BILL ANALYSIS �
SENATE GOVERNANCE & FINANCE COMMITTEE
Senator Lois Wolk, Chair
BILL NO: AB 745 HEARING: 5/14/14
AUTHOR: Levine FISCAL: No
VERSION: 5/6/14 TAX LEVY: No
CONSULTANT: Urquiza
REGIONAL PARK AND OPEN SPACE DISTRICTS' POWERS
Increases the maximum value of non-construction contracts
which Marin County Open Space District and Napa County
Regional Park and Open Space District may enter into
without a formal bid process.
Background and Existing Law
State law requires regional park and open space districts
to advertise contracts for supplies, materials, labor, and
construction and award them to the lowest responsible
bidder. With the board of directors' approval, a
district's general manager can award smaller jobs without
written contracts and a formal bidding process.
Specifically, a district's general manager can enter
contracts for up to $10,000 of maintenance or services, and
up to $25,000 for new construction projects, without the
formal bid process (AB 764, Campbell, 1983).
Because inflation has eroded their buying power since the
thresholds were adopted in 1983, several districts have
asked the Legislature to raise the limit on their
maintenance and service contracts. The Legislature has
allowed exemptions to these thresholds for three districts:
the East Bay Regional Park District and the Midpeninsula
Regional Open Space District (AB 584, Aroner, 1999), and
the Sonoma County Agricultural Preservation and Open Space
District (AB 953, Simitian, 2002). These districts'
general managers can enter into maintenance or service
contracts worth up to $25,000 without public bidding.
Marin County Open Space District (MCOSD) and Napa County
Regional Park and Open Space District (NCRPOSD) want to be
added to the list of regional park and open space districts
that can enter into contracts for up to $25,000 for
maintenance and services, or non-construction purposes,
SB 745 -- 5/6/14 -- Page 2
without the formal bid process.
Proposed Law
AB 745 authorizes the general manager of the MCOSD and
NCRPOSD with the approval of their respective boards, to
bind MCOSD and NCRPOSD, in accordance with board policy,
and to buy up to $25,000 of non-construction supplies,
materials, and labor without advertising for bids. The
general managers must report all expenditures to the board
of directors at the next regular meeting.
State Revenue Impact
No estimate.
Comments
1. Purpose of the bill . The formal bidding process can be
time consuming and costly due to contract preparation and
the need for additional staff and resources. Increasing
the amount that districts can spend on maintenance and
service projects without a formal bid process can
significantly reduce the time required for project
implementation and can save thousands of dollars annually.
The Legislature adopted the $10,000 limit more than thirty
years ago and the amount has not been adjusted to
inflation. AB 745 reflects current economic conditions and
allows the districts to carry out their mission in a more
cost-effective and efficient manner.
2. Accountability and efficiency . State law regulating
local spending attempts to balance the goals of
accountability and efficiency. Accountability asks public
officials to spend the public's money in full view:
inviting bids and awarding contracts to the lowest possible
bidder is an effective method of ensuring transparency for
the expenditures of public funds. While increasing the
limits on the amount for which districts may contract
SB 745 -- 5/6/14 -- Page 3
without the formal bid process allows for greater
efficiency in local government spending, it may also result
in a loss of accountability and transparency on the use of
public funds.
3. Doing it for all districts . There are eight open space
districts in California governed by the California Public
Resource Code that establish the limits on spending without
a formal bid process. Three of those districts have the
authority to spend $25,000 for non-construction purposes
without the formal bid process, and two others are asking
for that authority now. The committee may wish to consider
amending the bill to raise the limit to $25,000 for
spending on non-construction purposes without the formal
bid process for all eight regional park and open space
districts.
4. Gut and amend . As introduced, AB 745 contained
language relating to land use. The Committee never heard
that version of the bill. The January 6 amendments deleted
the bill's contents and inserted the language relating to
regional park and open space districts' powers.
Assembly Actions
Assembly Local Government Committee: 9-0
Assembly Floor:
75-0
Support and Opposition (5/8/14)
Support : Marin County Board of Supervisors; Napa County
Regional Park and Open Space District.
Opposition : Unknown.