Agenda Item Over 50 Pages Can Be Viewed in Administration Agendaltem#: 3tl-1 PALM BEACH COUNTY BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY Meeting Date: July 19, 2011 [ X] Consent [ ] Regular [ ] Public Hearing Department: Legislative Affairs Submitted By: Administration Submitted For: Legislative Affairs I. EXECUTIVE BRIEF Motion and Title: Staff recommends motion to approve: two (2) 16-month contracts for Federal Lobbying for the period of July 2011 -October 2012 in the total amount of$120,000 as described below: a) a contract with Becker & Poliakoff in the amount of $60,000 and; b) a contract with Alcalde & Fay in the amount of $60,000 Summary: Palm Beach County posted RFP #11-033/SC for individuals and firms to respond to a request to provide federal lobbying services for Palm Beach County. The RFP allows for the County to enter into a contract with one or more firms for an initial 16-month period with the option for renewal ofup to three 12-month contracts. Nine firms responded to the RFP. The county was unable to negotiate a contract with the top scoring firm due to a conflict of interest. The County negotiated with the next two highest ranking firms and believes that dividing the contract between the two would best serve the needs of the County. The total amount for the two initial 16-month contracts is $120,000 which amounts to $7500 per month. This amount reflects a $500 per month reduction from the previous federal lobbying contract. Countywide (DW) Background and Justification: For the past 11 years, Palm Beach County has had a single federal lobbying contract with US Strategies. The firm provided good Washington D.C. representation for Palm Beach County over that period of time. During that time, the County did not go out for an RFP to explore new opportunities for federal representation. Earlier this year, the County posted an RFP for federal lobbying representation. On Friday, April 15, 2011, the Federal Lobbying Selection Committee met to review nine responses to RFP #11- 033/SC. After scoring the responses, the Selection Committee requested an oral follow up with the top four firms responding to the request. The cutoff was determined by selecting those firms that cumulatively scored over 200 points in the initial evaluation. The Selection Committee met again on Friday, April 22, 2011, for an oral presentation in which the top four respondents were given 20 minutes via a conference call to respond to five predetermined questions. (Continued on Page 3) Attachments: 1. Federal Contract for Becker & Poliakoff 2. Federal Contract for Alcalde & Fay 3. Budget Availability Statements (1,2, and 3) . Recommended by: 1~.AJ!i~ oJ•l•l Approved By: ~Date II. FISCAL IMPACT ANALYSIS A. Five Year Summary of Fiscal Impact: N/A Fiscal Years 20 10/11 20 11/12 20 12/13 20-- 20 Capital -- Expenditures Operating Costs 22 500 7 500 1 901000 1 -- External Revenues Program Income (County) -- In-Kind Match (County) -- NET FISCAL IMPACT 22 500 7 500 1 901000 1 -- No. ADDITIONAL FTE -- POSITIONS (Cumulative) Is Item Included In Current Budget? Yes X No Budget Account No.: Fund various Department Unit Object Reporting Category B. Recommended Sources of Funds/Summary of Fiscal Impact: FY2011 FY2012 FY2013 Airports 4100-120-1110-3101 $ 7,660 $30,600 $ 2,553 Palm Tran 1340-540-5160-3101 $ 7,660 $30,600 $ 2,553 Legislative Affairs 0001-645-6450-3101 $ 5,328 $21,312 $ 1,776 Water Utilities 4001-720-1110-3101 $ 1,852 $ 7,488 $ 618 C. Departmental Fiscal Review: III. REVIEW COMMENTS A. OFMB Fiscal and/or Contract Dev. and Control Comments: ·1 \ ri l \I ~ B. Legal Sufficiency: c-fh.t~ t{jh~ ~~fr <.vtV{ ttJV..r-- r4vr Lw ~v~ C. Other Department Review: Department Director REVISED 9/03 ADMFORMOl (THIS SUMMARY IS NOT TO BE USED AS A BASIS FOR PAYMENT.) Background and Justification: (Continued from Page I) The Selection Committee ranked the four respondents and Holland & Knight was the respondent that was cumulatively ranked as the top firm responding to the RFP. Becker & Poliakoff was ranked second and closely behind in the third ranking spot was Alcalde & Fay. The Committee felt Holland & Knight had a strong, professional team assigned to work on the Palm Beach County contract. Their expertise at the federal level positioned them to be effective advocates for Palm Beach County priorities in Washington DC. They had an innovative approach to identifying funding opportunities in federal agencies through their web based portal. There was a good balance of public and private sector clients that minimized potential conflicts of interest and a good ratio of consultants at the firm to balance the workload from our County and their other clients. The firm's local presence afforded an understanding of important issues on the County's legislative agenda. They have had a successful track record with their clients and put forth a good communication plan to report and track Palm Beach County's priorities. The Selection Committee unanimously recommended the award of the County's Federal Lobbying contract to Holland & Knight. In the following weeks as discussions began on the contract terms, it became evident that a conflict of interest existed as the City of West Palm Beach, who also retains Holland & Knight as their state and federal lobbying firm, objected to the firm representing both the City and the County. After several attempts to resolve those conflicts with the City, it became clear they would not be able to overcome the differences and the County had to proceed to the next highest ranked firms who responded to the RFP. The next highest ranked firm was Becker & Poliakoff followed by Alcalde & Fay. Only a couple of points separated the two firms in their rankings. As indicated in our selection committee notes, both firms were considered strong applicants and brought strengths that complemented one another. Becker & Poliakoff is a newer and growing firm in terms of Washington DC representation and has a smaller client base where Palm Beach County would receive a lot of individualized attention. Alcalde & Fay is a much larger firm with a lot of public sector clients and a strong track record of achieving results for their clients as well as a strong grant assistance program that would be an asset to the county's current grant writing program. Our rationale to contract with both firms is to take advantage of the complimentary skill sets and strengths that we believe will greatly benefit our lobbying efforts in Washington DC. We have since negotiated an equal contract with both firms at a rate of $45,000/year for a total of $90,000, approximately $6,000 less than our current federal lobbying contract. The agreement on this agenda item is for a contract of $60,000 for each firm per the RFP which allowed for an initial 16-month contract (a term that included the remaining balance of our previous federal contract plus 12 months for the next year) and allows for 12-month renewals of the contract over the next three years. Those contracts also stipulate the issues each firm will work on for the county both in a lead and in a shared responsibility role. This will enable us to more effectively evaluate our success on some of the County priority issues. CONTRACT FOR FEDERAL LOBBYIST SERVICES (Contract No. 11-033/SC) This Contract No. 11-033/SC is made as of this __ day of ________, 2011, by and between Palm Beach County, a political subdivision of the State of Florida, by and through its Board of Commissioners, hereinafter referred to as the COUNTY, and Becker & Poliakoff, P.A., 1155 F Street, Suite 150, Washington, D.C. 20004, a corporation authorized to do business in the State of Florida, hereinafter referred to as the CONSUL TANT. In consideration of the mutual promises contained herein, the COUNTY and the CONSUL TANT agree as follows: ARTICLE 1 - SERVICES The CONSULTANT's responsibility under this Contract is to provide federal lobbyist services to the Legislative Affairs Department in accordance with Exhibit A, Scope of Work/Services, and Exhibit B, CONSUL TANT's proposal dated April 6, 2011, both of which are attached hereto and incorporated herein. The COUNTY's representative/liaison during the performance of this Contract shall be Todd Bonlarron, Director, Legislative Affairs Department, telephone number (561) 355- 3451 or designee. The CONSULTANT's representative/liaison during the performance of this Contract shall be Omar Franco, telephone number (202) 731-3401. ARTICLE 2 - ORDER OF PRECEDENCE Conflicting provisions hereof, if any, shall prevail in the following descending order of precedence: (1) the provisions of the Contract, including Exhibit A, Scope of Work/Services; (2) the provisions of RFP No. 11-033/SC and all Amendments thereto, which are incorporated into and made a part of this Contract; (3) Exhibit B, CONSUL TANT's proposal dated March 30, 2011; (4) Exhibit C, Schedule of Payments; and (5) all other documents, if any, cited herein or incorporated herein by reference. ARTICLE 3 - SCHEDULE The CONSULTANT shall commence services on July 1, 2011, and complete all services by October 31, 2012, with three (3) one (1) year options for renewal at the sole discretion of the COUNTY. Reports and other items shall be delivered and/or completed in accordance with Exhibit A. 1 Attachment# -------I ARTICLE 4- PAYMENTS TO CONSULTANT A. The total amount to be paid by the COUNTY under this Contract for all services and materials shall not exceed a total contract amount of Sixty Thousand Dollars ($60,000.00). The CONSULTANT will bill the COUNTY on a monthly basis for equal monthly payments of Three Thousand Seven Hundred and Fifty Dollars ($3,750.00) for sixteen (16) months, for services rendered toward the completion of the Scope of Work/Services.