HomeMy WebLinkAbout03.c. Amend agreement with Federal Advocates re federal grant frunding for the Refinery Recycled Water ProjectCentral Contra Costa Sanitary District 3
' BOARD OF DIRECTORS
POSITION PAPER
Board Meeting Date: January 23, 2014
Subject: AUTHORIZE THE GENERAL MANAGER TO AMEND AN EXISTING
AGREEMENT WITH FEDERAL ADVOCATES TO ADVOCATE FOR
FEDERAL GRANT FUNDING FOR THE REFINERY RECYCLED WATER
PROJECT, DISTRICT PROJECT 7300
Submitted By. Initiating DeptJDiv.:
Nathan Hodges, Provisional Senior Engineer Engineering /Environmental Services
REVIEWED AND RECOMMENDED FOR BOARD ACTION:
D. Gemmell — Environmental Services Division Manager
R. Bailey
Leneral Manager
ISSUE: Authorization from the Board of Directors is required for the General Manager
to amend an existing professional services agreement beyond staff authority limits.
RECOMMENDATION: Authorize the General Manager to amend an existing
Professional Services Agreement with Federal Advocates from $190,000 to $265,000
to continue advocacy efforts to obtain federal grant funding for the Refinery Recycled
Water Project, District Project 7300.
FINANCIAL IMPACTS: The additive cost of this amendment is $75,000.
ALTERNATIVES /CONSIDERATIONS: An alternative is to conduct this work with in-
house staff. However, this work requires specialized expertise, which is not available at
the District. A second alternative is to discontinue advocacy efforts, but this would
reduce the chances for obtaining federal grant funding assistance and is not
recommended.
BACKGROUND: The District has an agreement with the Washington D.C. -based
advocacy firm of Federal Advocates to assist in obtaining federal grant funding for the
Refinery Project. The focus of Federal Advocates' efforts has been on the inclusion of
the Refinery Project in the reauthorization of the Water Resources Development Act
(WRDA), which could provide grant funding for up to 75% of project costs. The cost of
the full scale refinery project (20 MGD of recycled water) is currently estimated to be
approximately $85 million, and WRDA could potentially provide a significant amount of
grant funding for this project.
Federal Advocates has been successful in helping the District navigate the legislative
process and encouraging federal legislators to consider the project for WRDA funding.
Other local agencies have been able to obtain large amounts of grant funding through
WRDA for their recycled water projects, such as the East Bay Municipal Utility District,
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POSITION PAPER
Board Meeting Date: January 23, 2014
subject: AUTHORIZE THE GENERAL MANAGER TO AMEND AN EXISTING
AGREEMENT WITH FEDERAL ADVOCATES TO ADVOCATE FOR
FEDERAL GRANT FUNDING FOR THE REFINERY RECYCLED WATER
PROJECT, DISTRICT PROJECT 7300
which previously obtained approximately $40 million in WRDA funding, which included
a programmatic authorization for their recycled water program.
With the potential of future nutrient removal requirements for the District's treatment
plant, the Refinery Project could be a way for the District to reduce its nutrient discharge
to Suisun Bay. If the District is successful in obtaining WRDA funding assistance, the
District's costs to comply with potential nutrient removal requirements could be
significantly reduced.
The District is currently at a critical milestone in the WRDA reauthorization process.
Both the Senate and House have passed WRDA bills. The conference meeting to
reconcile both versions of the WRDA bill is expected to be complete this spring. Shortly
thereafter, the District will know if the final legislative bill will contain any funding
possibilities for the Refinery Project. This contract amendment will provide funds to
continue District advocacy at the federal level assuming WRDA funding is possible. In
the event no funding is provided for in the final WRDA bill, there will be no need to
continue work with Federal Advocates and no further money will be spent on these
efforts. There is enough money on the existing agreement to continue work through
February 2014. This additional authorization for funding is being sought at this time to
continue advocacy through conferencing and also permit uninterrupted funding of
Federal Advocates in the event WRDA funding for the District is available.
The existing agreement with Federal Advocates was initiated in December 2010 and
will expire on January 31, 2014. Since the inception of this agreement, Federal
Advocates has sought funding authorization for the Refinery Recycled Water Project in
WRDA and Title 16. These advocacy efforts increase the likelihood of project
authorization and subsequently funding via the appropriations process. The current cost
ceiling for the agreement is $190,000. The cost ceiling was increased by the Board on
July 11, 2013 from $149,500 to $179,500, and by staff in December 2013 to $190,000
under staff's authority limit for contract amendments, which is 15% of the previous
Board authorized agreement amount. The agreement would be extended for an
additional fifteen months at a cost of $5,000 per month for a total budget increase of
$75,000.
COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION: The Enterprise Committee reviewed the status of
the Federal Advocacy contract at its meeting on December 9, 2013 and recommended
that these efforts continue. While the amount of the contract amendment was not
specifically discussed, the terms of the contract remain the same.
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POSITION PAPER
Board Meeting Date: January 23, 2014
Subject: AUTHORIZE THE GENERAL MANAGER TO AMEND AN EXISTING
AGREEMENT WITH FEDERAL ADVOCATES TO ADVOCATE FOR
FEDERAL GRANT FUNDING FOR THE REFINERY RECYCLED WATER
PROJECT, DISTRICT PROJECT 7300
RECOMMENDED BOARD ACTION: Authorize the General Manager to amend an
existing Professional Services Agreement with Federal Advocates from $190,000 to
$265,000 to continue advocacy efforts to obtain federal grant funding for the Refinery
Recycled Water Project, District Project 7300.
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