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AUTHORIZE A COOPERATIVE PURCHASE AGREEMENT WITH ROUTEWARE GLOBAL, INC. THROUGH SOURCEWELL FOR THE PURCHASE OF CLOUD-BASED SOFTWARE FOR COMPLIANCE TRACKING
recommended action
RECOMMENDATION
It is recommended that the City Council adopt a resolution to:
1. Approve findings pursuant to Stockton Municipal Code 3.68.070 in support of an exception to the competitive bidding process.
2. Authorize a cooperative purchase agreement with Sourcewell for the purchase of Cloud-Based Software for Compliance Tracking, Record Keeping, and Reporting, related to Senate Bill 1383, in the amount of $45,506 for implementation and service support fees through May 28, 2025.
3. Authorize the City Manager to exercise an option to extend the term by one year in the amount of $37,390, by written amendment.
It is also recommended that the City Manager be authorized to take appropriate and necessary actions to carry out the purpose and intent of the resolution.
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Summary
The Waste and Recycling Division of Public Works is responsible for submitting required annual reports to the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery (CalRecycle). Information is gathered from various sources and compiled for annual submittal requiring a great level of effort to track multiple programs and generator compliance. With the implementation of Senate Bill (SB) 1383 underway, new programs and responsibilities have introduced greater challenges to recordkeeping compliance.
The proposed software purchase, which is specifically designed for the management of solid waste programs in California, provides a solution to reporting mandates and centralizes records into one location.
The implementation fee and service through May 28, 2025, which is the termination date of the Cooperative Agreement, totals $45,506. The Cooperative Agreement may be extended by one year. The ongoing cost of maintaining records and producing reports is $37,390 annually.
DISCUSSION
Background
SB 1383 (Lara, Chapter 395, Statutes of 2016) establishes ambitious mandates to reduce short-lived climate pollutants. SB 1383 established a target to achieve a 50 percent reduction in the level of statewide organic waste disposal in landfills from the 2014 level by 2020, and the law establishes a 75 percent reduction by 2025. This law grants CalRecycle the regulatory authority to achieve the organic waste disposal reduction targets and establishes that not less than 20 percent of currently disposed edible food is recovered for human consumption by 2025. The regulations are extensive and require local jurisdictions to maintain records related to the following activities and programs:
• Compliance with organic waste collection services for residential and commercial customers
• Container contamination minimization
• Waivers and exemptions
• Education and outreach
• Franchise waste hauler program records
• Edible food recovery
• Procurement of recovered organic waste products
• Complaints
• Enforcement
Documents to support compliance must be maintained in an Implementation Record stored in a central location that must be made available to CalRecycle within 10 business days. Additionally, the City is required to submit an Electronic Annual Report (EAR) to CalRecycle which includes extensive data from multiple sources, including information related to the above-listed programs.
The EAR is a comprehensive report involving detailed waste generator counts, summaries about diversion programs, related tonnages, specialized waste streams (e.g., appliances, construction debris, electronic waste, tires, etc.), and residential, commercial, and multi-family recycling programs. Information is gathered from various sources and compiled for annual submittal requiring a great level of detail and effort to track multiple programs and generator compliance. A recordkeeping tool or “Program Tracker” modeled to fulfill CalRecycle requirements is desired. Routeware Global, Inc. (Routeware) possesses the sought-after technology platform designed specifically for municipal solid waste and recycling management.
The City received funding through CalRecycle’s SB 1383 Local Assistance Grant Program to assist with the costs of implementing and complying with SB 1383’s programmatic, enforcement, recordkeeping, and reporting requirements. The proposed software purchase is an allowable cost under the grant. The recommendation to purchase Program Tracker software will allow staff to maintain a central and robust tracking system for its commercial and multi-family recycling programs, SB 1383 program implementation, and EAR submittal. The software can aggregate multiple sources of data and will streamline annual reporting to CalRecycle, saving valuable staff time.
Present Situation
Currently, staff compiles data from multiple sources via spreadsheets and other documents to prepare reports and maintain records of its programs. Staff is not equipped with the automated tools designed to encompass all components of its programs in real time, especially the requirements concerning SB 1383 (e.g., route reviews, contamination monitoring, waivers, and enforcement). The ability to document inspections and track multiple components of the City’s required recycling programs in real-time and manage large volumes of data from multiple sources has become more important with the expansion of recycling laws. Recordkeeping and reporting are critical compliance elements of SB 1383.
Staff has evaluated other software programs to meet recycling mandates, compliance tracking, and recordkeeping. Staff did not find a software solution comparable to the cloud-based software offered by Routeware. The Program Tracker offered by Routeware is uniquely designed for the management of solid waste and recycling programs because it addresses California’s comprehensive reporting requirements and data centralization. Over 150 jurisdictions statewide use Routeware’s Program Tracker to manage their recycling programs. This highly desirable cloud-based program offers the functionality to track activities, compliance levels, and share real-time information with others.
The software includes streamlined dashboards with at-a-glance summaries including graphical representations of data that will provide staff with the status of multiple programs. The ease of at-a-glance information can be leveraged to plan for the next steps in meeting waste diversion goals and to establish targeted outreach. Access to real-time data will be instrumental in measuring progress and identifying areas for improvement.
Staff submitted a budget to CalRecycle that included software to support recordkeeping and reporting requirements. Public Works’ Waste and Recycling Division intends to use funding from the SB 1383 Local Assistance Grant Program to cover costs. In addition to a one-time software implementation fee of $5,000, the annual support fees are as follows:
Support Fees Description Annual Fee
Program Tracker Environmental Management $27,390
RST Data Import Prepaid $1,000 each franchise hauler, 4 per year $ 8,000
Open Market Data Surcharge Recurring $ 2,000
Costs are anticipated to be $45,506 through the Cooperative Agreement term date of May 28, 2025. It will take approximately 6 to 8 weeks to complete initial implementation, which includes staff training. Staff will collaborate with its franchise service haulers, Sunrise Sanitation, Inc. (Republic Services) and USA Waste of California, Inc. (Waste Management) to build the Program Tracker and receive data from the service haulers’ systems. Data imports from each franchise haulers’ system will occur quarterly. In addition, staff will be able to update records manually, as needed.
Findings
Pursuant to Stockton Municipal Code section 3.68.070, Council may approve findings which support an exception to the competitive bidding process. justify the purchase through a cooperative purchase agreement.
These findings include:
1. Sourcewell established a cooperative purchase agreement with Routeware to provide a contracting solution, for participating entities in the United States and Canada, for the purpose of providing Plastic Refuse and Recycling Containers with Related Technology Solutions, which includes the “Program Tracker”, a cloud-based product and service that will provide the City with an automated technology solution for its programmatic enforcement, recordkeeping, and reporting to meet SB 1383 compliance and assist with EAR submittals.
2. The bid specifications used by Sourcewell have been assessed by the Administrative Services Department’s Procurement Division as compatible with the City’s standards with regards to formal processes, lowest pricing, awarded contracts, and language allowing public agencies to avail of such process and pricing.
3. The Program Tracker cloud-based software is being used by more than 150 jurisdictions across California because the technology solution emulates CalRecycle’s reporting requirements and there are no other known technology solutions on the market that offer the full scope of services, features, and functionality specific to waste and recycling management.
FINANCIAL SUMMARY
There are sufficient funds available in SB 1383 Grant, Project No. WC23038, to cover the cost of this cooperative purchasing agreement.
There is no impact to the City’s General Fund or any other unrestricted fund as a result of taking the recommended action.