To: Board of Supervisors
From: Alison McKee, County Librarian
Report Title: Purchase Order with Califa Group for the New York Times Subscription through June 30, 2026
☒Recommendation of the County Administrator ☐ Recommendation of Board Committee
RECOMMENDATIONS:
APPROVE and AUTHORIZE the Purchasing Agent to execute, on behalf of the County Librarian, a purchase order with Califa Group, subject to the terms of their New York Times Agreement, in an amount not to exceed $36,598 for the purchase of New York Times subscription, for the period July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2026.
FISCAL IMPACT:
100% Library Fund: 89% County; 11% Library Foundation of Contra Costa County.
BACKGROUND:
The Library offers patrons the New York Times Online All-Access. This product provides all regular newspaper content, all multimedia, Spanish and Mandarin Chinese versions of nytimes.com website along with Cooking, Games, The Athletic, and Wirecutter.
The terms and conditions include limitation of liability and indemnification language and was reviewed by County Counsel.
CONSEQUENCE OF NEGATIVE ACTION:
If the Purchase Order is not approved, the Contra Costa County Library will not be able to offer patrons access to one of the country’s most distinguished papers that includes breaking-news articles, blogs, videos, and interactive features along with historical editions, and more.