Districts from $10,000 to $25,000 to reflect inflation and the
increased costs of minor district maintenance activities.
However, the two largest districts did not similarly have their
non-bid limits, which were already at $25,000, increased
proportionally. This legislation would simply adjust these
contract limits for the two districts from $25,000 to $50,000.
Per MROSD, this increase in purchasing authority would save the
District hundreds of hours of staff time and thousands of
dollars each year. Savings that can dedicate more resources to
opening preserves, trails, and other amenities to the public at
a much faster pace."
3)Background:
East Bay Regional Park District. The EBRPD is a system of
parklands and trails in Alameda and Contra Costa counties. The
system comprises 119,000 acres in 65 parks, including over 1,250
miles of trails. The EBRPD acquires, manages, and preserves
natural and cultural resources and is one of the largest park
districts in the country. The EBRPD operating budget for 2015
is $173 million.
According to the EBRPD Web site, "Today, because of continued
urbanization, the need for a regional system of publicly owned
open space areas, recreational facilities and trails is perhaps
even greater than it was when the District was originally
established. And, as in 1934, the times are uncertain. Like
other public agencies, the District continually faces the
potential loss of essential revenues, while the demand for
recreational areas, facilities, programs and services continues
to grow. Economic uncertainty, population growth, the increased
ethnic and cultural diversity of the East Bay, improved
scientific knowledge in natural and cultural resource
management, and land use changes that could create new Regional
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Parks in urban areas are among the key challenges that will
shape the East Bay Regional Park District of the future."
Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District. The MROSD purchases,
protects, and restores lands forming a regional open space
greenbelt; preserves unspoiled wilderness, wildlife habitat,
watershed, viewshed, and fragile ecosystems; and, provides
opportunities for low-intensity recreation and environmental
education. The MROSD works to form a continuous greenbelt of
permanently preserved open space by linking its lands with other
public parklands. The MROSD also participates in cooperative
efforts such as the Bay Trail, Ridge Trail, and
Skyline-to-the-Sea Trail, which are regional trail systems in
the Bay Area that include MROSD lands.
The MROSD has permanently preserved nearly 62,000 acres of
mountainous, foothill, and bayland open space, creating 26 open
space preserves (24 of which are open to the public). The MROSD
covers an area of 550 square miles and includes 17 cities
(Atherton, Cupertino, East Palo Alto, Half Moon Bay, Los Altos,
Los Altos Hills, Los Gatos, Menlo Park, Monte Sereno, Mountain
View, Palo Alto, Portola Valley, Redwood City, San Carlos,
Saratoga, Sunnyvale, and Woodside).
4)Park and Open Space District Bid Requirements. Park and/or open
space districts generally must comply with state law requiring
them to publicly bid new construction and maintenance work that
will exceed specified costs. This is consistent with state law
for all local agencies, based on policy that seeks to balance
open and transparent use of public funds with efficient and
cost-effective government operations.
Prior law sets bid limits for these districts at $10,000 for
non-construction work, and $25,000 for construction contracts.
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However, the Legislature allowed exceptions to these thresholds
for three districts: the EBRPD, MROSD, and the Sonoma County
Agricultural Preservation and Open Space District. These
districts were allowed to contract for any purpose for up to
$25,000 without bidding. These exceptions were based on a
recognition that public bidding may not be cost-effective in all
cases, particularly when the costs of time delays and resources
expended on contract preparation and bidding are
disproportionate to a contract's scope and total cost.
Last year, AB 745, raised the limit to $25,000 for all park and
open space districts for all purposes, both construction and
non-construction, resulting in a uniform statute for all of
these districts.
This bill seeks to once again create an exception for the EBRPD
and the MROSD by raising their bid threshold for both
construction and non-construction contracts to $50,000.
5)Policy Considerations. The Legislature may wish to consider the
following:
a) Keeping Things Consistent. As noted above, just last year
the Legislature raised the non-bid limit to $25,000 for all
park and open space districts, resulting in a uniform statute
for all of the state's eight park/open space districts. The
Legislature may wish to consider whether to maintain this
uniformity or whether to, once again, allow a higher
threshold for two of these districts.
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b) Adjusting for Inflation. According to the United States
Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics' Consumer
Price Index (CPI) Inflation Calculator, $25,000 in 1999 has
the same buying power as about $35,000 today. Proponents of
this bill are requesting an increase to $50,000, well above
the change in dollar value due to inflation since 1999, when
the $25,000 threshold was set for the EBRPD (MROSD's $25,000
was set in 2002). The Legislature may wish to consider
whether an increase to $50,000 is necessary to adjust for
inflation, or if a smaller increase would be adequate.
c) Future Requests. The Legislature has now reviewed and
approved several requests to raise the non-bid threshold for
specified park or open space districts, based on inflationary
pressures. The Legislature may wish to consider whether to
allow an inflationary adjustment in the statutes governing
these thresholds.
6)Previous Legislation. AB 745 raised the non-bid spending cap to
$25,000 for all park and open space districts for all purposes,
both construction and non-construction. AB 953 (Simitian),
Chapter 23, Statutes of 2002, increased the non-bid spending cap
for non-construction items to $25,000 for the Midpeninsula
Regional Open Space District and the Sonoma County Agricultural
Preservation and Open Space District. AB 584 (Aroner), Chapter
135, Statutes of 1999, raised the non-bid spending cap for
non-construction items to $25,000 for the East Bay Regional Park
District.
7)Arguments in Support. The EBRPD and the MROSD, sponsors of this
bill, state, "(The) EBRPD and the MROSD serve a combined 3.3
million constituents and are among the largest special park
districts in the nation. The $25,000 purchasing authority limit
has not been increased since 2002, while inflation and project
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costs have increased substantially. Authorizing this increase
would allow both districts to alleviate redundant report writing
and process review time, saving considerable taxpayer dollars.
Improving administrative efficiencies (is) important to
fulfilling our organizations' missions related to protecting
natural resources and offering enjoyable outdoor healthy
recreation opportunities. Changes to the authority limit will
make both districts more effective for our common park and open
space objectives."
8)Arguments in Opposition. There is no opposition on file.
Analysis Prepared by:
Angela Mapp / L. GOV. / (916) 319-3958 FN:
0000120