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Home My WebLink AboutStaff Report 2412-3867CITY OF PALO ALTO CITY COUNCIL Special Meeting Monday, January 13, 2025 Council Chambers & Hybrid 5:30 PM Agenda Item 6.Approval of Contract Amendment Number 2 to Contract Number C23183770 with Townsend Public Affairs, Inc. to Extend Term for an Additional Year of Service (the second of four (4) annual options to renew) for State and Federal Legislative Advocacy and Grant Consulting and Compliance Services; CEQA Status - Not a Project City Council Staff Report From: City Manager Report Type: CONSENT CALENDAR Lead Department: City Manager Meeting Date: January 13, 2025 Report #:2412-3867 TITLE Approval of Contract Amendment Number 2 to Contract Number C23183770 with Townsend Public Affairs, Inc. to Extend Term for an Additional Year of Service (the second of four (4) annual options to renew) for State and Federal Legislative Advocacy and Grant Consulting and Compliance Services; CEQA Status - Not a Project RECOMMENDATION Staff recommends the City Council approve and authorize the City Manager or designee to execute Amendment No. 2 (Attachment A) to Contract #C23183770 with Townsend Public Affairs, Inc. (TPA) to extend term for an additional year of service and exercise the second of four (4) annual options to renew for State and Federal legislative advocacy services and grant consulting and compliance services. This amendment does not change the total contract not-to- exceed amount of $558,000 over a 5-year period. BACKGROUND On February 27, 2023, the City Council approved a contract with Townsend Public Affairs, Inc. TPA) after the completion of a request for proposals process and extensive City Council discussion1. The City Council approved the contract as a one (1) year contract with four (4) options to renew the contract for one year each. In addition to approving the contract, the City Council also established a time-limited Legislative Matters Ad Hoc Committee which met in 2023. On December 4, 2023, the City Council approved Amendment 1 with TPA2. The City Council approved the amendment as a one (1) year extension for State and Federal Legislative 1 February 27, 2023 City Council Meeting (Item 9): https://cityofpaloalto.primegov.com/Portal/Meeting?meetingTemplateId=1195 2 December 4, 2023 City Council Meeting (Item 7) https://cityofpaloalto.primegov.com/Portal/Meeting?meetingTemplateId=13062 Advocacy and grant consulting and compliance services after TPA’s first year of successful services. ANALYSIS TPA successfully carried forward the City’s legislative advocacy in this second year of the contract as well as expanding the City’s capacity regarding grant applications and management. Specifically, this year TPA: Provided more frequent updates to City Council and staff Helped advocate to the Housing and Community Development Department regarding Palo Alto Homekey Kept the City abreast of potential impacts to the City with pending legislation Drafted the updated legislative guidelines / legislative platform with staff Helped secure grant funding for the City and assisted staff with compliance requirements Other duties defined in the contract scope of work Per feedback from the City Council, in the previous amendment (Amendment #1), staff added text to the scope that TPA will, in legislative memos, provide written potential impacts information on select bills that the City Council will consider weighing in on at the State level. This was added to Amendment #1 and is still within the contract scope for Amendment #2. TPA has done this in their discussions with City Council in 2024 and plan to continue it into 2025. Accomplishments this year include successful advocacy for the City for Palo Alto Homekey timeline extension, advocacy to Caltrans related to El Camino Real as well as Newell Road Bridge, and assistance with grant applications and tracking throughout the year. FISCAL/RESOURCE IMPACT This contract has a not-to-exceed amount of $558,000 with an annual budgeted amount of $186,000 for State and Federal advocacy services and grant application and compliance services; no additional funding is requested in FY 2025. The compensation schedule in Exhibit C clearly delineates the expected funding in a year-by-year format associated with the City Council motion in February 2023. The compensation schedule clarifies how much money will be spent per year on the contract if the City Council exercises the option to renew each year. Staff will include funding of $186,000 in the development of the FY 2026 budget, similar to current funding allocations. Future funding is subject to City Council approval of the FY 2026 Adopted Operating Budget. The rate continues to be the per month retainer cost of $15,500 for all three service areas/tasks (State, Federal, and grants) with no additional fees. STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT During this current contract year, staff regularly met with TPA to discuss relevant State and Federal legislation and updates. Staff also met with TPA to discuss grant opportunities and compliance. These meetings included staff from a variety of City departments. ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW Approval of this contract is not a project under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), as it is an administrative activity that will not result in direct or indirect changes in the environment (CEQA Guidelines 15378(b)(5).). ATTACHMENTS Attachment A: Amendment #2 to Contract #C23183770 with Townsend Public Affairs APPROVED BY: Ed Shikada, City Manager Vers.: Aug. 5, 2019 Page 1 of 5 AMENDMENT NO. 2 TO CONTRACT NO. C23183770 BETWEEN THE CITY OF PALO ALTO AND TOWNSEND PUBLIC AFFAIRS, INC. This Amendment No. 2 (this “Amendment”) to Contract No. C23183770 (the “Contract” as defined below) is entered into as of December 30, 2024, by and between the CITY OF PALO ALTO, a California chartered municipal corporation (“CITY”), and TOWNSEND PUBLIC AFFAIRS, INC, a California Corporation, located at 1401 Dove Street, Ste. 330, Newport Beach, California, 92660 (“CONSULTANT”). CITY and CONSULTANT are referred to collectively as the “Parties” in this Amendment. R E C I T A L S A. The Contract (as defined below) was entered into by and between the Parties hereto for the provision of representing CITY in all federal and state legislative advocacy matters including grant seeking and funding advocacy, as detailed therein. B. The Parties entered into Amendment No.1 in order to update the scope of services, revise the compensation schedule, and extend the contract term by twelve months through December 31, 2024, without any additional cost to the CITY, as detailed therein. C. The Parties now wish to amend the Contract in order to (1) extend the contract term by an additional twelve-month period through December 31, 2025, and (2) revise the compensation schedule to reflect the extension, at no additional cost to the CITY, as detailed herein. NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the covenants, terms, conditions, and provisions of this Amendment, the Parties agree: SECTION 1. Definitions. The following definitions shall apply to this Amendment: a. Contract. The term “Contract” shall mean Contract No. C23183770 between CONSULTANT and CITY, dated January 1, 2023, as amended by: Amendment No.1, dated November 2, 2023 b. Other Terms. Capitalized terms used and not defined in this Amendment shall have the meanings assigned to such terms in the Contract. SECTION 2. Section 2, Entitled “TERM” of the Contract is hereby amended to read as follows: Docusign Envelope ID: 00996123-627A-439D-BD5A-122E64B46C0E Vers.: Aug. 5, 2019 Page 2 of 5 “The term of this Agreement shall be from the date of its full execution through December 31, 2025, with the option to extend for two (2) more periods of one (1) year each, unless terminated earlier pursuant to Section 19 (Termination) of this Agreement. CITY shall notify CONSULTANT of its intent to exercise its option to renew in writing no later than ninety (90) days before the end of the term of this Agreement.” SECTION 3. The following exhibit(s) to the Contract is/are hereby amended or added, as indicated below, to read as set forth in the attachment(s) to this Amendment, which is/are hereby incorporated in full into this Amendment and into the Contract by this reference: a. Exhibit “C” entitled “COMPENSATION, AMENDMENT NO. 2”, AMENDED, REPLACES PREVIOUS. SECTION 4. Legal Effect. Except as modified by this Amendment, all other provisions of the Contract, including any exhibits thereto, shall remain in full force and effect. SECTION 5. Incorporation of Recitals. The recitals set forth above are terms of this Amendment and are fully incorporated herein by this reference. (SIGNATURE BLOCK FOLLOWS ON THE NEXT PAGE.) Docusign Envelope ID: 00996123-627A-439D-BD5A-122E64B46C0E Vers.: Aug. 5, 2019 Page 3 of 5 SIGNATURES OF THE PARTIES IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the Parties have by their duly authorized representatives executed this Amendment effective as of the date first above written. CITY OF PALO ALTO City Manager APPROVED AS TO FORM: City Attorney or designee TOWNSEND PUBLIC AFFAIRS, INC. Officer 1 By: Name: Christopher Townsend Title: President Officer 2 By: Name: Christopher Townsend Title: Secretary Attachments: EXHIBIT C: “COMPENSATION, AMENDMENT NO. 2” (AMENDED, REPLACES PREVIOUS) Docusign Envelope ID: 00996123-627A-439D-BD5A-122E64B46C0E Vers.: Aug. 5, 2019 Page 4 of 5 EXHIBIT C COMPENSATION, AMENDMENT NO. 2 (AMENDED, REPLACES PREVIOUS) CITY agrees to compensate CONSULTANT for Services performed in accordance with the terms and conditions of this Agreement, and as set forth in the budget schedule below. Compensation shall be calculated based on the rate schedule attached as Exhibit C-1 up to the not to exceed budget amount for each task set forth below. CITY’s Project Manager may approve in writing the transfer of budget amounts between any of the tasks or categories listed below, provided that the total compensation for the Services, including any specified reimbursable expenses, and the total compensation for Additional Services (if any, per Section 4 of the Agreement) do not exceed the amounts set forth in Section 4 of this Agreement. CONSULTANT agrees to complete all Services, any specified reimbursable expenses, and Additional Services (if any, per Section 4), within this/these amount(s). Any work performed or expenses incurred for which payment would result in a total exceeding the maximum amount of compensation set forth in this Agreement shall be at no cost to the CITY. BUDGET SCHEDULE – Annually and Total TASK Year 1 (2023) Year 2 (2024) Year 3 (2025) Year 4 (2026 – If approved) Year 5 (2027 – If approved) NOT TO EXCEED AMOUNT Task 1 (Grant Consulting and Compliance Services) $48,000 ($4,000/mo) $48,000 $48,000 $48,000 $48,000 $240,000 Task 2 (Federal Legislative Advocacy Services) $72,000 ($6,000/mo) $72,000 $72,000 $72,000 $72,000 $360,000 Task 3 (State Legislative Advocacy Services) $114,000 ($9,500/mo) $114,000 $114,000 $114,000 $114,000 $570,000 Less: Discount for Bundled Cost Structure (Tasks 1, 2, and 3) ($48,000) ($4,000/mo) ($48,000) ($48,000) ($48,000) ($48,000) ($240,000.00) Sub-total for Services $186,000 $186,000 $186,000 $186,000 $186,000 $558,000.00 Reimbursable Expenses (if any) $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0.00 Docusign Envelope ID: 00996123-627A-439D-BD5A-122E64B46C0E Vers.: Aug. 5, 2019 Page 5 of 5 Total for Services and Reimbursable Expenses $186,000 $186,000 $186,000 $186,000 $186,000 $558,000.00 Additional Services (if any, per Section 4) $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0.00 Maximum Total Compensation $186,000 $186,000 $186,000 $186,000 $186,000 $558,000.00 REIMBURSABLE EXPENSES CONSULTANT’S ordinary business expenses, such as administrative, overhead, administrative support time/overtime, information systems, software and hardware, photocopying, telecommunications (telephone, internet), in-house printing, insurance and other ordinary business expenses, are included within the scope of payment for Services and are not reimbursable expenses hereunder. Reimbursable expenses, if any are specified as reimbursable under this section, will be reimbursed at actual cost. The expenses (by type, e.g. travel) for which CONSULTANT will be reimbursed are: NONE up to the not-to-exceed amount of: $0.00. Docusign Envelope ID: 00996123-627A-439D-BD5A-122E64B46C0E Certificate Of Completion Envelope Id: 00996123627A439DBD5A122E64B46C0E Status: Completed Subject: Complete with Docusign: FINAL C23183770 Townsend Amendment #2.pdf Source Envelope: Document Pages: 5 Signatures: 2 Envelope Originator: Certificate Pages: 2 Initials: 0 Alice Harrison AutoNav: Enabled EnvelopeId Stamping: Enabled Time Zone: (UTC-08:00) Pacific Time (US & Canada) 250 Hamilton Ave Palo Alto , CA 94301 Alice.Harrison@CityofPaloAlto.org IP Address: 71.204.184.225 Record Tracking Status: Original 12/13/2024 4:21:49 PM Holder: Alice Harrison Alice.Harrison@CityofPaloAlto.org Location: DocuSign Security Appliance Status: Connected Pool: StateLocal Storage Appliance Status: Connected Pool: City of Palo Alto Location: DocuSign Signer Events Signature Timestamp Christopher Townsend ctownsend@townsendpa.com President & Secretary Townsend Public Affairs, Inc. Security Level: Email, Account Authentication (None) Signature Adoption: Uploaded Signature Image Using IP Address: 72.219.129.141 Signed using mobile Sent: 12/13/2024 4:25:18 PM Viewed: 12/15/2024 1:53:33 AM Signed: 12/15/2024 1:53:55 AM Electronic Record and Signature Disclosure: Not Offered via DocuSign In Person Signer Events Signature Timestamp Editor Delivery Events Status Timestamp Agent Delivery Events Status Timestamp Intermediary Delivery Events Status Timestamp Certified Delivery Events Status Timestamp Carbon Copy Events Status Timestamp Amanda Conklin aconklin@townsendpa.com Business Manager Townsend Public Affairs, Inc. Security Level: Email, Account Authentication (None) Sent: 12/15/2024 1:53:56 AM Electronic Record and Signature Disclosure: Not Offered via DocuSign Ingrid Velasquez ingrid.velasquez@cityofpaloalto.org Administrative Assistant City of Palo Alto Security Level: Email, Account Authentication (None) Sent: 12/15/2024 1:53:57 AM Viewed: 12/16/2024 9:04:30 AM Electronic Record and Signature Disclosure: Not Offered via DocuSign Carbon Copy Events Status Timestamp Chantal Gaines chantal.gaines@cityofpaloalto.org Assistant to City Manager City of Palo Alto Security Level: Email, Account Authentication (None) Sent: 12/15/2024 1:53:58 AM Electronic Record and Signature Disclosure: Not Offered via DocuSign Witness Events Signature Timestamp Notary Events Signature Timestamp Envelope Summary Events Status Timestamps Envelope Sent Hashed/Encrypted 12/13/2024 4:25:18 PM Certified Delivered Security Checked 12/15/2024 1:53:33 AM Signing Complete Security Checked 12/15/2024 1:53:55 AM Completed Security Checked 12/15/2024 1:53:58 AM Payment Events Status Timestamps