To: Board of Supervisors
From: Lewis Broschard, Chief, Contra Costa County Fire Protection District
Report Title: Service Contract with Civicorps for Wildfire Mitigation Services
☒Recommendation of the County Administrator ☐ Recommendation of Board Committee
RECOMMENDATIONS:
Acting as the governing board of the Contra Costa County Fire Protection District, APPROVE and AUTHORIZE the Fire Chief, or designee, to execute a contract amendment with Civicorps to increase the payment limit by $800,000 to a new payment limit of $960,000 and extend the term date through December 31, 2026, for the abatement of exterior fire hazards.
FISCAL IMPACT:
This is a 100% Measure X funded program.
BACKGROUND:
The Contra Costa County Fire Protection District (District) provides fuels management and wildfire mitigation services throughout the county. This includes community chipping days, evacuation route cleanup, Firewise strategic plan projects, removal of dead trees, shaded fuel breaks, vegetation management and fuel reduction, and exterior hazard control for low-income areas. The District tracks work orders and project locations via an online portal. The contractor is paid after submitting invoices with before-and-after photos, and staff perform quality control for work approval.
On January 1, 2025, the District entered into a one-year contract with Civicorps with a payment limit of $160,000. The goal was to engage multiple contractors for fuels management and wildfire mitigation work. The $160,000 limit was intended to cover approximately 70 days of contracted work in 2025. Because of Civicorps' hard work and dedication to project completion, they have exhausted the funds allocated under the current contract. The District requests Board approval to extend the contract for another year and increase the payment limit by $800,000. This will allow Civicorps to expand their handcrew to up to eight workers and one supervisor year-round.
The program has successfully mentored new handcrew workers, including young adults at the Pittsburg Civicorps location, while achieving excellent results in fuel management and wildfire mitigation.
CONSEQUENCE OF NEGATIVE ACTION:
If this action is not approved, the District will lack an additional service provider to handle fuels management and wildfire mitigation efforts after September 1, 2025. Since January 2025, two contractors have been completing work orders for the Contra Costa County Wildfire Mitigation Program.