BILL ANALYSIS �
SENATE TRANSPORTATION & HOUSING COMMITTEE BILL NO: AB 482
SENATOR MARK DESAULNIER, CHAIRMAN AUTHOR: Williams
VERSION:
1/13/2012
Analysis by: Larry Baskett FISCAL: NO
Hearing date: June 12, 2012 URGENCY: YES
SUBJECT:
Dredging contracts
DESCRIPTION:
This bill authorizes the Ventura Port District (District) to
award a dredging contract for maintaining the interior of
Ventura Harbor without a competitive bid.
ANALYSIS:
Existing law:
1.Authorizes port districts to engage in a variety of
activities, including acquiring and owning property,
constructing, operating, developing, regulating land and
facilities, and dredging channels and slips for boats.
2.Requires that ports award contracts for projects costing more
than $10,000 through competitive bidding to the lowest
responsible bidder.
3.Allows a port district governing board to waive the
competitive bidding requirement in the case of emergencies by
a 4/5 vote.
This bill :
1.Authorizes the District to award a contract for dredging
without competitive bidding, provided that both of the
following apply:
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a. The Army Corps of Engineers, through a competitive
bidding process, selected the contractor for a federal
dredging project presently underway in the County of
Ventura.
b. The District's board makes written findings, based on
substantial evidence in the record, that the contract to be
awarded without competitive bidding is likely to cost less
than a contract awarded through competitive bidding.
2.Is an urgency measure.
COMMENTS:
1.Purpose . The purpose of this bill is to enable the District
to award a contract to dredge the inner portions of Ventura
Harbor to a firm previously selected, through a competitive
procurement, by the Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) to dredge
the mouth of the harbor beyond the breakwater. The District
is a small enterprise and argues that competitive procurement
is expensive because there are no nearby dredging firms. The
lack of proximity to qualified firms results in high cost
because firms must bring in equipment from outside of the
area. Utilizing a contractor previously retained through a
competitive procurement by the Corps and already on site would
create a savings to the District.
2.Background . The District was formed in 1952 as an independent
special district with nearly similar boundaries to the City of
Ventura. Ventura Harbor is currently used for multiple
recreational activities including a small craft harbor. A
five-member Board of Port Commissioners governs the District.
The commissioners are appointed to fixed four-year terms by
the Mayor of the City of San Buenaventura with the approval of
the City Council.
The District is self-supported through fees in addition to
receiving a pro-rata share of property taxes levied within the
District's boundaries, and it functions as an enterprise
district that manages and maintains Ventura Harbor and related
facilities.
The Army Corps of Engineers regularly awards a three-year
AB 482 (WILLIAMS) Page 3
contract to a firm to conduct annual maintenance dredging of
the Ventura Harbor entrance. This operation involves
large-scale, high capacity dredging equipment. Because of
Ventura's location, the cost of setting up a dredging
operation is expensive for a firm from outside the area. The
District believes that awarding a sole source contract to a
dredging firm previously selected by the Army Corps of
Engineers provides the best value.
The District does not want to jointly procure the dredging
firm because the Corps would require the District to share in
the set-up cost. Should the District award a contract after
the Corps' procurement, the firm will not charge a set-up cost
to the District.
3.Is the best price assured ? The Army Corps of Engineers
competitive bidding process would determine the choice of
contractor for the District. The only constraint is that the
District's governing board must make a finding, based on the
evidence, that the award is likely to cost less than it would
otherwise.
4.Author amendment . This bill includes an urgency clause
because the District had intended to utilize its provisions
this year for dredging Ventura Harbor. The District has now
conducted its dredging for this year, and the urgency
provision is no longer necessary. The author will offer an
amendment in committee to remove the urgency clause.
ASSEMBLY VOTES:
Floor: 74-0
Local Gov.: 9-0
POSITIONS: (Communicated to the committee before noon on
Wednesday, June 6, 2012)
SUPPORT: Ventura Port District (sponsor)
California Marine Affairs and Navigation
Conference
California-Nevada Conference of Operating
Engineers
AB 482 (WILLIAMS) Page 4
City of Ventura
OPPOSED: None received.