11-13-17 Regular Meeting of the La Porte City Council

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REQUEST FOR CITY COUNCIL AGENDA ITEM Appropriation Agenda Date Requested: November 13, 2017 Source of Funds: Fund 001/002 Requested By: Shelley Wolny, Treasurer Account Number: Various Department: Finance Amount Budgeted: $122,556 Report: Resolution: Ordinance: Amount Requested: $87,480 Exhibits: Public Purchase Access Report Exhibits: Bid Tabulation Budgeted Item:YES NO Exhibits: Copy of bid from DataProse SUMMARY & RECOMMENDATION The City of La Porte currently leases a mail solution system through Pitney Bowes for $47,556 annually. Postage and printing costs for the utility bills add approximately $75,000 annually, bringing the cost of preparing the bills in-house to an estimated $122,556 a year. The contract expires in December, and staff has analyzed the benefits of continuing with the mail system or outsourcing the printing and mailing for the Utility Bills, which is the largest use of the mail system. Over the past year, staff has experienced multiple issues with the printing and stuffing of the bills. The process is time consuming, and the equipment is old and at the end of life. On many occasions, the machine was malfunctioning, which required staff to work overtime to manually fold thousands of bills to meet deadlines. The process is time consuming, and staff could be more effective if time was spent on customer service. After careful consideration, staff decided to pursue the option of outsourcing the function of printing and mailing bills. Bid #17027-Printing and Mailing of Utility Bills were opened and read on October 4, 2017, seven bids were thst & Sept 21, posted on Public Purchase and on received. Bids were advertised in the Bay Area Observer on Sept 14 the City’s website. Bids were calculated based on 13,500 cycle bills and 1,500 delinquent bills per month. Once tabulation was completed, the low bid, which met all specifications, was from DataProse for $87,480 annually. Not including personnel costs, the City would save approximately $35,000 a year. The contract is for a two (2) year period with an annual renewable option. Staff would like to note that the bill format and size will not change. Additionally, departments will still have the ability to insert flyers in to the water bills. Staff received four outstanding references for DataProse regarding quality, ability to meet deadlines, customer service, problem resolution and overall performance. Of special note, one City mentioned that DataProse went above and beyond during Hurricane Harvey to insert newsletters that were not received within the usual timeframe and still met deadlines for the City’s bills. Action Required by Council: Consider approval or other action authorizing the City Manager to enter into a contract with Data Prose for the printing and mailing of the City’s utility bills in the amount of $87,480. Approved for City Council Agenda Corby D. Alexander, City Manager Date