Budget and Government Efficiency Committee Meeting - July 10, 2024
STREAMING COPY IN PREPARATION — RECORDING AVAILABLE FROM THE ORIGINAL SOURCE
Budget and Government Efficiency Committee Meeting - July 10, 2024
The Budget and Government Efficiency Committee met on July 10, 2024, at 9:00 AM (17:00 UTC) to consider two main agenda items: the proposed Fiscal Year 2025 Statement of Budgetary Principles and a citywide security services agreement with Allied Universal. The committee also approved minutes from the previous meeting and heard public comments on non-agenda items.
Consent Calendar
- Unanimously approved (4-0) the committee minutes of June 20, 2024.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Non‑agenda public comment: Multiple speakers addressed national border security, federal politics, local smoke/vape shops, and stormwater/sales tax ballot measures. Speakers included Blair Beekman, Terry Ann Skelly, and others.
- Item 1 (Budgetary Principles): Three virtual speakers commented, including Joyce (District 3) who praised the consolidation of principles, a speaker (the original) who questioned oversight and enforcement, and Blair Beekman who emphasized accountability and communication.
- Item 2 (Security Services Agreement): 27 in‑person speaker slips and several virtual speakers. SEIU‑USW representatives (Samuel Kindle, Sebastian, Gerald Walker) urged approval to enable unionization for security officers. Jack Renshaw (Allied Universal regional VP) expressed privilege and commitment. Laborers Local 89 (Calvin Barrios) opposed the contract citing Allied’s history of wage violations, discriminatory hiring, and the 2021 MTS wrongful death incident. Tad Garabidian (Allied government specialist) responded that the violations were from an acquired company and that six cases over five years were addressed. Patty Rascone (CFAC) also recommended rejecting the bid. One final speaker urged due diligence.
Discussion Items
- Item 1: Proposed Fiscal Year 2025 Statement of Budgetary Principles — Presented by Lisa Byrne (IBA). The principles streamline previous resolutions, incorporate structural budget deficit elimination and 10 fundamental principles, and include revised language on performance measures and communication. Committee discussion included Vice Chair Moreno’s amendment to strengthen Section A4 requiring written notice and agenda placement for any reduction/delay/elimination of budgeted programs. Council President Pro Tem LaCava suggested language changes (e.g., “collaborate” instead of “cooperate”). The mayor’s office supported the amendment. The amended principles were forwarded to full council. Motion carried 4-0.
- Item 2: Citywide Security Services Agreement with Allied Universal — Presented by Claudia Barca (Purchasing & Contracting) and Vanessa Delgado. The contract is for one year with four one‑year options, not‑to‑exceed $50,510,000. First‑year cost is ~$8.2 million. Allied was the highest‑ranking proposer out of 17, selected via best value. Subcontractors include Six Maritime (armed security) and BSE Security Services (25% DBE/SLBE). Staff noted the existing contract expired in June, and departments currently use a quote‑based process with the prior vendor (Alstate). Committee members expressed concerns about Allied’s labor violation history and the 2021 MTS incident, as well as the late submission of the expiring contract. Vice Chair Moreno moved to reject staff’s recommendation and return the item to staff for rebid, directing sole source continuity if needed. Library Director Misty Jones testified that the current vendor is not providing adequate security coverage, creating safety risks. The motion passed 4-0.
Key Outcomes
- Approved unanimously (4-0): Committee minutes of June 20, 2024.
- Approved unanimously (4-0): Motion to forward the FY25 Statement of Budgetary Principles to full council with Vice Chair Moreno’s amendment (additional notice requirements for program reductions/delays/eliminations).
- Approved unanimously (4-0): Motion to reject the staff recommendation for the Allied Universal security services agreement and return the item to staff, with direction to pursue rebid and ensure continuation of services via sole source or alternative means. Staff to consider department feedback and pending labor standards policy (expected by end of calendar year 2024).
The next regularly scheduled meeting will be September 11, 2024, at 9:00 AM.
Meeting Transcript
Good morning, and uh welcome to the budget and government efficiency committee meeting of July tenth, twenty twenty-four. Our committee lays on Natalie Custler. We'll go over instructions for today's meeting. And the council administration will continue to make arrangements for the public to comment using the Zoom webinar platform. Members of the public who wish to provide virtual testimony must enter the virtual queue by raising their hands before the virtual queue closes. The queue will close when the last virtual speaker finishes speaking or five minutes after the in-person testimony ends, whichever occurs first. This will allow for better meeting management between the two platforms and ensure the committee is able to manage and conduct city business. Council President Pro Tem Lakava. Present. Councilmember Foster. Also attending the meeting today, Charles Matica and Lisa Byrne from the Independent Budget Analysts Office, Brett Bartolotta from the City Attorney's Office, Matt Bespee, Chief Financial Officer, and Matt Yagagin, Deputy Director of Policy for Mayor Todd Gloria. If you are in person, please complete a speaker slip located at the entrance of chambers and place it on top of the box indicated at the speaker's lecture and at the front of the room. Please do so in a timely manner to ensure proper meeting management. In-person testimony will conclude before virtual testimony begins. Members of the public can also join the webinar by computer, tablet, or smartphone by accessing the link, which is listed online in the preamble language of the agenda on the city's webpage. If you need to participate by telephone, you may dial 16692545252. The webinar ID is 1600 seven four two four zero six pound. This information is also available on the agenda and will appear on the screen during the public comment period for each agenda item. Chair. Thank you, Natalie, for reviewing those instructions for the benefit of the public. A quorum is now present. We will now dispense with the approval of the committee minutes of June 20th, 2024. Natalie, please uh proceed. Thank you, Chair. The public comment period for the past committee minutes is now open. And Chair, we have not received any speaker slips in chambers, but we do have one hand raised in the virtual queue. I'll begin the five minute timer. Each speaker will have one minute. The original, please begin your comments. You'll have one minute. Give us one moment. We're pausing your time. The original, please proceed. Can you hear me? Yes, please begin. Um, yeah, so uh it said I was talking about spending on the border dangers on the border, especially for children and human trafficked, which that's not even a sense, but um, it's you know, there's been over a trillion dollars spent on the border, and children are being trafficked on a massive level. Um, and it's happening through our border here in San Diego, and that needs to be something that is um addressed. It shouldn't just keep happening, and we shouldn't just keep throwing money at it uh because of uh what actually happens to these children once they are um brought across the border and basically sold off. Um don't make it, and it's just it's something that you know we shouldn't be spending our money on, but we should be acknowledging so that we can put an end to it instead of just acting like you know they just need to come across and just deserve to go to somebody they don't know and you know possibly become a sex slave or something like that. So we need to be facing these atrocities so that we can put an end to them and not perpetuate them. Thank you. And our next speaker on the past committee minutes is Blair Beekman. Hi, uh Blair Beekman here. Uh thanks for the meeting today. Nice to see everyone again. Uh I just wanted to quickly offer um from what uh uh the original just talked about. It sounds like uh you've broadened uh the meeting minutes process to include a bit a few more of her uh words on on subject matter uh for a meeting. Thank you for that. Uh that's a really nice work of uh uh city clerk staff and city government to be to be uh considering and and working on such uh uh goals and issues and uh keep up the good work. Thanks for listening uh to the community and uh good luck in the meeting today.
openpublica.com