To: Board of Supervisors
From: Warren Lai, Public Works Director/Chief Engineer
Report Title: Approval of Small Business Enterprise Program Policy
?Recommendation of the County Administrator ? Recommendation of Board Committee
RECOMMENDATIONS:
ABOLISH the 1990s Outreach and 2006 eOutreach Programs, which were superseded by the County's Purchasing Policy, and APPROVE updates to the Small Business Enterprise Program as recommended by the Internal Operations Committee.
FISCAL IMPACT:
No fiscal impact.
BACKGROUND:
The County maintains policies and ordinances outlining requirements and thresholds for the procurement of materials, supplies, and services to assist County departments. Over the past 25+ years, the Board approved Small Business Enterprise (SBE) and Outreach Programs at various thresholds. In 2023, the Board approved a new Purchasing Policy and Procedures, which were promulgated to County departments by the County Administrator in a policy bulletin, and an increase to SBE Program thresholds.
The recommendations in this report and the Small Business Enterprise Program Policy reconcile the requirements of four distinct County purchasing programs:
* Small Business Enterprise Program (2000),
* Outreach Program (1990s),
* E-Outreach (2006),
* Purchasing Policy and Procedures (2023).
Small Business Enterprise Program History
The Board approved the SBE and Outreach Programs in the late 1990s and early 2000s. The Outreach Program requires broad outreach to SBEs for service contracts and purchasing of goods and supplies and applies to the following transactions:
1. Professional/Personal Services of $2,500 or more; and
2. Purchasing transactions for goods and supplies that exceed $10,000; and
3. Construction contracts that exceed $100,000.
The E-Outreach Program was approved by the Board in 2006 and requires an internet-based platform to be used to conduct outreach for purchases and contracts that meet specific thresholds. In 2012, a pre-award, two-step...
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