HomeMy WebLinkAboutAgenda_GGAF_04.23.2014Notice of Meeting for the
General Government and Finance Advisory Board
of the City of Georgetown
April 23, 2014 at 3:30 PM
at Georgetown Public Library Friends of the Library Room, located at 402 West 8th Street,
Georgetown, TX
The City of Georgetown is committed to compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). If you
require assistance in participating at a public meeting due to a disability, as defined under the ADA, reasonable
assistance, adaptations, or accommodations will be provided upon request. Please contact the City at least four
(4) days prior to the scheduled meeting date, at (512) 930-3652 or City Hall at 113 East 8th Street for
additional information; TTY users route through Relay Texas at 711.
Legislative Regular Agenda
A Review minutes from March 7, 2014 GGAF meeting - Danella Elliott, Executive Assistant
B Consideration and possible action for approval for the heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC)
annual maintenance contract with HVAC Masters in the estimated annual amount of $200,000 - Paul
Pausewang, Support Services Manager, and Micki Rundell, Chief Financial Officer
C Presentation and possible discussion regarding the Customer Care Initiative and the Customer
Information System (CIS) software opportunities - Leticia Zavala, Customer Care Manager and Micki
Rundell, Chief Financial Officer
D Discussion and possible action to recommend proposed changes to the City's Fiscal and Budgetary Policy
for 2014/15 - Micki Rundell, Chief Financial Officer
E Update on the process and schedule for selection of new independent auditors for the 2013/14 fiscal year
end audit - Susan Morgan, Finance Director
CERTIFICATE OF POSTING
I, Jessica Brettle, City Secretary for the City of Georgetown, Texas, do hereby certify that this Notice of
Meeting was posted at City Hall, 113 E. 8th Street, a place readily accessible to the general public at all times,
on the ______ day of __________________, 2014, at __________, and remained so posted for at least 72
continuous hours preceding the scheduled time of said meeting.
____________________________________
Jessica Brettle, City Secretary
City of Georgetown, Texas
SUBJECT:
Review minutes from March 7, 2014 GGAF meeting - Danella Elliott, Executive Assistant
ITEM SUMMARY:
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
No financial impact on this item.
SUBMITTED BY:
Danella Elliott
ATTACHMENTS:
Description Type
March 7, 2014 Minutes Cover Memo
Minutes of the Meeting of the
GENERAL GOVERNMENT AND FINANCE ADVISORY BOARD (GGAF)
City of Georgetown, Texas
March 7, 2014
The General Government and Finance Advisory Board met at 2:00 p.m. on Friday, March 7, 2014 in the
Georgetown City Hall Main Floor Conference Room, located at 113 East 8th Street, Georgetown, Texas.
MEMBERS PRESENT: Steve Fought, Chair, Tommy Gonzalez, Joe Pondrom, Keith Brainard, Ralph Mason
MEMBERS ABSENT: None
STAFF PRESENT: Micki Rundell, Susan Morgan, Leticia Zavala, James Davis, Mike Peters, Bridget
Chapman, Lindsay Daniell, Jodi Levie, Jerry McMillon
A copy of these minutes, containing detailed information on the items listed below will be available in the Finance
and Administration Office, located at 113 East 8th Street, Georgetown, TX and can be found online at
http://agendas.georgetown.org/
Executive Session
In compliance with the Open Meetings Act, Chapter 551, Government Code, Vernon’s Texas Codes, Annotated, the
items listed below will be discussed in closed session and are subject to action in the regular session that follows.
Regular Session – Called to order at 2:00 p.m.
The GGAF Board may, at any time, recess the Regular Session to convene an Executive Session at the request of the
Chair of the GGAF Committee for any purpose authorized by the Open Meetings Act, Texas Government Code
Chapter 551.)
Public Wishing to Address Council
On a subject that is posted on this agenda: Please fill out a speaker registration form. Clearly print your name and
the letter of the item on which you wish to speak and present it to the Chair or Board Liaison, preferably prior to the
start of the meeting. You will be called forward to speak when the Board considers that item.
On a subject not posted on the agenda: Persons may add an item to a future Board agenda by contacting the Liaison
prior to the creation of the agenda for the following meeting, with the subject matter of the topic they would like to
address and their name. The Board Liaison can be reached at 512-930-3676 or by email at
danella.elliott@georgetown.org
Statutory Consent Agenda
The Statutory Consent Agenda includes non-controversial and routine items that Board may act on with one single
vote. A board member may pull any item from the Consent Agenda in order that the Board discuss and act upon it
individually as part of the Regular Agenda.
Legislative Regular Agenda
Steve Fought, Chair, introduced Ralph Mason, the newest GGAF Citizen Member. Mr. Mason told a little
about himself and everyone welcomed him to the committee.
A. Review minutes from the March 7, 2014 GGAF Meeting - Danella Elliott, Executive Assistant
The minutes were unanimously approved.
B. Review and discussion of the Comprehensive Annual Financial Report and results of the audit for Fiscal
Year Ended, September 30, 2013 – Micki Rundell, Chief Financial Officer, Susan Morgan, CPA, Finance
Director and Lisa Haines, Controller
Susan Morgan gave a presentation/overview of the results of the City’s Comprehensive Annual Financial
Report (CAFR) for the Fiscal Year Ended September 30, 2013.
Susan introduced Jerry McMillon, CPA, the City’s external Auditor, with the firm of CliftonlLarsonAllen, LLP.
He discussed the results of the auditors’ independent audit of the CAFR, compliance with auditing standards,
testing over internal controls and fraud risk assessment and conduct required communication under auditing
standards with the committee. Mr. McMillon noted that there were no issues and the City received a clean
opinion in all aspects. Mr. Brainard asked if he had any cause or concern in any areas; he replied “no”.
The committee will be asked to take action to recommend that Council accept the September 30, 2013 CAFR at
the March 11, 2014 regular council meeting.
Unanimously approved.
C. Consideration and possible action to approve the renewal of printer and Multi Function Printer (MFP)
maintenance contracts through TLC Office Systems for $66,960.96 – James Davis, IT Operations
Manager
James Davis noted that he is requesting renewal of merged maintenance contracts for network printers and
Multi Function Printer devices for a period of one year. Originally printer and MFP maintenance contracts were
separated between IT and Facilities. IT is now handling both maintenance contracts and merging them into a
single contract. This reduces administrative resources required to manage and maintain two separate contracts.
The contracts are tied to the total life of the machines, which currently is a six-year useful life for the MFPs. IT
will continue monitor accordingly.
TLC Office Systems is a Texas Department of Information Resources (DIR) vendor. This renewal was
budgeted as part of the FY 2014 budget process. Expenses will be recorded in account 570-5-0641-51-341
Unanimously approved.
D. Discussion and possible recommendation to renew a contract for utility bill printing and mailing services
with Dataprose, and approve funding at an annual cost of $220,000 – Leticia Zavala, Customer Care
Manager and Micki Rundell, Chief Financial Officer
Leticia explained that the City has traditionally used an inter-local agreement with the City of Plano to benefit
from volume pricing and their Request for Proposal (RFP) process to award the utility bill printing and mailing
service contract. The City has had much success with the City of Plano’s vendor, Dataprose, and would like to
continue utilizing their services. The City of Plano was able to secure a lower contract price due to their
monthly volume which exceeds 100,000 bills per month. Plano’s new contract is effective February 2014 and
the City is eligible for the new rates. The rates secured by Plano are less than the rates the City could secure on
their own without incurring the cost of preparing and releasing a RFP.
Individually, the City of Georgetown processes and mails 28,000 – 30,000 bills (including late notices) per
month. With the inclusion of the Chisholm Trail Special Utility District (CTSUD) customers, the number will
increase to between 36,000 – 38,000 bills (including late notices) per month.
Our goal is to continue to provide and market an email option for customer bill presentment. This option was
released in June 2012 and has grown to include 3,100 participants or 11% of our customer base. This option
allows us to mitigate the rising cost of postage by eliminating the postage for that segment of the customer base.
With the new City of Plano pricing, we will pay around $0.50 per bill which is a decrease from last year’s cost
of $0.53 per bill. The printing and insertion costs will average $0.10 and the postage costs will average $0.40.
Eighty percent (80%) of the estimated annual contract cost of $220,000 is related to postage expense and
equates to $176,000. The total cost for bill printing and insertion is $44,000.
The total appropriation requested for this year is $220,000 and is calculated as follows:
Customer Care: (30,000 (bills/month) x .50 (rate) x 12 (months)) = $180,000
CTSUD: ( 8,000 (bills/month) x .50 (rate) x 10 (months)) = $ 40,000
This Customer Care expense of $180,000 is funded in the 2013-2014 Customer Care budget, under Contracts
and Leases GL#540-5-0321-51-310 in the Joint Services Fund. The CTSUD portion of $40,000 will be
reimbursed by CTSUD.
Unanimously approved
E. Discussion and possible recommendation to authorize payment of fees to Tyler Technologies for online
web account management and payment processing in the amount of $84,500 – Leticia Zavala, Customer
Care Manager and Micki Rundell, Chief Financial Officer
Leticia noted that Insite is the City’s online account management and payment processing application that
allows customers to manage their utility and municipal court accounts via our website. Real time account data
provides customers with instant access to accurate billing and account information that is automatically
integrated with our existing Incode Customer Information System (CIS) software. Customers have the ability to
access and pay their bill online 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, giving them the ability to manage their account
on their own schedule. Benefits to the City include increased collection rates, improved productivity, and
increased efficiency through integrated automation with our existing software.
Customer Care processes approximately 26,800 total payments per month and web payments account for 15%
of the total processed. We received approximately 4,000 payments per month through the website in 2013, up
from about 3,700 per month the prior year. With the inclusion of the Chisholm Trail Special Utility District
(CTSUD) customers, the number will increase by 1,000 per month based on their payment history. A basis of
5,000 payments per month will be used for the calculation.
The above cost includes web publishing fees, customer inquiry fees, and transaction fees, broken down in the
schedule below:
Web Publishing / Municipal Court $ 900
Customer Inquiry / Municipal Court $ 900
Web Publishing / Customer Care $ 600
Customer Inquiry / Customer Care $ 9,600
Transaction Fees / Customer Care $ 60,000 (4,000/month X 12 X $1.25)
Transaction Fees / CTSUD $ 12,500 (1,000/month X 10 X $1.25)
$ 84,500
The Web Publishing fees and the Customer Inquiry fees are a fixed annual cost. The transaction fees are
$1.25 each and based on the number of payments taken through the website.
The total cost for this service is $84,500. The portion allocated to Customer Care is $72,000 and equates to
0.5% of the total online utility revenue collected through the website in 2013. It is funded in the 2013-2014
Customer Care budget line item #540-5-0338-51-340 in the Joint Services Fund. The CTSUD portion of
$12,500 will be reimbursed by CTSUD.
F. Discussion and possible action to set meeting times and location for the monthly meetings of the General
Government and Finance Advisory Board – Steve Fought, GGAF Chair
The committee wanted to revisit the times/location for the monthly GGAF meetings to ensure it is convenient
for the current committee members. Steve asked Danella and Micki to find a location that was easily accessible
to the public in case they wanted to attend the GGAF Meetings, and there would be a “standard” location that
was predictable for every meeting. The Committee prefers the meetings to be held in the Public Library, which
is accessible and parking is ample.
The committee decided that any time from 2:00 pm and later would be ideal to hold the meetings.
Danella and Micki will try to get the future GGAF meetings scheduled at the Library during the preferred time
frame.
Unanimously approved.
G. Discussion and possible action to recommend soliciting new independent auditors for the 2013/14 fiscal
year end audit – Micki Rundell, Chief Financial Officer
Staff recommends that the GGAF Subcommittee direct staff to solicit proposals from qualified firms of certified
public accountants to audit the City of Georgetown’s financial statements for 3 years beginning with the fiscal
year ending September 30, 2014, with the option of auditing the City of Georgetown’s financial statements for
up to two subsequent fiscal years. The expected timeline is as follows:
Request for qualifications issued March 12, 2014
Due date for proposals April 11, 2014
Presentations/interviews April 30, 2014 – regular GGAF meeting
Council selection of audit firm May 13, 2014
The RFQ’s will follow best practices as outlined by the Government Finance Officers Association, and as
professional services, will be focused on best qualifications, not pricing.
The City of Georgetown currently contracts with CliftonLarsonAllen, LLP to provide independent financial
audit services for the City. Under the current contract and City Fiscal and Budgetary policy, the City has the
ability to renew one additional year. However, due to service issues over the past two fiscal year audit periods,
staff recommends that Council not renew and pursue other auditors.
The GGAF Committee agreed with this proposal, and Steve asked that Keith Brainard, Tommy Gonzalez and
Ralph Mason be on the selection committee.
Unanimously approved.
Adjournment
The meeting was adjourned at 3:30 pm.
_____________________________________
Board Chair
City of Georgetown, Texas
SUBJECT:
Consideration and possible action for approval for the heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC)
annual maintenance contract with HVAC Masters in the estimated annual amount of $200,000 - Paul
Pausewang, Support Services Manager, and Micki Rundell, Chief Financial Officer
ITEM SUMMARY:
Bids were solicited for HVAC maintenance services, and an award made to the best value contractor,
HVAC Masters. The term of the contract will be from the date of agreement for a two (2) consecutive
years with the option to renew for three (3) additional one year terms.
The bid comparison was made based on semi-annual inspections of each HVAC system using a
predetermined item checklist, monthly service charges for filter replacements and monthly inspections of
the Data Center. Additionally, an hourly rate was requested for repair calls and a total was calculated
based a total of 1900 hours of service. The 1900 hours of service was the estimated repair time used for
the previous twelve month period. This bid also requires a percentage markup quote for material costs so
that the lowest price for equipment budgeted for replacement in the internal service fund can be
determined.
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
The estimated annual amount for HVAC maintenance for all City facilities $200,000 and is funded in the
Facilities Internal Service Fund (500-5-0350-51-523).
SUBMITTED BY:
Paul Pausewang, Support Services Manager and Micki Rundell, CFO
ATTACHMENTS:
Description Type
Bid Tabulation Cover Memo
Best Value Cover Memo
Bid opening - March 31, 2014
HVACMasters only at attendee at mandatory pre-bid on 3/21/14 and only responding vendor
HVAC Masters
ITEM DESCRIPTION PER HR TOTAL
1 Labor rate for Licensed “Class A” $55.00
Texas Air Conditioning & Refrigeration
2 Overtime rate for Licensed “Class A” $82.50
Texas Air Conditioning & Refrigeration
3 Weekend rate for Licensed “Class A” $82.50
Texas Air Conditioning & Refrigeration
4 Holiday rate for Licensed “Class A” $82.50
Texas Air Conditioning & Refrigeration
5 Labor rate for EPA Certification $55.00
Type 2 or Universal Type 2 or 3
6 Overtime rate for EPA Certification $82.50
Type 2 or Universal Type 2 or 3
7 Weekend rate for EPA Certification $82.50
Type 2 or Universal Type 2 or 3
8 Holiday Rate for EPA Certification $82.50
Type 2 or Universal Type 2 or 3
9 Labor rate for Helper $45.00
10 Overtime rate for Helper $67.50
11 Weekend rate for Helper $67.50
12 Holiday rate for Helper $67.50
13 Average Per Hour Rate for Items 1 – 12 $71.05
14 $71.05 avg per hr. rate X estimated 1,900 hours =$134,995.00
ITEM DESCRIPTION QTY UNIT TOTAL
15 Monthly charge for filter change 12 $4,903.00 $58,836.00
16 Semi-annual preventative maintenance inspection (Exhibit C) 2 $7,260.00 $14,520.00
17 Monthly inspection for Data Center 12 $440.00 $5,280.00
18 Percentage markup applied to actual materials costs
Based on estimate of $20,000 + percentage markup over cost 35%$27,000.00
19 ESTIMATED GRAND TOTAL (total items 14-18)$240,631.00
HVACMasters was the only bidder
No Bid - Johnson Supply
No Bid - Avantt Services (as did not attend mandatory pre-bid)
Invited Suppliers 59 invited suppliers
Bid 201416
City of Georgetown
HVAC SYSTEM REPAIR , MAINTENANCE, INSTALLATION & AIR DUCT CLEANING AND FILTER
CHANGEOUT*
*Contract Term - 2 year initial term with option to renew for 3 additional one year periods
Bid 201416
City of Georgetown
Bid Tabulation
Bid opening - March 31, 2014
HVACMasters only at attendee at mandatory pre-bid on 3/21/14 and only responding vendor HVAC Masters
ITEM DESCRIPTION PER HR TOTAL
1 Labor rate for Licensed “Class A” $55.00
Texas Air Conditioning & Refrigeration
2 Overtime rate for Licensed “Class A” $82.50
Texas Air Conditioning & Refrigeration
3 Weekend rate for Licensed “Class A” $82.50
Texas Air Conditioning & Refrigeration
4 Holiday rate for Licensed “Class A” $82.50
Texas Air Conditioning & Refrigeration
5 Labor rate for EPA Certification $55.00
Type 2 or Universal Type 2 or 3
6 Overtime rate for EPA Certification $82.50
Type 2 or Universal Type 2 or 3
7 Weekend rate for EPA Certification $82.50
Type 2 or Universal Type 2 or 3
8 Holiday Rate for EPA Certification $82.50
Type 2 or Universal Type 2 or 3
9 Labor rate for Helper $45.00
10 Overtime rate for Helper $67.50
11 Weekend rate for Helper $67.50
12 Holiday rate for Helper $67.50
13 Average Per Hour Rate for Items 1 – 12 $71.05
14 $71.05 avg per hr. rate X estimated 1,900 hours =$134,995.00
ITEM DESCRIPTION QTY UNIT
15 Monthly charge for filter change 12 $4,903.00 $58,836.00
16 Semi-annual preventative maintenance inspection (Exhibit C) 2 $7,260.00 $14,520.00
17 Monthly inspection for Data Center 12 $440.00 $5,280.00
18 Percentage markup applied to actual materials costs
Based on estimate of $20,000 + percentage markup over cost 35%$27,000.00
19 ESTIMATED GRAND TOTAL (total items 14-18)$240,631.00
HVACMasters was the only bidder
No Bid - Johnson Supply
No Bid - Avantt Services (as did not attend mandatory pre-bid)
Invited Suppliers 59 invited suppliers
Pricing Answers/Notes Points Recd `
Total estimated pricing - $240,631.00 50
Cost Plus Percentage Markup - 35%
Note: Cannot calculate best value for pricing as only had one bidder
Business History and Experience
Number of years Company has been in the HVAC business 6 5
Number of organizations/businesses company has performed HVAC
service 135 5
Number of years the Company has done business with COG 5 5
Business & Credit References - total of 5 Ref (3 business
l credit and 1 banking)20
Georgetown ISD - business
Florence ISD- business
Heart of Texas Pizza - business
Trane - credit reference
Business Bank of Texas - banking reference
Degreets and Certifications - 9 certifications included 10 10
Number of certified employees assigned to COG account (ful time)7 5
Total Points 100
Checklist - all requested information provided
Summary of Qualifications
Project Mgr. Name and telephone #, email address
Certificates/License applicable
Completed & Signed Bid Summary form
Completed Best Value Form
Completed Reference Sheets
Proof of Insurance/Insurance Affidavit - Current w/COG as additional insured
Addendum acknowledgement - signed and returned with bid packet
Also provided as additional information:
Independent Auditor's review report
HVACMasters Balance Sheet as of 12/31/13
Income Statement Provided
Financials
HVAC BEST VALUE EVALATION
Reference 1 Reference 2 - Reference 3 -
Georgetown Independent School District Florence Ind School District Heart of Texas Pizza
Quality of contractor’s HVAC work including: left message 4/8/14 - no response as of 4/14/14 left message 4/8/14 - no response as of 4/14/14
Quality of work of maintenance repairs good
Quality of work on new installations not applicable
Experience level high
Always has proper equipment to carry out the job yes
Always have the proper supplies for completing the job yes
Overall Customer Service
Follow-up yes
Keeping Customer Informed yes
Responsiveness yes
Accurate invoicing yes
Timely invoicing of customer yes
Reference 1
Commercial Credit Reference Questions Trane
Years doing business with Bidder?
Vendor in Good Standing?
On time payments?
Late Payments?
Credit holds?
Banking Reference Reference 1
Business Bank of Texas
letter received from VP T.D. Winters
positive feedback
business with Bank of Texas for 3 years
recommendation rec'd
per Ed Lette - business in good standing
No late payment or Credit holds
Banked with Bank of TX since 2001
extended credit has been handled properly
City of Georgetown, Texas
SUBJECT:
Presentation and possible discussion regarding the Customer Care Initiative and the Customer Information
System (CIS) software opportunities - Leticia Zavala, Customer Care Manager and Micki Rundell, Chief
Financial Officer
ITEM SUMMARY:
A Customer Care overview and update will be presented. It will include discussion of the evolution from
a billing only environment (Utility Office) into a full service Customer Care Center providing customer
information and interaction along with enhanced billing options.
Technical challenges with the current Customer Information System (CIS) software will also be presented
with plans for future replacement. Ways to leverage the new system capabilities to allow GUS to meet
future expansion goals will also be discussed.
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
No financial impact for this item.
SUBMITTED BY:
Leticia Zavala, Customer Care Manager and Micki Rundell, CFO
ATTACHMENTS:
Description Type
Presentation Cover Memo
4/18/2014
1
Customer Care Initiative &
Customer Information System (CIS)
Software Opportunities
GGAF Board Meeting
April 23, 2014
Evolution to Customer Care
• In 2009, City was at a crossroad
Establishing Citywide Software (IT) Master Plan
End of life replacement for Utility Automated Meter
Reading (AMR) system
Evaluating Customer Information System (CIS)
capabilities for post AMR implementation
• Change was propelling us to “think outside the
box” to meet future demands
Potential to leverage existing structure in Utility Office to
provide enhanced customer service
Now viable opportunity
4/18/2014
2
Evolution to Customer Care
• Utility Office Review
– Pivotal function could be leveraged to provide
issue resolution in one place
• Already providing “meter to cash” services
– Philosophy shifting from being “order takers” into
becoming “information managers”
• “Point of contact” for meter replacement project
– Evolving into a Customer Care environment
• Applying lessons learned during the meter
replacement project
Evolution to Customer Care
• Automated Meter Reading (AMR)
Replacement Project
Replaced 45,000 meters, impacting every customer
on the system
Provided systematic communication
• Neighborhood specific
• Coordination with Field, Office, & Installation staff
Customer Care served as the “front line” for
• Customer communication on the project
• Customer issue resolution with installation vendor and
field operations
4/18/2014
3
Customer Care Focus
Enhance Customer interactions and build
Customer relationships
– Set behavior based standards
• Worked with outside consultant to identify,
develop, & implement desired behaviors
– Soft skill development training
• Communication, Listening, Flexibility, Initiative,
Professionalism, & Task Orientation
Centralize utility related calls into Call
Center
– Control Center
– Permitting
Customer Care Focus
Standardize customer communications
– Email templates that communicate day-to day
business activities
• New connects, draft authorizations, New service, etc.
– Telephone scripting
• “Thank you for calling the City of Georgetown, my name is..”
– Integrating phone system call flows
• Providing one path for customer entry
– Utility Bill modifications
•eStatements, Statement billing, enhancing information
on utility bills (meter size, rate tiers, etc.)
4/18/2014
4
Customer Care Focus
Offer additional Self-Serve options to
Customers
– Automated bill payment via phone system
– Usage data availability via web portal (GUARD)
– Capability to view prior bills online
Actively communicate available programs
– AquaMessenger
– Low Income Discounts
– Irrigation audits
– Good Neighbor Fund
Incorporate Marketing & Public Relations
– Education & Awareness Advertising Campaigns
– Develop & Implement “Welcome Brochure”
– Integrate Social Media
• Planned outages; Conservation Tips; Programs &
Promotions
Leverage Customer Care structure to provide
customer service and billing services to
surrounding communities
•CTSUD
Customer Care Focus - Future
4/18/2014
5
Utility Office
Customer Care
initiative
Customer
Experience
Evolution Process
Basic “Meter to
Cash” Services:
•Usage Data collection
•Usage Data validation
•Bill presentment
•Payment processing
•Credit & collection
services
Added Service Options:
•Call center environment
•Revised organizational structure
•eStatements & Statement billing
•Web portal
•Reengineered phone system
and menu options
•Standardized customer
communications (email
templates, statements, etc.)
Enhanced
Customer
Interactions
CIS/CRM
software
acquisition Marketing
& Public
Relations
Facility
Remodel
Multiple
product
offerings
Multiple
rate
options
Social
Media
Data
analytics
Technical Challenges with Current
Customer Information System
(CIS) Software
What Next?
4/18/2014
6
Customer Information System (CIS)
• Purchased current system in 1994
Less than 10,000 customers when implemented
Now at 36,000 w/CTSUD management contract
• Major system upgrade in 2001
• Current system is “COBAL” based
Difficult to integrate with other software systems
Incapable of Time of Use (TOU) Rate Pricing
Inflexible to modify – “Legacy System”
Odyssey 2010
2009 – Released Request for Proposal (RFP)
to replace CIS system
• 4 Responses
– 1 - Tier 1 – SAP
• Eliminated due to costs (Approximately $8M) and
complexity
– 3 – Tier 2 – All Harris products
• Costs estimated between $2.5M and $3.5M
• Narrowed selection to 2 finalists
4/18/2014
7
Odyssey 2010
• Conducted “site visits” - July 2010
– Team of 6 different perspectives (GUS & Finance)
– Implementation sites didn’t look like software demo’s
– Software was not integrated - processes were silo’s
• Could NOT make business case to select
either finalist
CONCLUSION: 2010 market did not have
solution for City’s long term software
needs!
Tier 1 Solutions Provide…
• Cutting edge technology to meet the needs
of an integrated solution
– Takes best advantage of AMI investment
– Provides tools necessary for CSRs in meeting
customer care goals
• Broadens customer care opportunities
– Integrates to Enterprise Asset Management
system and other key systems
– Provides analytic tools to determine trend
analysis
• Tier 1 Venders…. SAP and Oracle
4/18/2014
8
CIS Market – 5 Years Later
Tier 1 vendors pushing into new smaller
markets
Vendors see profitability of partnering with
utilities for expanded services
Tier 1 systems that were cost prohibitive are
now within reach
– Offering alternative software acquisition models
• More cost effective for smaller utilities
– Offering software as a “service” rather than a
“equipment” purchase
WHY ORACLE?
• Staff has evaluated software via demos over
the past 2 years
• Leading edge provider of CIS/CRM services
– Easily integrates into other City systems
• Larger customer base
– Larger & more sophisticated organizations
• More intuitive in providing CSR available
information from other systems to resolve
Customer issues
4/18/2014
9
ORACLE - Tier 1 Solution
• Price point…. WAY more than the City
wants to spend as a traditional “license”
purchase
• BUT… what if the City could get the features
it needs on a per customer “rental” basis?
• Utilize creative funding opportunities
– Leveraging partnership with Westin Engineering
• Westin has developed a model that offers Oracle
services on a “per customer” cost
• Hosted solution
Oracle Partnership Solution
• Westin Engineering
– Owns Oracle licenses
• Cincinnati Water is 1
st customer
• Hosted Solution
– Manages servers in the “cloud”
• City pays for implementation/conversion of
existing system
– Consultants needed to implement the Oracle
software
• Estimated costs up to $4M to $5M
4/18/2014
10
Next Steps:
Over the next 3 months:
• Staff to attend CS Week in San Antonio to
further research this option
• Further refine customer costs and operational
“hosted” model
• Site visits and reference checks
Fall 2014:
• Contract & cost of service approvals to
Boards & City Council
January 2015 – Begin software
implementation
Questions?
City of Georgetown, Texas
SUBJECT:
Discussion and possible action to recommend proposed changes to the City's Fiscal and Budgetary Policy
for 2014/15 - Micki Rundell, Chief Financial Officer
ITEM SUMMARY:
This item is to review the proposed changes to the Fiscal and Budgetary Policy for the upcoming budget
and to gather feedback on various proposed changes. Proposed amendments include:
Page 2 – Update wording to clarify that this policy applies to all City entities
Page 6 – The mid-year update wording is deleted because this information is provided to Council through
City Manager updates, quarterly reports and other communications
Page 9 – Updates the appropriate title and clarifies ROI charges for water and sewer customers outside the
city
Page 11 – Update Special Purpose Funding (social services) to reflect revised Council direction adopted
on April 8, 2014
Page 12 – Updates City Manager's signature levels for revised internal policies focused on improving
efficiency for smaller procurements
Pages 17 - 18 – New language is added to reflect the capital and equipment maintenance standards. The
practice has been in place, but not reflected in the policy
Page 18 – Surplus property language is added to this policy to reflect more efficient practices. The current
code of ordinances requires all surplus property, regardless of the amount, to be approved by Council. The
current ordinance will replaced with this section
Page 18 – Amends the years an external auditor may be retained to be consistent with national GFOA best
practices
Pages 20 - 22 - Amends the Debt Management section to document Council's desire to clearly
communicate, plan and manage any unissued bond authorization remaining
Pages 23 – Amends the requirements to reflect new MSRB requirements for financial advisors and any
added compliance standards
Page 26 – Amends the target Airport Fund reserve amount to better reflect current and near-term
projected financial conditions in the fund
Page 29 – Incorporates the Self Insurance policy adopted by resolution in October 2013
In addition, references to fiscal year 2014/15 have been updated and designated amounts have been left
blank. These amounts will be added once they have been determined and will be included in the final
document that is included in the 2014/15 adopted budget.
Once the Policy amendments are reviewed and recommended by GGAF, a Power Point presentation will
be made summarizing the Policy and proposed changes for review by the City Council at a May
workshop.
First reading of the ordinance adopting the Policy will be on the Council Agenda in May.
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
No financial impact on this item
SUBMITTED BY:
Micki Rundell, Chief Financial Officer
ATTACHMENTS:
Description Type
Redline Draft of Proposed F&B Policy Cover Memo
City of Georgetown, Texas
Fiscal and Budgetary Policy
1
Table of Contents
I. Purpose 2
II. Fund Structure and Basis of Budgeting 2-3
III. Fund Balance Policies 4
IV. Operating Budget 4-7
V. Revenue Management 7-9
VI. Expenditure Policies 10-13
VII. Budget Contingency Plan 13-14
VIII. Capital Improvement Program (CIP) Budget 14-15
IX. Capital Maintenance and Replacement 16-17
X. Accounting, Auditing and Financial Reporting 18
XI. Asset Management 18-19
XII. Debt Management 20-23
XIII. Other Funding Alternatives 24-25
XIV. Financial Conditions & Reserves & Stability Ratios 25-27
XV. Internal Controls 28
XVI. Staffing 28-29
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City of Georgetown
Fiscal and Budgetary Policy
Approved June 11, 2013
GGAF Review April 23, 2014
I. PURPOSE
The City of Georgetown is committed to financial management through integrity, prudent
stewardship, planning, accountability, full disclosure and communication. The broad
purpose of the Fiscal and Budgetary Policies is to enable the City and its related
component units, including the Georgetown Transportation Enhancement Corporation
(GTEC) and the Georgetown Economic Development Corporation (GEDCO) to achieve
and maintain a long-term stable and positive financial condition, and provide guidelines
for the day-to-day planning and operations of the City’s financial affairs.
Policy scope generally spans areas of accounting and financial reporting, internal
controls, both operating and capital budgeting, revenue management, investment and
asset management, debt management and forecasting. This is done in order to:
A. Demonstrate to the citizens of Georgetown, the investment community, and the bond
rating agencies that the City is committed to a strong fiscal operation;
B. Provide precedents for future policy-makers and financial managers on common
financial goals and strategies;
C. Fairly present and fully disclose the financial position of the City in conformity to
generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP); and
D. Demonstrate compliance with finance-related legal and contractual issues in
accordance with the Texas Local Government Code and other legal mandates.
These policies will be reviewed and updated annually as part of the budget preparation
process.
II. FUND STRUCTURE AND BASIS OF BUDGETING
The budgeted funds for the City of Georgetown include:
Governmental Funds: General Fund which accounts for all financial resources
except those required to be accounted for in another fund, and
include basic governmental services, such as Street
Maintenance, Planning and Development, Police, Fire and
Parks, as well as, solid waste management.
Special Revenue Funds (SRF) account for specific revenues
that are legally restricted for specified purposes. The City
currently budgets 17 -____ SRF Funds and includes Tourism,
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Parkland Dedication, Library Donations, Animal Services
Donations, and Street Maintenance Sales Tax.
Debt Service Fund is used to account for the payment of
general long-term debt principal and interest.
Capital Project Funds are used to account for the acquisition
or construction of major capital facilities other than those
financed by enterprise activities.
Proprietary Funds: Internal Service Funds account for good or services provided
by one internal department to another. The City uses this
system to recognize cost for fleet replacement and
maintenance, facility maintenance and computer replacement
and maintenance.
Enterprise Funds include the City’s “business like” activities
including all the utility funds and the airport.
Basis of Accounting and Basis of Budgeting
The City’s accounts and budgets for all Governmental Funds using the modified
accrual basis of accounting. This basis means that revenue is recognized in the
accounting period in which it becomes available and measurable, while expenditures are
recognized in the accounting period in which they are incurred. Because the
appropriated budget is used as the basis for control and comparison of budgeted and
actual amounts, the basis for preparing the budget is the same as the basis of
accounting. Exceptions to the modified accrual basis of accounting include:
Encumbrances, which are treated as expenditures in the year they are encumbered,
not when expended.
Grants, which are considered revenue when awarded, not received.
Principal and interest on long-term debt, which are recognized when paid.
General government funds include the general fund, special revenue funds, debt service
fund and general capital project funds.
Proprietary Funds, which include the enterprise and internal service funds are
accounted and budgeted using the full-accrual basis of accounting. Under this method,
revenues are recognized when they are earned and measurable, while expenses are
recognized when they are incurred regardless of timing or related cash flows. The basis
for preparing the budget is the same as the basis of accounting except for principal
payments on long-term debt and capital outlay which are treated as budgeted expenses.
Exceptions include:
Depreciation which is not budgeted
Non-budgeted accruals such as compensated absences
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III. FUND BALANCE POLICIES
The City’s Fund Balance is the accumulated difference between assets and liabilities
within governmental funds, and it allows the City to meet its contractual obligations, fund
disaster or emergency costs, provide cash flow for timing purposes and fund non-recurring
expenses appropriated by City Council. This policy establishes limitations on the
purposes for which Fund Balances can be used in accordance with Governmental
Accounting Standards Board (GASB) Statement Number 54.
The City’s Fund Balance will report up to five components:
A. Non-spendable Fund Balance – includes inherently non-spendable assets that will
never convert to cash, as well as, assets that will not convert to cash soon enough to
affect the current financial period. Assets included in this category are prepaid items,
inventory and non-financial assets held for resale.
B. Restricted Fund Balance – represents the portion of fund balance that is subject to
legal restrictions, such as grants or hotel/motel tax and bond proceeds.
C. Committed Fund Balance – describes the portion of fund balance that is constrained
by limitations that the City Council has imposed upon itself, and remains binding
unless the City Council removes the limitation.
D. Assigned Fund Balance – is that portion of fund balance that reflects the City’s
intended use of the resource and is established in a less formal method by the City
for that designated purpose.
E. Unassigned Fund Balance – represents funds that cannot be property classified in
one of the other four categories.
IV. OPERATING BUDGET
Budgeting is an essential element of the financial planning, control and evaluation
process of municipal government. The “operating budget” is the City’s annual financial
operating plan. The annual budget includes all of the operating departments of the
general fund, proprietary funds, debt service funds, special revenue funds, and capital
improvement funds of the City.
A. Comprehensive Plan – The 2030 Plan is written from a perspective of some twenty
years into the future. It expresses what we envision and desire our community to be
in the year 2030, and it reflects on all that we have accomplished since we launched
the revision of our Comprehensive Plan in 2006. The Plan utilizes a Vision
Statement to guide the desired outcomes for the community.
B. Council Vision – The Council has further defined the City’s Comprehensive Plan by
defining its vision to become the City of Excellence. This vision is to be
accomplished through five (5) focus areas. These focus areas become the City’s
strategic goals through development and implementation of defined Business Plans
for each focus area.
1. Economic Development
2. Signature Destination
3. Public Safety
4. Transportation
5. Utility Services
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C. Five-Year City of Excellence Business Plan – A “dashboard” plan will be
developed that links the 2030 Plan with the City Council’s City of Excellence vision
and five focus areas (strategic goals) that further the implementation of the Vision.
From those strategic goals an implementation plan for each of the 5 focus areas will
be created.
1. A Five-Year Financial Forecast will be created and updated annually that will
identify potential tax impacts, rate adjustments and other factors that will impede
the implementation of the City of Excellence Business Plan.
2. Year-One of this Business Plan is the basis for the Annual Budget.
D. Preparation – The Charter (Section 6.02) requires “a proposed budget prepared by
the City Manager and submitted to the City Council at least thirty days prior to the
end of the fiscal year. The budget shall be adopted not later than the twenty-seventh
day of the last month of the fiscal year. No budget will be adopted or appropriations
made unless the total estimated revenues, income and funds available shall be equal
to or in excess of such budget or appropriations, except otherwise provided”.
Therefore, the budget will be presented to the City Council no later than the 1st day of
August to provide the City Council time to adopt the budget in the required time
frame.
1. Proposed Budget – A proposed budget shall be prepared by the City Manager
with participation of all of the City’s Division Directors within the provision of the
Charter and the 2030 Plan and the City of Excellence Vision.
a. The budget shall include four basic segments for review and evaluation:
Revenues
Personnel Costs
Operations and Maintenance
Capital and other non-project costs
b. The budget review process will include City Council participation in the
development of each segment and allow for citizen participation in the
process, and will allow for sufficient time to address policy and fiscal issues
by the City Council.
c. A copy of the proposed budget will be filed with the City Secretary when it is
submitted to the City Council. A copy will also be available at the
Georgetown Public Library for citizen review.
2. Adoption – Upon finalization of the budget appropriations, the City Council will
hold a public hearing, and subsequently adopt by Ordinance the final budget as
amended. The budget will be effective for the fiscal year beginning October 1st.
The Annual Budget document will be submitted annually to the Government
Finance Officers Association (GFOA) for evaluation and consideration for the
Distinguished Budget Presentation Award.
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E. Balanced Budget – The goal of the City is to adopt and maintain a balanced
operating budget using sustainable funding sources that are expected to continue to
be available in subsequent fiscal years. Excess balances in operating funds from
previous fiscal years shall remain in the fund in which they were appropriated until
either such excess balances are proposed and adopted pursuant to Section B of the
this policy; until they are used to reduce outstanding debt obligations of the City; or
both.
The Charter (Section 6.04) requires that an operating deficit created in any fiscal
year shall be paid off and discharged during the following year. In practice, deficit
has been interpreted to mean City funds as a whole. The City Council may choose
from time to time to allow individual funds to have a negative balance as long as
Operating Reserve requirements for the City as a whole are maintained.
F. Planning – The budget process will be coordinated so that major policy issues are
identified prior to the budget approval date. This will allow City Council adequate
time for consideration of appropriate decisions and analysis of financial impacts.
G. Reporting – Summary financial reports will be presented to the City Council
quarterly. These reports will be in a format appropriate to enable the City Council to
understand the overall budget and financial status. The City Manager will also
present a mid-year update to the City Council within 60 days following the end of the
second fiscal quarter that updates the status of projects and related financial goals
set forth in the budget.
H. Control and Accountability – Each Division Director, appointed by the City
Manager, will be responsible for the administration of his/her departmental budget.
This includes accomplishing the Goals and Objectives adopted as part of the budget
and monitoring each department budget for compliance with spending limitations.
Division Directors may transfer funds up to $20,000 within the operations and
maintenance or capital line items within a departmental budget category without
additional approval. All transfers within the Personnel line items require approval of
the Chief Financial Officer and City Manager. All other transfers of appropriation or
budget amendments require either City Council or City Manager approval as outlined
in Section IV.B.
I. Budget Amendments – The Charter (Section 6.04) provides a method to amend for
budget amendments and emergency appropriations. The City Council may authorize
with a majority plus one vote, an emergency expenditure as an amendment to the
original budget. This may be done in cases of grave public necessity to meet an
unusual and unforeseen condition that was not known at the time the budget was
adopted. In practice, this has been interpreted to include revenue-related expenses
within the enterprise funds and timing differences on capital improvement projects.
The following criteria will be used in evaluation of budget amendments:
Is the request necessary?
Why was the item not budgeted in the normal budget process?
Why can't a transfer be done within the Division to remedy the condition?
The Chief Financial Officer must certify availability of revenues or funding sources
prior to adoption.
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The City will amend the budget at year end, if needed, for revenue based
expenditures that exceeded budgeted amounts due to increased revenue and
recognize any grant funded expenditures for grants received after the budget was
adopted or last amended. The City will also amend the budget if necessary as part
of the Mid-Year Review process for any capital project timing adjustments from prior
year, as well as, any other known adjustments needed and approved at that time.
J. Contingency Appropriations – The budget may include contingency appropriations
within designated operating department budgets. These funds are used to offset
expenditures for unexpected maintenance or other unanticipated expenses that
might occur during the year. Currently, the City maintains contingency appropriations
for insurance deductibles, unexpected legal expenses and equipment repairs.
K. Council Discretionary Account – The budget may contain appropriated funds to be
used at the discretion of the City Council. Actual expenditure of these funds is
specifically approved by the City Council on an item by item basis. The Council
Discretionary Account for 2013/14 2014/15 is $10,000 included in the General Fund.
V. REVENUE MANAGEMENT
A. Characteristics – The City will strive for the following optimum characteristics in its
revenue system:
1. Simplicity – The City, where possible and without sacrificing accuracy, will strive
to keep the revenue system simple in order to reduce compliance costs for the
taxpayer or service recipient.
2. Certainty – A knowledge and understanding of revenue sources increases the
reliability of the revenue system. The City will understand its revenue sources
and enact consistent collection policies to provide assurances that the revenue
base will materialize according to budget.
3. Equity – The City shall make every effort to maintain equity in its revenue
system; i.e., the City should seek to minimize or eliminate all forms of
subsidization between entities, funds, services, utilities, and customer classes,
and ensure an on-going return on investment for the City.
a. The City will make every effort to recognize the benefit that City tax payers
contribute to City programs and services.
b. The annual Parks and Recreation residential membership rates are
established at 75% of non-residential rates plus or minus 10% at the
discretion of the Parks and Recreation Director in keeping with the targeted
market cost recovery.
4. Revenue Adequacy – The City should require there be a balance in the revenue
system; i.e., the revenue base will have the characteristics of fairness and
neutrality as it applies to cost of service, willingness to pay, and ability to pay.
Overall Operational Cost Recovery for Parks and Recreation for the Recreation
and Tennis Centers is targeted to be between 50 – 60%, with some variance in
individual programs.
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5. Realistic and Conservative Estimates - Revenues will be estimated realistically,
and conservatively, taking into account the volatile nature of various revenue
streams.
6. Administration – The benefits of a revenue source should exceed the cost of
levying and collecting that revenue.
7. Diversification and Stability – A diversified revenue system with a stable source
of income shall be maintained. This will help avoid instabilities in two particular
revenue sources due to factors such as fluctuations in the economy and
variations in the weather.
B. Other Considerations – The following considerations and issues will guide the City
in its revenue policies concerning specific sources of funds:
1. Cost/Benefit of Incentives for Economic Development – The City will use due
caution in the analysis of any incentives that are used to encourage
development. A cost/benefit (fiscal impact) analysis will be performed as part of
the evaluation.
2. Non-Recurring Revenues – One-time or non-recurring revenues should not be
used to finance current ongoing operations.
3. Sustainable Revenues – “Sustainable" means revenue that is consistently
available year after year.
4. Property Tax Revenues – All real and business personal property located within
the City will be valued at 100% of the fair market value for any given year based
on the current appraisal supplied by the Williamson Central Appraisal District.
Conservative budgeted revenue estimates result in a projected ninety-eight
percent (98%) budgeted collection rate for current ad valorem taxes. Two
percent (2%) of the current ad valorem taxes will be projected as the budget for
delinquent ad valorem tax collection. For budgeting purposes, the City will
forecast the proposed property tax rate using the effective maintenance &
operations (M&O) rate plus the interest & sinking (I&S) rate needed to fund tax
supported debt service. Increases to the M&O rate will be deliberated and
determined by the City Council. Proposed tax revenue will be budgeted at a 98%
collection rate.
5. Interest Income – Interest earned from investments will be distributed to the
funds in accordance with the equity balance of the fund from which the monies
were provided to be invested.
6. User-Based Fees and Service Charges – For services associated with a user fee
or charge, the direct or indirect costs of that service will be offset by a fee where
possible. The City will review fees and charges no less than once every two
years to ensure that fees provide adequate coverage for the cost of services.
The City Council will determine how much of the cost of a service should be
recovered by fees and charges.
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7. Enterprise Fund Rates – The City will review and adopt utility rates as needed to
generate revenues required to fully cover operating expenses, meet the legal
requirements of all applicable bond covenants, and provide for an adequate level
of working capital. Utility rates will be reviewed annually as part of the budget
process. A rate study will be conducted every 3 years to review rate
methodology and ensure revenues will meet future needs.
A restricted Power Contract Credit Reserve has been established to provide
financial assurances to the City’s wholesale power contract providers as fiscal
surety against any potential risk on the City’s behalf and will be maintained as
“restricted” fund balance on the City’s financial statements.
A Rate Stabilization Reserve (RSR) Account has been established in the
Electric Fund to offset and mitigate potential impacts to customer rates due to
increased fuel costs or other external factors that may negatively impact Electric
Rates. The Rate Stabilization Reserve (RSR) may provide funding for:
Deferring or minimizing the rate impact of future cost increases
Costs associated with providing additional power supply
Filling contractual obligations
Balancing of annual power costs
RSR funds will be monitored monthly to ensure the electric rate is being
managed per the Policy. Increases to RSR are made through the Power Cost
Adjustment rate as determined by the fund, at the recommendation of the
Assistant City Manager General Manger for Utilities.
Additionally, enterprise activity rates will include transfers to and receive credits
from other funds as follows:
a. General and Administrative Charges – Administrative costs should be
charged to all funds for services of general overhead, such as administration,
finance, customer billing, legal and other costs as appropriate. These
charges will be determined through an indirect cost allocation following
accepted practices and procedures and reviewed annually by the City’s
external auditors.
b. Payment for Return on Investment – The intent of this transfer is to provide a
benefit to the citizens for the ownership of the various utility operations they
own. For all utilities except for Electric:
In-Lieu-of-Franchise-Fee. This transfer, currently 3% of operating
revenues generated inside the City, is consistent with the franchise rates
charged to investor owned utilities franchised to operate within the City.
Return on Investment. The return on investment (ROI) transfer for In-
City utility customers is currently calculated at 7% of operating revenues
for all utilities. except sanitation. ROI for water and sewer customers
outside the City is 10% of operating revenues. both inside and outside
the City. There is no ROI calculated on solid waste revenues.
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The Franchise and Return on Investment for the Electric Utility is based on
kWh sold. For customers inside the City, a $0.0102 charge per kWh,
equivalent to the 3% and 7% paid by other utility customers, will be included
in the cost per kWh. For customers outside the City, a $0.007253 charge per
kWh, equivalent to the 7% ROI paid by utilities, will be included in the cost.
8. Intergovernmental Revenues – All potential grants will be examined for matching
requirements and must be approved by the City Council prior to making
application of the grant. It must be clearly understood that operational
requirements (on-going costs) set up as a result of a grant program could be
discontinued once the term and conditions of the program have been completed.
9. Revenue Monitoring – Revenues as they are received will be regularly compared
to budgeted revenues and variances will be investigated, and any abnormalities
will be included in the quarterly report to the City Council.
VI. EXPENDITURE POLICIES
A. Appropriations – The point of budget control is at the department level budget for
all funds. The Charter (Section 6.03) provides that any transfer of appropriation
between funds must be approved by the City Council and that the City Manager,
without City Council approval, is authorized to transfer appropriations among
departments, within the same operational division and fund. The City Manager may
also authorize transfer of salary adjustment monies between funds that are budgeted
in a citywide account.
B. Personnel Costs – Costs related to salaries and benefits are budgeted at 100%
total costs, assuming open positions are filled throughout the fiscal year. New
positions that are added during the budget process may have staggered hire dates
with appropriate costs reflected in the budget.
1. Vacancy Factor – General Fund appropriations will include a vacancy factor
equal to 1% of total General Fund salaries and related benefits to offset salary
savings within the budget. The vacancy factor will be budgeted as a negative
expense within the General Government Department of the General Fund. For
2013/14 2014/15 the Vacancy Factor equals $214,270 ______. This factor will
be reduced throughout the year as vacant positions are recognized within the
department budget.
2. Benefit Payout Reserve - The City will establish a benefit payout reserve equal to
15% of the accrued benefit liability for employees who are currently meet eligible
to retirement. Only terminating employee benefit expenses may be paid from this
reserve. This reserve shall be funded as an offset to the vacancy factor. For
2013/14, 2014/15 $30,000______ is budgeted for this reserve.
3. Position Control – The annual budget includes a set number of positions within
departments when approved and adopted by City Council. Additional positions
cannot be added without approval of the City Council. The City Manager may
approve the transfer of authorized positions between departments if funds are
available within the department.
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4. Use of Excess Salary Savings – Departmental savings generated due to open
positions or other salary line item savings cannot be spent by the department
unless previously approved by the City Manager and validated by Finance as
“excess funds”.
C. Special Purpose Funding – In order to support community assistance programs,
the City designates specific funding for special purposes, including Social Services,
Children’s Programs, and Public Art. The City reserves the ability to cap this special
purpose funding when necessitated by budget contingency or compliance issues,
such as revenue shortfalls, or other reasons as determined by City Council.
1. Strategic Partnerships for Community Services. Social Service Funding and
Children’s and Youth Program Funding – The City of Georgetown values
partnerships with organizations that are committed to addressing our
communities greatest public challenges and has identified key priorities in the
following areas:
Public Safety
Transportation
Housing
Parks & Recreation
Veteran Services, and
Safety Net
The City has targeted funding for these programs to be $5.00 per capita, which
may be adjusted to offset the effects of general inflation based upon CPI. If
previous funding levels are higher than the targeted amount, and to avoid
significant reductions in levels of funding, the City Council shall seek to attain this
target chiefly through population growth. Funding for these programs will be split
83% for social services and 17% for youth funding. These funds will be allocated
and paid according to the City Council’s guidelines for such programs. Social
Service and Children’s and Youth Program Funding.
The funding level for 2013/14 2014/15 is $307,500 $400,049 for these type of
initiatives and is Social Service Funding and $92,549 for Children’s and Youth
Program Funding, both of which are the same as in the previous year.
Any given year, unallocated funds in either the social Services Fund or the
Children’s and Youth Program Funds can be allocated to the other fund, in an
amount not to exceed the estimated increase for the following year in the fund
receiving the transfer.
2. Public Art Funding - The City will annually allocate funding for Public Art on a
year to year basis depending on the availability of funds in an amount to be
determined at the discretion of the City Manager. Funding priority will be given to
projects that include a matching donation, including contributions from local
organizations and sponsors. Any unspent funds will accumulate and be
reallocated in the following budget year. Disbursement of these funds will be
determined by the City Council at the recommendation of the City’s Arts &
Culture Advisory Board.
Every effort will be made to include public art funding in future City facilities
whose primary purpose is for public use. These projects will include a
reasonable allowance for public art that fits the scope and purpose of the building
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so long that it does not negatively impact the project cost beyond the original
budget. In the event there is cost savings in the construction of City Facilities,
the City Council may consider utilizing that savings on the purchase of public art
for the facility.
D. Purchasing – The City will maintain and regularly review a written Purchasing
Policy. All City purchases of goods or services will be made in accordance with
the City’s current Purchasing Policy and with State law.
The following shows a summary of approval requirements for purchases.
Dollar Limits: Procurements: Requirements:
Under
$3,000
Under the small purchase
limit
No competitive bids and City credit
cards may be used.
$3,000
up to
$50,000
Within informal bid limit A minimum of three informal
competitive bids required unless
exempted: HUB requirements apply in
accordance with state law.
$10,000$25,000
and above
Within City Manager’s
approval
In addition to the requirements above,
the City Manager must approve the
purchase.
$50,000
and above
In excess of the informal bid
limit
Formal solicitations, which includes
public notices, required unless
exempted. Advisory board review and
recommendation may be required.
Council approval required.
In addition to the above, all purchases must be approved accordingly to preapproved
limits within each department.
E. Contracts and Change Orders - Contracts and related change orders must follow
the City Purchasing Policies and State Law. In accordance with State Law, change
orders are limited to 25% of the total contract amount. Change orders greater than
$50,000 require the same advisory board review and Council approvals as the
original contracts.
F. Prompt Payment – All invoices approved for payment by the proper City authorities
shall be paid within thirty (30) calendar days of receipt of goods or services or invoice
date, whichever is later in accordance with State law. The City will take advantage of
all purchase discounts, when possible.
G. Risk Management – The City will pursue every opportunity to provide for the
Public’s and City employees’ safety and to manage its risks. The goal shall be to
minimize the risk of loss of resources through liability claims with an emphasis on
safety programs.
H. Retirement Benefits – Proposals to revise benefits administered and provided by
the Texas Municipal Retirement System shall include a written description, and,
detailed and summary numerical assessments of the changes that would result from
the proposed benefit revision.
1. The numerical assessments shall include the following:
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a. The estimated change to the TMRS contribution rate that would result from
the proposed change in benefits, expressed as a percentage of employee
pay and as an annual dollar amount to the General Fund and to each City
fund.
b. The estimated change to the City’s unfunded pension liability, expressed as
a dollar amount.
c. The estimated change to the City’s actuarial funding ratio.
2. The description and numerical assessments must be provided to the City Council
at least 72 hours prior to consideration and approval, and must be read aloud to
the Council prior to Council consideration.
3. The estimated changes to the City’s contribution rate and the unfunded pension
liability presented pursuant to the section must be based on information provided
by the TMRS actuary or by professional actuary authorized by the TMRS to
provide such information.
4. Proposals to revise TMRS benefits must be voted on individually as part of the
City Council’s legislative agenda.
5. The City has established 80% as the targeted funding goal for the City’s
unfunded pension liability. The City’s funded pension liability is 86.7% _____as
of December 31, 2012_2013, as disclosed by TMRS.
6. The City may elect to make an annual 1-time payment prior to further fund the
City’s unfunded pension liability. Such payment will be approved and authorized
by the City Council prior to December 31 in order to be recognized in the
following year’s TMRS employer contribution rate calculation.
VII. BUDGET CONTINGENCY PLAN
This policy is designed to establish general guidelines for managing revenue shortfalls
resulting from local and national economic downturns that adversely affect the City's
revenue streams.
A. Immediate Action - Once a budgetary shortfall is projected, the City Manager will
take the necessary actions to offset any revenue shortfall with a reduction in current
expenses. The City Manager may:
Freeze all new hire and vacant positions except those deemed to be a necessity.
Review all planned capital expenditures.
Delay all "non-essential" spending or equipment replacement purchases.
The City Manager shall report in a timely manner to the City Council the projected
shortfall and the actions taken to resolve it.
B. Further Action -. If the actions identified in subsection A are insufficient to offset the
projected revenue deficit for the current fiscal year, the City Council may approve the
following actions, in the order listed:
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1. Apply unspent, unobligated surplus funds from prior fiscal years to fund one-time
costs in the current fiscal year budget.
2. Notwithstanding Section XII B.1 of this policy, authorize a reduction in the
unobligated fund balance in the General Fund, pursuant to Section XII B.1 of this
policy, from 90 to 75 days.
3. Direct other reductions in services, including workforce reductions.
C. Replenish Fund Balance - As soon as practicable, without placing undue strain on
city services, the City Council shall increase the unobligated fund balance in the
General Fund, up to the 90-day amount required in Section XII B.1 of this policy.
VIII. CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM (CIP) BUDGET
The City’s goal is to maintain City facilities and infrastructure in order to provide excellent
services to the customers within the community, meet growth related needs, and comply
with all state and federal regulations.
A. Preparation – The City annually updates and adopts a five-year Capital
Improvement Program (CIP) schedule as part of the operating budget adoption
process. The plan is reviewed and adjusted annually as needed, and year one is
adopted as the current year capital budget. The capital budget will include all capital
projects, capital resources, and estimated operational impacts.
Needed capital improvements are identified through system models, repair and
maintenance records and growth demands.
Economic development projects that have capital infrastructure needs must be
reviewed and approved for funding by the City no later than March 1 to be
included in the annual CIP process. Any economic development project
approved for funding after March 1 will be included in the following year CIP
process unless otherwise authorized by City Council.
A team approach will be used to prioritize CIP projects, whereby City staff from
all operational areas provide input and ideas relating to each project and its effect
on operations.
Citizen involvement and participation will be solicited in formulating the capital
budget through neighborhood meetings, public hearings and other forums.
Capital infrastructure necessary to meet the requirements of the City’s
Annexation Plan will be identified separately within the CIP plan, so that funding
alternatives can be developed if needed.
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Prior to Council adoption, the following Advisory Boards will review the
Capital Projects budget:
Georgetown
Utility Systems
Advisory Board
(GUS)
Georgetown
Transportation
Advisory Board
(GTAB)
General
Government and
Finance Advisory
Subcommittee
(GGAF)
Parks Advisory
Board
Electric
Water
Wastewater
Streets
Stormwater Drainage
Airport
Facilities
Other General
Government
Capital
Parks and
Recreation
B. Control – All capital project expenditures must be appropriated in the capital budget.
Availability of resources must be identified and then reviewed by the Finance
Division before any CIP contract is presented to the City Council for approval.
Prior to presentation to Council, the following Advisory Boards will review:
Georgetown Utility
Systems
Advisory Board
(GUS)
Georgetown
Transportation Advisory
Board (GTAB)
General Government
and Finance Advisory
Subcommittee
(GGAF)
All utility contracts and
other utility expenses
greater than $50,000
All Transportation,
Stormwater Drainage and
Airport expenditures and
contracts greater than
$50,000
All General Government
non-routine contracts and
expenditures greater than
$50,000
C. Financing Programs – Where applicable, assessments, impact fees, pro rata
charges, or other fees should be used to fund capital projects which have a primary
benefit to specific identifiable property owners.
Recognizing that long-term debt is usually a more expensive financing method,
alternative-financing sources will be explored before debt is issued. When debt is
issued, it will be used to acquire major assets with expected lives equal or exceeding
the average life of the debt issue.
Short-term financing including Capital Leasing and other tax-supported obligations
can be used to fund vehicles, computers and other operating equipment provided the
impact to the tax rate is minimal.
Caution should be used in replacing assets with short-term, tax-supported
obligations due to the repetitive nature of the replacements. The total amount of I &
S (interest and sinking) portion of the tax rate dedicated to fund short-term debt for
equipment replacement will not exceed $0.04.
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IX. CAPITAL MAINTENANCE AND REPLACEMENT
The City recognizes that deferred maintenance increases future capital costs.
Therefore, a portion of all individual funds with infrastructure should be budgeted each
year to maintain the quality within each system.
A. Infrastructure Maintenance - On-going maintenance and major repair costs are
included as capital expense within the departmental operating budgets. These costs
are generally considered system repairs and are not capitalized for accounting
purposes. They include such items as park and recreation facility repairs, street seal
coat, water line repairs and other general system maintenance.
B. Modified Approach - Pavement Condition Index (PCI) - Governmental Accounting
Standards Board Statement # 34 provides for an alternative approach to depreciation
for measuring the value of infrastructure assets and the related costs incurred to
maintain their service life at a locally established minimum standard. The City has
elected to implement this modified approach in maintaining their non-enterprise fund
infrastructure assets. In order to adopt this alternative method, the City has
implemented an asset management system that determines if the minimum
standards are being maintained. This measurement system will be updated at least
every 3 years. The City has elected to use this alternative method for reporting its
street infrastructure assets.
The City uses the CarteGraph PavementView Pavement Management
Information System to track the condition levels of each of the street sections.
The condition of the pavement is based on the following factors:
Type of Distress
Amount of Distress
Severity of Distress
Deduct Values (function of first three)
The Pavement Condition Index (PCI) is a measurement scale is based upon a
condition index ranging from zero for a failed pavement to 100 for pavement with
perfect condition. The condition index is used to classify pavement in the following
conditions:
The City’s administrative policy is to achieve an average PCI level of 85. An 85 PCI
is considered maintaining the streets in a “good” condition. Staff will prepare a street
maintenance budget that meets this target for Council’s consideration during the
budget process.
PCI Rating
100 – 85 Good
85 – 45 Fair
45 – 0 Poor
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C. Internal Service Funds and (Capital Maintenance & Replacement)funds – The
City currently utilizes internal service funds to maintain and replace existing assets.
Assessments are made to the using funds for the use of equipment currently in use
and to be purchased during the year. In this way, suitable funds are available for the
purchase of operational assets without the issuance of debt.
1. Fleet Maintenance and Replacement - The City has a major investment in its
fleet of cars, trucks, tractors, and other equipment. The City will anticipate
replacing existing equipment, as necessary and will establish charges that are
assigned to the using departments to account for the cost of that replacement.
Vehicle maintenance is also allocated in this manner.
2. Technology – It is the policy of the City to plan and fund the maintenance and
replacement of its computer network and other technology systems. The City
currently uses a four-year replacement cycle for all desktop computers. A
reserve will be established within the ISF for replacement of major systems and
will be funded over time through excess revenues within the Fund. Funding for
major systems assumes that 50% of the replacement cost will be debt funded.
3. Facilities Maintenance – The City has established an on-going maintenance
program, which includes major repairs, equipment, as well as contracts for
maintaining City facilities, including Parks and Recreation. The City has
anticipated a useful life of such equipment and established a means of charging
those costs to the various departments in order to recognize the City’s continuing
costs of maintaining its facilities. Determination for facility repairs is based on
useful life of the various elements of each facility. . A proportional cost for each
element is expensed within the budget for capital replacement. An additional
unscheduled repair reserve equal to 10% value of annual internal service funding
is also budgeted. The estimate reserve for 2013/142014/15 equals $30,000
_____.
D. Departmental Capital Maintenance & Replacement – The City also utilizes
department capital maintenance and replacement schedules for specialized assets
and equipment necessary to provide services.
1. Parks and Recreation - As part of the City’s on-going maintenance program, the
City also recognizes the need to regularly maintain and replace grounds,
equipment and facilities that are part of the City’s Parks and Recreation system.
Separate replacement and maintenance schedules will be maintained for these
items including, but not limited to, playground equipment, buildings, sport courts,
trees and grounds, and restroom facilities. The City’s goal is to provide level on-
going funding to ensure safe, well-maintained facilities for its citizens.
2. Public Safety Equipment – As part of the City’s on-going maintenance program,
the City also recognizes the need to regularly maintain and replace specialized
equipment in Police and Fire. Separate replacement and maintenance
schedules will be maintained for these items including but not limited to for Fire:
SCBA’s and other firefighting equipment and protective gear; and for Police:
bullet proof vests, armaments and other tactical equipment. The City’s goal is to
provide level on-going funding to ensure proper protection for employees and
citizens.
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E. Surplus Property
1. From time to time it is necessary to dispose of certain vehicles or equipment that
have been procured with City funds and used in City services. Individual surplus
property items with expected sales value in excess of $10,000 must be approved
by the City Council prior to disposition. (more wording here on
X. ACCOUNTING, AUDITING AND FINANCIAL REPORTING
A. Accounting – The City is solely responsible for the recording and reporting of its
financial affairs, both internally and externally. The Chief Financial Officer (CFO) is
responsible for establishing the structure for the City’s Chart of Accounts and for
assuring that procedures are in place to properly record financial transactions and
report the City’s financial position.
B. General Government and Finance Subcommittee (GGAF) – The City may
establish a subcommittee consisting of (3) City Council members and (2) citizens
that may meet monthly to provide additional oversight to the City’s Finance
operations. This subcommittee will also review general government items that are
not reviewed by another City advisory board before being presented to City Council.
The City’s CFO will be the liaison for this subcommittee.
C. Audit of Accounts – In accordance with the Charter, an independent audit of the
City accounts will be performed every year. The auditor is retained by and is
accountable directly to the City Council. The auditing firm will serve for up to 5
years, at which time, the City will re-bid these services and, thereby changing firms
at least every 5 years if deemed necessary by GGAF and City Council.
D. External Reporting – Upon completion and acceptance of the annual audit by the
City’s auditors, the City shall prepare a written Comprehensive Annual Financial
Report (CAFR) which shall be presented to the City Council within 180 calendar days
of the City’s fiscal year end. The CAFR shall be prepared in accordance with
Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) and shall be presented annually
to the Government Finance Officer Association (GFOA) for evaluation and
consideration for the Certificate of Achievement in Financial Reporting.
E. Internal Reporting – The Finance Department will prepare internal financial reports,
sufficient to plan, monitor and control the City’s financial affairs.
XI. ASSET MANAGEMENT
A. Cash Management and Investments – The City Council has formally approved a
separate Investment Policy for the City of Georgetown that meets the requirements
of the Public Funds Investment Act (PFIA), Section 2256 of the Texas Local
Government Code. This policy is reviewed annually by the City Council and applies
to all financial assets held by the City and applies to all entities (component units)
included in the City’s Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR) and/or
managed by the City
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1. Statement of Cash Management Philosophy - The City shall maintain a
comprehensive cash management program to include the effective collection of
all accounts receivable, the prompt deposit of receipts to the City’s depository,
the payment of obligations, and the prudent investment of idle funds in
accordance with this policy.
2. Objectives – The City’s investment program will be conducted as to accomplish
the following listed in priority order:
Safety of the principal invested
Liquidity and availability of cash to pay obligations when due
Ensure public trust through responsible actions as custodians of public funds.
Maximize earnings (yield) to the greatest extent possible consistent with the
City’s investment policy.
3. Safekeeping and Custody – Investments may only be purchased through
brokers/dealers who meet the criteria detailed in the investment policy, which
also addresses internal controls related to investments.
4. Standard of Care and Reporting – Investment will be made with judgment and
care, always considering the safety of principal to be invested and the probable
income to be derived. The Chief Financial Officer is responsible for the overall
management of the City’s investment program and ensures all investments are
made in compliance with the investment policy. An investment report, providing
both summary and detailed information, will be presented to the City Council
quarterly.
5. Authorized Investments – The City can currently invest in the following:
Certificates of Deposit
U.S. Treasury and Agency securities
Investment Pools that meet the requirements of the PFIA
No-load Money Market Mutual Funds
Fully collateralized Repurchase Agreements
Obligations of Municipal Issuers in Texas rated not less than A or its
equivalent.
Other investments as approved by City Council and not prohibited by law
B. Fixed Assets – These assets will be reasonably safeguarded and properly
accounted for, and prudently insured.
1. Capitalization Criteria - For purposes of budgeting and accounting classification,
the following criteria must be capitalized:
The asset owned by the City.
The expected useful life of the asset must be longer than one year, or extend
the life of an identifiable existing asset by more than one year.
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The original cost of the asset must be at least $5,000.
The asset must be tangible.
On-going repairs and general maintenance are not capitalized.
2. New Purchases – All costs associated with bringing the asset into working order
will be capitalized as part of the asset cost. This will include startup costs,
engineering or consultant type fees as part of the asset cost once the decision or
commitment to purchase the asset is made. The cost of land acquired should
include all related costs associated with its purchase.
3. Improvements and Replacement – Improvements will be capitalized when they
extend the original life of an asset or when they make the asset more valuable
than it was originally. The replacement of assets components will normally be
expensed unless they are a significant nature and meet all the capitalization
criteria.
4. Contributed Capital - Infrastructure assets received from developers or as a
result of annexation will be recorded as equity contributions when they are
received.
5. Distributions Systems - All costs associated with public domain assets, such as
streets and utility distribution lines will be capitalized in accordance with the
capitalization policy. Costs should include engineering, construction and other
related costs including right of way acquisition.
6. Reporting and Inventory – The Finance Division will maintain the permanent
records of the City’s fixed assets, including description, cost, department of
responsibility, date of acquisition, depreciation and expected useful life.
Periodically, random sampling at the department level will be performed to
inventory fixed assets assigned to that department. Responsibility for
safeguarding the City’s fixed assets lies with the department supervisor or
manager whose department has been assigned the asset.
XII. DEBT MANAGEMENT
The City of Georgetown recognizes the primary purpose of capital facilities is to provide
services to the community. Using debt financing to meet the capital needs of the
community must be evaluated according to efficiency and equity. Efficiency must be
evaluated to determine the highest rate of return for a given investment of resources.
Equity is resolved by determining who should pay for the cost of capital improvements.
In meeting demand for additional services, the City will strive to balance the needs
between debt financing and “pay as you go” methods. The City realizes that failure to
meet the demands of growth may inhibit its continued economic viability, but also
realizes that too much debt may have detrimental effects on the City’s long-range
financial condition.
The City will issue debt only for the purpose of acquiring or constructing capital assets
for the general benefit of its citizens and to allow it to fulfill its various purposes as a city.
A Debt Condition Update report will be provided annually.
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A. Usage of Debt - Long-term debt financing will be considered for non-continuous
capital improvements of which future citizens will be benefited. Alternatives for
financing will be explored prior to debt issuance and include, but not limited to:
Grants
Use of Reserve Funds
Use of Current Revenues
Contributions from developers and others
Leases
Impact Fees
When the City utilizes long-term financing, it will ensure that the debt is soundly
financed by conservatively projecting revenue sources that will be used to pay the
debt. It will not finance the improvement over a period greater than the useful life of
the improvement and it will determine that the cost benefit of the improvement,
including interest costs, is positive to the community.
The City may utilize the benefits of short-term debt financing to purchasing operating
equipment provided the debt doesn’t extend past the useful life of the asset and the
potential impact to the tax rate is within policy guidelines. The I & S (interest and
sinking) portion of the tax rate cannot exceed $0.04 for short-term debt (3-10 years).
B. Types of Debt –
1. General Obligation Bonds (GO’s) – General obligation bonds must be authorized
by a vote of the citizens of Georgetown. They are used only to fund capital
assets of the general government and are not to be used to fund operating needs
of the City. The full faith and credit of the City as well as the City’s ad valorem
taxing authority back general obligation bonds. Conditions for issuance of
general obligation debt include:
When the project will have a significant impact on the tax rate;
When the project may be controversial even through it is routine in nature; or
When the project falls outside the normal bounds of projects the City has
typically done.
For debt programs that include multiple projects that will be issued over multiple
years at the discretion of the City Council, the City will approve a Contract with
the Voters to manage future property tax rate impacts. The Contract with the
Voters will be included in educational information for all applicable GO Bond
elections, and will include a maximum annual tax rate increase and a cumulative
total per bond authorization maximum tax rate increase. The City will include
these impacts in its annual Debt Condition report.
The City Council will carefully manage the unissued GO Bond authorization
through annual review of related projects to ensure full disclosure on future
timing of projects included in the bond package. Timing of authorized projects
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and related bond issuance will be included in the Annual Budget and published
on the City’s website. Any changes to this schedule require specific Council
authorization.
2. Revenue Bonds – Revenue bonds will be issued to provide for the capital needs
of any activities where the capital requirements are necessary for the
continuation or expansion of a service. The improved activity shall produce a
revenue stream to fund the debt service requirements of the necessary
improvement to provide service expansion. The average life of the obligation
should not exceed the useful life of the asset(s) to be funded by the bond issue,
and will generally be limited to no more than twenty (20) years, An exception can
be made for plant expansions or related system expansions whose useful life is
in excess of 30 years. A cost benefit analysis will be done to fully disclose the
impacts of extending debt beyond 20 years.
3. Certificates of Obligation, Contract Obligations (CO’s) – Certificates of obligation
or contract obligations may be used to fund capital requirements that are not
otherwise funded by general obligation or revenue bonds. Debt service for CO’s
may be either from general revenues (tax-supported) or supported by a specific
revenue stream(s) or a combination of both. Typically, the City may issue CO’s
when the following conditions are met:
When the proposed debt will have minimal impact on future effective property
tax rates;
When the projects to be funded are within the normal bounds of city capital
requirements, such as for roads, parks, various infrastructure and City
facilities and equipment; and
When the average life of the obligation does not exceed the useful life of the
asset(s) to be funded by the issue.
Certificates of obligation will be the least preferred method of financing and will
be used with prudent care and judgment by the City Council. Every effort will be
made to ensure public participation in decisions relating to debt financing.
4. Self-supporting General Obligation Debt – Refers to certificates of obligation
issued for a specific purpose and repaid through dedicated revenues other than
ad valorem taxes. The annual debt requirements are not included in the property
tax calculation. Both the Airport and Stormwater Drainage funds will issue this
type of debt, In addition, the Electric and Water Services Funds can utilize this
method of funding non-system capital assets. The City also issues debt on behalf
of the Georgetown Transportation Enhancement Corporation (GTEC) whom then
pledges 4B sales tax revenue for the repayment of that debt.
5. Internal borrowing between City funds – The City can authorize use of existing
long-term reserves as “loans” between funds. The borrowing fund will repay the
loan at a rate consistent with current market conditions. The loan will be repaid
within ten (10) years. The loan will be considered an investment of working
capital reserves by the lending fund.
6. Other Short-term borrowing - The City may authorize the issuance of Public
Property Finance Contractual Obligations (PPFCO) which is short-term
obligations for the acquisition of personal public property, such as equipment.
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PPFCOs are payable from either ad valorem taxes or another dedicated revenue
stream. Each issuance will be assessed to ensure cost effectiveness and the
repayment schedule will not exceed the useful life of the asset. Multiple
equipment acquisitions can be grouped in a single PPFCO issue in order to
develop economies of scale.
C. Method of Sale – The City will use a competitive bidding process in the sale of
bonds unless conditions in the bond market or the nature of the issue warrant a
negotiated bid. In such situations, the City will publicly present the reasons for the
negotiated sale. The City will rely on the recommendation of the financial advisor in
the selection of the underwriter or direct purchaser. The financial advisor must meet
all licensing requirements and comply with all MSRB regulations. The City’s financial
advisor will not act as the underwriter on any City bond issue.
D. Disclosure – Full disclosure of operating costs along with capital costs will be made
to the bond rating agencies and other users of financial information. The City staff,
with assistance of the financial advisor and bond counsel, will prepare the necessary
materials for presentation to the rating agencies and will aid in the production of the
Preliminary Official Statements. The City will take responsibility for the accuracy of
all financial information released.
E. Federal Requirements – The City will maintain written procedures to follow post
issuance compliance rules, arbitrage rebate and other Federal requirements.
Post issuance tax compliance rules will include records retention,
arbitrage rebate, use of proceeds, and
Continuing disclosure requirements under SEC Rule 15c2-12, MSRB
standards, or as may be required by bond covenants or related
agreements.
F. Debt Structuring – The City will issue bonds with an average life of twenty (20)
years or less, not to exceed the useful life of the asset acquired. The structure
should approximate level debt service unless operational matters dictate otherwise.
Market factors, such as the effects of tax-exempt designations, the cost of early
redemption options and the like, will be given consideration during the structuring of
long term debt instruments. Exceptions to the 20 year average life include debt
issues for major system expansions, such as water, sewer or electric plants, in which
case the City may issue debt greater than 20 years since the average life of the
asset exceeds 30 years. A cost benefit analysis indicating the impacts of extending
debt beyond 20 years will be completed.
G. Debt Coverage Ratio – Refers to the number of times the current combined debt
service requirements or payments would be covered by the current operating
revenues net of on-going operating expenses of the City’s combined utilities
(Electric, Water, and Wastewater). The City will maintain a minimum debt service
coverage ratio of 1.5 times for these utilities as a whole. The bond ordinances allow
the City to forego a debt reserve fund for its utility debt if the coverage is maintained
at 1.35 times or better. Debt coverage for 2013/14 2014/15 is budgeted at 2.45
___times coverage. A coverage ratio of 1.5 times will also be required for all funds
issuing self-supporting debt.
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H. Bond Reimbursement Resolutions – The City may utilize bond reimbursements as
a tool to manage its debt issues, due to arbitrage requirements and project timing.
In so doing, the City uses its capital reserve "cash" to delay bond issues until such
time when issuance is favorable and beneficial to the City.
The City Council may authorize a bond reimbursement resolution for General Capital
projects that have a direct impact on the City's ad valorem tax rate when the bonds
will be issued within the term of the existing City Council. In the event of unexpected
circumstances that delay the timing of projects, or market conditions that prohibit
financially sound debt issuance, the approved project can be postponed and
considered by a future council until circumstantial issues can be resolved.
The City Council may also authorize revenue bond reimbursements for approved
utility and other self-supporting capital projects within legislative limits. Currently
revenue bonds must be issued within 18 months after an eligible bond funded project
is begun.
The total outstanding bond reimbursements may not exceed the total amount of the
City’s reserve funds.
XIII. OTHER FUNDING ALTERNATIVES:
When at all possible, the City will research alternative funding opportunities prior to
issuing debt or increasing user-related fees.
A. Grants - All potential grants will be examined for any matching requirements and the
source of those requirements identified. A grant funding worksheet, reviewed by
Finance, that clearly identifies funding sources, outcomes and other relevant
information will be presented and approved by the City Council prior to any grant
application being submitted. It must be clearly understood that any resulting
operation requirements of the grant could be discontinued once the term and
conditions of the project have been terminated. The City Council must authorize
acceptance of any grant funding.
B. Use of Reserve Funds - The City may authorize the use of reserve funds to
potentially delay or eliminate a proposed bond issue. This may occur due to higher
than anticipated fund balances in prior years, thus eliminating or reducing the need
for debt proceeds, or postpone a bond issue until market conditions are more
beneficial or timing of the related capital improvements does not correspond with the
planned bond issue. Reserve funds used in this manner are replenished upon
issuance of the proposed debt.
C. Developer Contributions - The City will require developers who negatively impact
the City's utility capital plans offset those impacts. These policies are further defined
within the City's utility line extension policy and other development regulations.
D. Leases - The City may authorize the use of lease financing for certain operating
equipment when it is determined that the cost benefit of such an arrangement is
advantageous to the City.
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E. Impact Fees - The City will impose impact fees as allowable under state law for both
water and wastewater services. These fees will be calculated in accordance with
statute and reviewed at least every three years. All fees collected will fund projects
identified within the Fee study and as required by state laws.
XIV. FINANCIAL CONDITIONS, RESERVES, AND STABILITY RATIOS
The City of Georgetown will maintain budgeted minimum reserves in the ending working
capital/fund balances to provide a secure, healthy financial base for the City in the event
of a natural disaster or other emergency, allow stability of City operations should
revenues fall short of budgeted projections and provide available resources to implement
budgeted expenditures without regard to actual timing of cash flows into the City.
A. Operational Coverage – The City’s goal is to maintain operations coverage of
$1.00, such that operating revenues will at least equal or exceed current operating
expenditures. Deferrals, short-term loans, or one-time sources will be avoided as
budget balancing techniques. Reserves will be used only for emergencies or non-
recurring expenditures, except when balances can be reduced because their levels
exceed guideline minimums as stated below.
1. Operating Reserves – The City will maintain reserves at a minimum of seventy-
five (75) days (20.83%) of net budgeted operating expenditures. Net budgeted
operating expenditure is defined as total budgeted expenditures less interfund
transfers and charges, general debt service (tax supported), direct cost for
purchased power and payments from third party grant monies. Total reserves for
2013/14 2014/15 are $17.85 ____million. The amount of these funds are
allocated within the following operating funds and using the following guidelines
to maintain the fund balance, working capital and retained earnings (reserves) of
the various operating funds at levels sufficient to protect the City’s
creditworthiness, as well as, its financial position from unforeseeable
emergencies.
2. General Fund – The fund balance reserve in the General Fund should equal
ninety (90) days or 25% of annual budgeted General Fund operating
expenditures. 2013/14 2014/15 reserves are $7.5 ____million and are allocated
as follows:
a. Base Level Reserve – will equal sixty (60) days of current year budgeted
operating expenditures which will be designated for emergency use only.
b. Budget Stabilization Reserve – will equal thirty (30) days of current year
budgeted operating expenditures and will be designated to protect the City
against short term operating deficits. The funds will be available for the
following purposes:
i. Defer short term tax increases
ii. Cover revenue shortfalls
iii. Fund unanticipated expenditures
If the Budget Stabilization Reserve is depleted during the fiscal year, the
balance must return to the 30 day requirement within the following year’s
adopted budget.
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3. Tourism Fund – A minimum sixty days (60) or 16.67% of operating expenditures
will be reserved within the fund balance. These funds are designated to be used
to offset any potential revenue shortfall that occurs during the fiscal year and
should be replenished in the following fiscal year’s budget.
4. Water Services Fund – Working capital reserves in should be 25% or ninety (90)
days of operating expenses, net debt service and long-term water contract costs.
These reserves are designated to be used to offset potential revenue shortfalls or
fund unexpected or emergency expenses that occur during the fiscal year.
These reserves should be replenished in the following budget cycle.
5. Other Funds –
Stormwater Drainage Fund - $ 250,000 for unforeseen emergencies or
potential revenue shortfalls
Airport Fund – As funds are available, up to ninety (9045) days or
250.125% of operating expenses (less fuel costs) for unforeseen
emergencies or potential revenue shortfalls
6. Electric Fund – The remaining balance to meet the citywide requirement of
seventy-five (75) days of reserve funds will be maintained within this fund. It can
be used for unforeseen emergencies and expenditures. The Rate Stabilization
Account and the Power Contract Credit Reserve are not included in this
Contingency Reserve.
For all other non-enterprise funds, the fund balance is an indication of the balance of
each particular fund at a specific time. The ultimate goal of each such fund is to
have expended the fund balance at the conclusion of the activity for which the fund
was established.
Reserve requirements will be calculated as part of the annual budget process and
any additional required funds to be added to the reserve balances will be
appropriated within the budget.
Funds in excess of the minimum reserves within each fund may be expended for City
purposes at the will of the City Council once it has been determined that use of the
excess will not endanger reserve requirements in future years. This action requires
an amendment to the City’s Annual Budget.
B. Liabilities and Receivables - Procedures will be followed to maximize discounts
and reduce penalties offered by creditors. Current liabilities will be paid within 30
days of receiving the invoice. Accounts Receivable procedures will target collection
for a maximum of 30 days of service. Receivables aging past 90 days will be sent to
a collection agency. The Chief Financial Officer is authorized to write-off non-
collectible, non-utility accounts that are delinquent for more than 180 days, and utility
accounts delinquent more than 180 days, provided proper delinquency procedures
have been followed, and include this information in the annual report to the City
Council.
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C. Capital Project Funds – Every effort will be made for all monies within the Capital
Project Funds to be expended in a timely manner preferably within thirty-six (36)
months of receipt. The fund balance will be invested and income generated will
offset increases in construction costs or other costs associated with the project.
Capital project funds are intended to be expended totally, with any unexpected
excess to be transferred to the Debt Service fund to service project-related debt
service.
D. General Debt Service Funds – Revenues within this fund are stable, based on
property tax revenues. Balances are maintained to meet contingencies and to make
certain that the next year’s debt service payments may be met in a timely manner.
Fund balance should not fall below 45 days annual debt service requirements, in
accordance with IRS guidelines.
E. Investment of Reserve Funds – The reserve funds will be invested in accordance
with the City’s investment policy. Existing non-cash investment would be exempt
through retirement of the investment.
F. Ratios/Trend Analysis - Ratios and significant balances will be incorporated into
both the mid-year and annual reports to the City Council. This information will
provide users with meaningful data to identify major trends of the City's financial
condition through analytical procedures. The following ratios/balances will be used
as key financial indicators:
Fund Balance/Equity: Assets - liabilities
FB/E AL (Acceptable level) minimum reserve
requirement
Working Capital: Current assets less current liabilities
CA - CL AL minimum reserve requirement
Current Ratio: Current assets divided by current liabilities
CA/CL AL > 1.00
Quick Ratio: "Liquid" current assets divided by current
liabilities
Liquid CA/CL AL > 1.00
Debt/Assessed AV Taxes Debt divided by assessed Ad Valorem value
D/AV AL < 5
Debt Ratio: Current liabilities plus long-term liabilities
divided by total assets
CL +LTL/TA AL < 1
Enterprise Oper Coverage: Operating rev divided by operating expense
OR/OE AL > 1.25
Times Coverage Ratio: Operating revenue less operating expense
divided by annual debt service
(OR-OE)/DSV AL > 1.5
28
The City will be to develop minimum/maximum levels for the above ratios/balances
through analyzing of City historical trends and future projections. These ratios will
also be compared to other similar or regional municipalities for further analysis.
XV. INTERNAL CONTROLS
A. Written Procedures – Wherever possible, written procedures will be established
and maintained by the Chief Financial Officer for all functions involving cash handling
and/or accounting throughout the City. These procedures will embrace the general
concepts of fiscal responsibility set forth in this policy statement.
B. Internal Audit Program - An internal audit program will be maintained by the Chief
Financial Officer to ensure compliance with City policies and procedures and to
prevent the potential for fraud.
1. Departmental Audits – departmental processes will be reviewed to ensure dual
control of City assets and identify the opportunity for fraud potential, as well as, to
ensure that departmental internal procedures are documented and updated as
needed.
2. Employees or Transaction Review. - Programs to be audited include Petty Cash,
City Credit Card accounts, time entry, and travel. All discrepancies will be
identified, and the employee’s Division Director will be notified. The City
Manager will also be notified depending on the seriousness of the infraction.
3. Results of all internal audits will be provided to City Council on a quarterly basis.
C. Division Directors Responsibility – Each division Director is responsible for
ensuring that good internal controls are followed throughout their department, that all
Finance Division directives are implemented and that all independent auditor internal
control recommendations are addressed. Departments will develop and periodically
update written internal control procedures.
XVI. STAFFING AND COMPENSATION
Realizing the importance and contribution of employee’s in achieving and maintaining
the City of Excellence, the City’s goal as an employer is to attract and retain quality
employees who provide excellent, friendly services to our community in an effective and
efficient manner.
A. Adequate Staffing – Staffing levels will be adequate for the fiscal functions of the
City to operate effectively. Workload allocation alternatives will be explored before
adding additional staff.
B. Competitive Compensation – In order to maintain a competitive pay scale, the City
is implementing a Competitive Employee Compensation Maintenance Policy to
address competitive market factors and other issues impacting compensation. The
program consists of:
29
1. Cost of Living Adjustment - (COLA) – To protect City employees from the
effects of general inflation, every odd numbered year, the City may fund a COLA
adjustment for all regular employees not included in a defined pay plan. The
COLA will be based on a three-year rolling average of the Consumer Price
Index (CPI) reported by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics for Southern cities
pertinent to Georgetown’s population.
2. Pay Scale Review – To ensure the City’s pay system is accurate and
competitive within the market, every even numbered year, the City will review its
pay plan for any potential market adjustments necessary to maintain the City’s
pay scale.
3. Pay for Performance – Each year the City will fund pay adjustments to aid in
retaining quality employees while recognizing increased job experience and
rewarding quality performance.
Adjustments are based on the previous year’s annual performance evaluation.
The percentage adjustments are determined by the employee’s position within
their pay grade, including merit adjustments for productivity and quality
performance during the previous fiscal year.
In addition, the City may also choose to fund a one-time on performance that
exceeds expectations during the review period.
C. Self-Insurance Program – The City is committed to providing quality healthcare
insurance that offers the most flexibility in health benefits and options to its
employees. In order to provide the most cost effective solution, the City has
determined that establishing a self-funded health insurance plan offers the greatest
opportunity to mitigate future cost increases while offering quality health care
services to its employees. The City has established a mechanism to manage the
accounts and payments associated with this program. Per GASB Statement No. 66,
such funding should be accounted for as a Special Revenue Fund (SRF).
1. Employee Health Insurance SRF - includes premium contributions from
employees and budgeted health insurance contributions included in the City’s
annual budget process.
2. Self-Insurance Reserves – Over time, all excess premiums or other savings
within the Employee Health Insurance SRF will accumulate and be used for
employee premium rate stabilization. Until such balances occur, the City has
established an internal line of credit up to $1,000,000 to be used for liquidity and
operations if needed to be paid from the City’s Contingency Reserve funds.
3. Employee Premiums – Annual premiums will be recommended to City Council
through a collaborative process between the City’s Employee Benefit Committee
and external consultants using historical data and other analytic analysis.
City of Georgetown, Texas
SUBJECT:
Update on the process and schedule for selection of new independent auditors for the 2013/14 fiscal year
end audit - Susan Morgan, Finance Director
ITEM SUMMARY:
The selection process for new independent auditors is underway as directed by the GGAF Committee at
the March 7, 2014 meeting. The selection committee will be composed of staff and committee members
as follows: Keith Brainard, Tommy Gonzalez, Ralph Mason, Micki Rundell, Susan Morgan and Lisa
Haines.
Here is the current schedule:
April 4, 2014 Post Request For Proposals and notify identified firms
April 30, 2014 Proposals due
May 1 – May 12 Selection committee to review & score proposals
Proposals and scoring sheets will be provided to members
May 13, 2014 Regular Council Workshop and Meeting date
Meet 1 hour before Workshop
Select finalist(s) and confirm interview date
Review interview questions, if needed
May 28, 2014 Regular GGAF Meeting
Meet before and/or after as needed for interviews
Interview finalist(s)
Make recommendation to Council
The RFP is attached and follows best practices as outlined by the Government Finance Officers
Association. The criteria are focused on best qualifications, with pricing a secondary consideration
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
The City paid $46,500 to CliftonLarsonAllen, LLP for the most recent audit. Based on a survey of
comparable cities and increasing auditing standards, the new contract is expected to cost $80,000 -
$100,000 per year.
The increased amount will be p art of the proposed 2014/15 budget
SUBMITTED BY:
Susan Morgan, Finance Director
ATTACHMENTS:
Description Type
Auditors for Select Cities Cover Memo
RFP #201430 Cover Memo
C:\Program Files\neevia.com\docConverterPro\temp\NVDC\86283A98-3745-4480-BD75-
71A0D1E0EBB1\PDFConvert.10930.1.4.23.14Audit_Vendor_List_for_Select_Cities.docx
Review of City Auditors
Based on 2012 or 2013 CAFR’s as of 3/24/14
Bryan* - Weaver
Cedar Park - Belt Harris
College Station* - Ingram, Wallis
Carrollton - Grant Thorton
Denton * - Weaver
Garland* - Deloitte & Touche
Greenville* - Weaver
Kerrville* - BKD
Killeen - Weaver
Lubbock* - BKD
New Braunfels Utilities* - Baker Tilly Virchow Krause (Madison, WI)
Pflugerville - Davis, Kinard
Richardson - KPMG
Round Rock - Brockway, Gersbach
Sugar Land - Whitley Penn (formerly Null Lairson)
San Marcos* - Patillo, Brown & Hill
Temple - Brockway, Gersbach
Weatherford* - Patillo, Brown & Hill
*Denotes Public Power City
CITY OF GEORGETOWN, TEXAS
REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS
FOR
AUDITING SERVICES
RFP #201430
Dated April 4, 2014
DUE DATE FOR RESPONSES
April 30, 2014
2:00 PM
Central Standard Time
City of Georgetown
AUDITING SERVICES
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Table of Contents
1.0 Notice to Proposers 3
2.0 Background and Current Circumstances 3
3.0 Project Purpose and Objectives 6
4.0 Key Event Schedule 6
5.0 Proposal Submission Requirements 7
6.0 Proposal Evaluation/Selection Process 10
7.0 Instructions to Proposers 12
8.0 Terms and Conditions 16
9.0 Scope of Work 17
Exhibit A – Terms and Conditions
City of Georgetown
AUDITING SERVICES
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1.0 Notice to Proposers
The City of Georgetown (the “City”) is soliciting sealed proposals for Request for Proposal (RFP) No.
201430 for Auditing Services
All addenda, notices, additional information, etc. will be posted to the City of Georgetown Purchasing
Department’s web site, http://purchasing.georgetown.org/bid-information/. Seven printed copies
(one original plus six copies) plus one digital copy on CD/DVD of Proposals must be sealed and returned
to the City of Georgetown, Attention: Purchasing Manager, P. O. Box 409, Georgetown, Texas 78627
(mailing address) or 300-1 Industrial Avenue, Georgetown, Texas 78626 (physical address) by 2:00p.m.
Central Standard Time, on April 30, 2014. All proposals must be plainly marked with the proposal name
and RFP number: “Auditing Services, RFP # 201430“.
Proposer is responsible for delivery of response by the date and time set for the closing of the proposal
acceptance. Responses received after the date and time set for the closing will not be considered.
The information contained in these specifications is confidential and is to be used only in connection
with preparing this proposal. The City reserves the right to reject any and all proposals and waive
informalities in proposals received.
All questions concerning this RFP must be addressed to the following point of contact:
Trina Bickford
Purchasing Manager
300-1 Industrial Ave.
Georgetown, Texas 78627
Phone: (512) 930-3647
Fax: (512) 930-9027
Email: purchasing@georgetown.org
2.0 Background and Current Circumstances
2.1 City of Georgetown
The City, founded in 1848 in Williamson County, is located on Interstate 35, and is the northern most
“gateway” to the gently rolling hills of Central Texas. While Georgetown offers the amenities and charm
of a small community, it is strategically and centrally located in the middle of the four major
metropolitan areas of Texas. Austin is 26 miles south of Georgetown, Dallas is two hours north, Houston
is three hours southeast and San Antonio is just one-and a-half hours south, placing Georgetown in a
very advantageous position for cultural and economic development. The City’s encompasses 50.25
square miles and has a current population of approximately 52,214.
2.1.1 The City is a home-rule City operating under a Council-Manager form of government. All
powers of the City are vested in an elected Council consisting of seven members who are elected from
single member districts, and a Mayor elected at large. All serve alternating three-year terms. The City
Council enacts local legislation, determines City policies and appoints the City Manager, the City
Attorney, the Municipal Judge, the City Secretary and members of various boards and commissions.
2.1.2 The City Manager is the chief executive officer and the head of the administrative branch of the
City government, and is responsible to the Council for the proper administration of all affairs of the City
City of Georgetown
AUDITING SERVICES
4
and the appointment and supervision of City Division Directors. An organization chart and list of key
personnel are available on the City’s website at www.georgetown.org.
2.1.3 Services provided by the City under general governmental functions include police and fire
protection, street maintenance, public improvements, planning and zoning, parks operation and
maintenance, library services and administrative services necessary to serve the citizens of Georgetown.
Additionally, airport, electric, storm water drainage, water and wastewater services are operated under
an enterprise fund concept, with user charges set to ensure adequate coverage of operating expenses
and payments on outstanding debt. The City purchases wholesale power using the City of Garland,
Texas, as its QSE, including hedging of power costs and use of Congestion Revenue Rights, but does not
currently use FERC accounting standards for its electric system operations.
The City’s fiscal year begins October 1st and end September 30th. Currently the City has a total bi-weekly
payroll in excess of $1.2 million covering almost 575 full equivalent positions. The City’s accounting and
financial reporting functions are centralized.
2.1.4 The Finance and Administration Division is overseen by the Chief Financial Officer who reports
directly to the City Manager. The division has 78 employees covering the following principal functions:
Finance Administration (5 employees)
Accounting (9 employees)
Customer Care (19 employees)
Facilities Maintenance (7 employees)
Information Technology (12 employees)
Purchasing (8 employees)
Municipal Court (6 employees)
Vehicle Maintenance Services (8 employees)
The City’s tax assessment and collection services are performed by Williamson County under an existing
contract. The bulk of funds are collected through the Finance Division.
2.1.5 Accounting and financial reporting fall under the Finance Administration and Accounting
departments. Additional detailed information on the City including the Charter, current and prior
Comprehensive Annual Financial Reports, Annual Budget, maps and background information on the City
is available on the City’s web site at www.georgetown.org.
2.1.6 City’s Fund Structure
The City uses the following fund types and account groups in its financial reporting:
Fund Type Number of Individual Funds Number with Legally Adopted Annual Budgets
General Fund 1 1
Special Revenue 13 13
Debt Service Funds 1 1
Capital Projects Funds 1 1
Enterprise Funds 4 4
Internal Service Funds 4 4
Agency Funds 3 0
City of Georgetown
AUDITING SERVICES
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2.1.7 Component Units
The City currently has the following component units for inclusion in the City’s financial statements:
The Georgetown Transportation Enhancement Corporation (GTEC), a blended component unit, is a
nonprofit corporation acting under Section 4B of the Development Corporation Act of the State of Texas.
GTEC’s sole purpose is providing transportation improvements for economic development purposes for
the City. Georgetown Economic Development Corporation (GEDCO), a discretely presented component
unit, is a nonprofit corporation operating under Section 4A of the Development Corporation Act.
Both component units are currently audited as a part of the audit of the City’s financial statements, with
no special or separate procedures.
2.1.8 Financial Assistance
During the initial fiscal year to be audited, the City received financial assistance from the following
agencies:
Texas Emergency Management Agency
Texas State Library and Archives Commission
Texas Department of Transportation
Texas Department of Public Safety
Texas Parks and Wildlife
Texas State University
Texas Historical Commission
Williamson County
Department of Justice
2.1.9 Modified Approach
The City has elected to adopt the modified approach of infrastructure assessment allowed under this
GASB 34 for its street and drainage infrastructure. A pavement management system to aid in the
administration of the modified approach was implemented in 2005 and updated in 2008 and 2011. The
City’s Systems Engineering Department oversees the pavement management system and the projects to
ensure compliance with the City Council’s adopted standard.
2.1.10 Information Technology
The City currently utilizes a client-server based packaged software product for its financial applications
supplied by Incode, a subsidiary of Tyler Technologies. The software product has been in use since January
1995, and is routinely updated as new versions are provided by Incode. The financial modules currently in
use include the general ledger, accounts payable, accounts receivable, payroll, budget, utility billing,
centralized cash receipts, municipal court, purchasing, inventory, fixed assets, building permits and human
resources.
2.1.11 Most Recent Audit
The cost for the City’s most recent audit was $49,500, which included preparation of the CAFR. For the
upcoming financial year, the City will prepare its own CAFR rather than outsourcing. Proposals must,
however, include the option for providing services to prepare the CAFR for later fiscal years. The budget
for the 2014 audit and CAFR are not available.
City of Georgetown
AUDITING SERVICES
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2.1.12 Pending Merger with Chisholm Trail Special Utility District
The City is in the process of merging with Chisholm Trail Special Utility District (“CTSUD”), which has
approximately 7400 customers and covers 400 square miles to the west and north of the City’s current
water service area. Once merged, CTSUD’s customers will become part of the City’s customer base
paying at the City’s current out of city rates. The operations will become part of the City’s current Water
Services Fund. Currently the merger is expected to be completed during calendar year 2015. The City
expects the transaction to be considered a merger under GASB Statement 69.
3.0 Project Purpose and Objectives
3.1 Scope of Procurement
The City requests proposals from qualified and experienced public accounting firms, whose principal
offices are independent certified public accountants, to obtain independent audit services for the City’s
fiscal year financial audit. The initial audit will be for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2014, with an
option to extend for up to two subsequent fiscal years. In the event Council directs additional
extensions, additional renewal terms may be added upon mutual agreement of both parties. All
auditing services shall be performed in accordance with generally accepted accounting standards.
The services provided by the successful Proposer must include providing an opinion on the fair
presentation of the City’s basic financial statements in conformity with generally accepted accounting
principles; auditing of the of basic financial statements; performance of certain limited procedures
mandated by generally accepted auditing standards; auditing of information contained in the schedules
of federal and state financial assistance; and performing certain limited procedures on management
controls on investments and adherence to City policy and state laws. The successful Proposer may be
requested to provide other types of services in conjunction with special projects such as additional
audits or reviews of specific areas.
3.2 Ability to combine vendors/products
The City will consider combinations of vendors/products to achieve the entire list of requirements
stated in this RFP. As a result, it is possible for a vendor to propose portions of the solution and specify
compatible products/partners for the remaining parts of the solution. If this approach is taken, the City
will evaluate the number, strength and relationship of the vendors/products proposed to determine if
that approach provides the best value and easiest ongoing operation for the City.
4.0 RFP Key Events Schedule
Issue RFP April 4, 2014
Deadline for questions on RFP April 21, 2014, 5PM CST
Proposals Due April 30, 2014, 2PM CST
City evaluation of proposals completed (approx.) May 1-12, 2014
Interviews (if scheduled)/Selection of contractor (approx.) May 13-28, 2014
Council Approval of Contract Award (approx.) June 10, 2014
It is the expectation of the City that initial audit planning in late June 2014.
City of Georgetown
AUDITING SERVICES
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5.0 Proposal Submission Requirements
5.1 Proposal Submission Format
The Purchasing Department will not accept oral proposals, or proposals received by telephone, FAX
machine, or telegraph.
The proposal must be submitted in hard copy. The Proposer shall submit seven printed copies (one
original plus six copies) of the proposal submission, plus one digital copy on CD/DVD, to consist of:
· Title Page with title of RFP (“Auditing Services”) and the RFP number (“RFP #201430“);
Proposer’s name; name, address, phone number and email address of primary contact person;
and date of the proposal;
· Table of Contents including an index of the proposal contents and attachments, with page
numbers;
· Transmittal Letter signed by authorized signer, containing Proposer’s name, office address and
contact person(s) authorized to respond to technical, pricing and/or contract related inquiries.
The transmittal letter must briefly state the Proposer’s understanding the required services,
Proposer’s commitment to perform the work within required time frame, a statement
describing why Proposer is the best qualified to perform the required services and a statement
that the proposal is a firm and irrevocable offer for the minimum validity period stated in this
RFP;
· Executive Summary providing a summation of the proposal in three pages or less, and
identifying points which make the Proposer uniquely qualified to provide the required services;
· Quality Control Review consisting of a copy of the Proposer’s most recent external quality
control review, with a statement indicating whether or not the quality control review included a
review of specific governmental engagements. Additionally, provide information on results of
any federal or state desk reviews or field reviews of Proposer’s audits over the past three years
and information on any disciplinary action taken or pending against Proposer during the past
three years with any state regulatory bodies or professional organizations;
· Detailed Proposal in accordance with the requirements of Section 9 of this RFP;
· An affirmative statement that is independent of the City as defined in generally accepted
auditing standards and the US General Accounting Office’s Government Auditing Standards
(2007). Proposer must also list and describe any prior professional relationships involving the
City or any of its agencies, component units or oversight units for the past five years, together
with a statement detailing why such relationships do not constitute a conflict of interest relative
to performance of the proposed auditing services. The successful Proposer must provide
written notice of any professional relationships entered into during the term of any agreement
resulting from this RFP;
· An affirmative statement stating the Proposer and all assigned key professional staff are
properly licensed to practice in the State of Texas;
· Detailed description of technical qualifications, expertise and experience, addressing all points
outlined in the evaluation criteria (reference Section 6.1);
City of Georgetown
AUDITING SERVICES
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· A concise description of the Proposer’s overall size, the size of the governmental audit staff, the
location of the office from which work is to be performed and the number and nature of the
professional staff (listed as both full time and part time) to be assigned to any contract resulting
from this RFP. If Proposer is a joint venture or consortium, the qualifications of each party
comprising the joint venture or consortium must be separately identified and the party serving
as the principal auditor, if applicable, must be noted. Proposer must submit a copy of its most
recent external quality control review report with a statement indicating if the quality control
review included a review of specific government engagements. Proposer must provide
information on the results of any federal or state desk reviews or field reviews of its audits
during the past three years, and detailed information on the circumstances and status of any
disciplinary action taken or pending against the Proposer by any state regulatory bodies or
professional organizations during the past three years;
· Proposer must identify the principal supervisory and managerial staff, including engagement
partners, managers, other supervisors and specialists, proposed to be assigned for the
engagement described in this RFP, and indicate if each person is licensed to practice as a
certified public accountant (“CPA”) in the State of Texas. Proposer must also provide
information on the qualifications, government auditing experience of each person, including
relevant continuing professional education over the past three years and membership in
professional organizations, relevant to the performance of the audit described in this RFP.
Proposer must specify how the quality of staff will be assured during the term of any agreement
resulting from this RFP. Engagement partners, managers, other supervisory staff and specialist
may be changed in the event such personnel leaves Proposer’s employment, is promoted or is
reassigned – changes for other reasons require advance written authorization of the City. In all
cases, the City retains the right to approve or reject replacement staff. Consultants and firm
specialists mentioned in proposal may only be changed with advance written authorization from
the City, and the City retains the right to approve or reject replacement personnel. Other audit
personnel may be changed at the discretion of the successful Proposer provide replacement
personnel possess substantially equal qualifications and experience;
· A list of the most significant engagements performed in the last three years similar in size and
scope to the engagement described in this RFP, including descriptions of scope of work, dates of
engagement, engagement partners, total hours and the name and contact information for the
principal client contact. Additionally indicate if the CAFR issued in connection with the audit was
awarded the GFOA’s Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting;
· Proposer must detail a work plan, including an explanation of the audit methodology to be
followed, for performance of the services described in this RFP. The audit approach description
must be detailed and address all points in Section 6.1.1. In developing the work plan, reference
must be made to source of information such as the City’s budget and related materials,
organizational charts and financial and other management information systems. Information on
Proposer’s audit approach must include:
Proposed segmentation (such as planning, cash and investment, debt, revenue,
compliance – federal programs, etc.);
Proposed level of staff and number of hours to be assigned to each segment;
City of Georgetown
AUDITING SERVICES
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Proposed extent to which statistical sampling is to be used, including sampling
methods, sizes and areas of use;
Proposed extent of use of computer audit tools;
Proposed type and extent of analytical procedures to be used;
Proposed approach to gain and document an understanding of the City’s
internal control structure;
Proposed approach to determining laws and regulations that will be subject to
audit test work; and
Proposed approach to utility revenue testing including electric revenues
· Proposal must identify and describe any potential audit problems, the proposed approach to
resolution and any special assistance which may be requested from the City;
· The proposed fee including all pricing information relative to performance of the audit services
described in this RFP – a total all-inclusive maximum price, including all direct costs and all
indirect costs including out of pocket expenses, must be specified for the initial 2014 audit as
well as the two subsequent fiscal years. The City will not be responsible for expenses incurred in
preparation of a response to the RFP and such cost shall not be included in proposed all
inclusive pricing. The pricing proposal must include a schedule of professional fees and
expenses supporting the all-inclusive maximum price. In the event the City requests additional
work as a result of specific recommendations included in any report issued, such work shall only
be performed with advance written authorization of the City and the professional fees and
expense rates included in the original proposal shall apply. The City anticipates progress
payments based on the number of hours of completed work and out of pocket expenses
incurred in accordance to successful Proposer’s proposal and the resulting agreement; and
· In addition to the fee proposal above, Proposer must provide a separate detailed description
and fee proposal for preparation of the CAFR on the City’s behalf. The description must include
at a minimum Proposer’s technical and publishing capabilities, and experience in preparation of
a CAFR for other Texas municipalities.
The Proposer may also provide supplemental marketing or technical materials, to be packaged
separately from the proposal. No materials provided by the Proposer will be returned at any time
during or following this procurement.
Proposal must address all points outlined in this RFP and must demonstrate Proposer’s qualifications,
competence and capacity of Proposer in conformity with the requirements of this RFP. The substance of
proposals is of greater of importance than the form or manner of presentation; responses should be
formatted as clearly and concisely as possible. Proposals must detail the staff proposed to provide the
services specified in this RFP, and a detailed description of the proposed audit approach to meet all
requirements of this RFP.
5.2 Proposal Time Stamp
The time proposals are received shall be determined by the time clock stamp in the Purchasing
Department. Purchasing Department personnel will promptly timestamp submissions as they are
City of Georgetown
AUDITING SERVICES
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received. Proposers are responsible for insuring that their proposals are received and stamped by
Purchasing Department personnel by the deadline indicated.
5.3 Proposer Representations and Responsibilities
By submitting a proposal in response to this Request for Proposal, the Proposer represents that it has
read and understands all elements of this Request for Proposal and has familiarized itself with all
federal, state, and local laws, ordinances, and rules and regulations that in any manner may affect the
cost, progress, or performance of the contract work.
By submitting a proposal in response to this Request for Proposal, the Proposer represents that is has
not relied exclusively upon any technical details contained in this RFP in place or under consideration for
implementation by the City, but has supplemented this information through due diligence research and
that the Proposer sufficiently understands the issues relative to the indicated requirements.
The failure or omission of any Proposer to receive or examine any form, instrument, addendum, or
other documents or to acquaint itself with conditions existing at the site or other details shall in no way
relieve any Proposer from any obligations with respect to its proposal or to the contract.
5.4 Proposal Withdrawal
A proposal may be modified or withdrawn by the Proposer any time prior to the time and date set for
the receipt of proposals. The Proposer shall notify the Purchasing Department in writing of its
intentions.
1. If a change in the proposal is requested, the modification must be so worded by the Proposer as
to not reveal the original amount of the proposal.
2. Modified and withdrawn proposals may be resubmitted to the Purchasing Department up to the
time and date set for the receipt of proposals.
3. No proposal can be withdrawn after the time set for the receipt of proposals and for sixty (60)
days thereafter.
5.5 Late Proposals
All proposals received in the Purchasing Department on time shall be accepted. All late proposals
received by the Purchasing Department shall be returned upon request to the Proposer unopened.
Proposals shall be open to public inspection only after award of the contract.
5.6 Proposer Questions
Proposers may contact the individual listed in Section 1 with any questions regarding this RFP. Proposers
should not attempt to contact City Council members, the City staff or management directly during the
pre-proposal or post proposal period.
6.0 Proposal Evaluation/Selection Process
The City has made every effort to provide a comprehensive statement of requirements through this RFP.
Proposers must provide written proposals explicitly and completely describing Proposer’s qualifications
and understanding of the work to be performed. Proposals must address each evaluation criteria listed
in Section 6.1, detailing Proposer’s qualifications with regard to each criteria. Proposals must be
City of Georgetown
AUDITING SERVICES
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sufficiently detailed and explicit to allow proper evaluation of Proposer’s capabilities to provide required
services.
Selection may be made of one or more Proposers deemed to be fully qualified and best suited among
those submitting proposals. Interview, by phone or in person, and reference interviews will be
conducted for the Proposer(s) selected. The City reserves the right to award based on the responses
received or to negotiate with any or all of the Proposers so selected. Price shall be considered, but will
not be the sole determining factor. The City may also award to other than the highest ranked proposer
in the event the best and final price submitted by the proposer is more than the budget available for the
project. The City shall select the Proposer which, in its opinion, has made the proposal that is most
beneficial to the City, and shall award the contract to that Proposer. Should the City determine in writing
and in its sole discretion that only one Proposer is fully qualified or that one Proposer is clearly more
highly qualified than the others under consideration, a contract may be negotiated and awarded to that
Proposer. The award document will be a contract incorporating by reference all the requirements, terms
and conditions of the solicitation and the Proposer's proposal as negotiated.
6.1 Evaluation Criteria
The City has established specific, weighted criteria for selection. This section presents the evaluation
criteria, their description, and the relative weight assigned to each (100 points maximum).
6.1.1 Technical Qualifications – 85 points total consisting of:
Expertise and Experience – 50 points total
· Proposer’s past experience and performance on comparable government engagements
(20 points)
· Quality of Proposer’s professional staff proposed to provide required services and the
quality of the Proposer’s management support staff available for technical consultation
(15 points)
· Proposer’s past experience with GFOA Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in
Financial Reporting Program (5 points)
· Proposer’s past experience and performance with Single Audits and tests of compliance
with laws and regulations (5 points)
· Ability to perform additional services and provide technical support throughout the year
(5 points)
Audit Approach – 35 points total
· Comprehensiveness of audit work plan and adequacy of sampling techniques (20 points)
· Adequacy of study and evaluation of internal accounting and administrative controls (10
points)
· Adequacy of proposed staffing plan for various segments of the engagement and the
quality of the Proposer’s management support personnel available for technical
consultation (5 points)
6.1.2 Cost – 15 points
The City will evaluate price as an important but not overriding factor
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6.2 Proposal Evaluation Process
Each proposal will be reviewed, evaluated, and scored as part of the formal selection process. Each
proposal will be reviewed independently based solely on the merits of the proposal. The proposals will
then be scored and, if necessary, a short list of Proposers will be selected for additional evaluation,
Proposer presentations, demonstrations, and reference checks. Proposals determined to be outside of
the competitive range or not meeting minimum requirements will not be considered further.
During the evaluation process, one or more Proposers may be requested to make oral presentations –
such presentations may not be requested from any or all Proposers. The City may request personal
interviews with one or more Proposer prior to selection. The City shall not be liable for any costs
associated with oral presentations or interviews.
Final approval of the successful Proposer will be required from the City Council, after review of the
evaluation committee’s recommendation for award by the General Government and Finance Advisory
Board (“GGAF”). The City Council may concur or reject the recommendation of staff and/or GGAF.
Formal award may not be made until approved by City Council.
7.0 Instructions to Proposers
7.1 General Conditions
A. Proposers interested in responding to this RFP must include the following information as a part of
response. Failure to provide in the proposal any information requested in this RFP may result in the
disqualification of the proposal.
1. Each Proposer shall furnish a complete name, mailing address and telephone number.
2. Each proposal must designate the individual(s), along with respective telephone numbers, who
will be responsible for answering technical and contractual questions with respect to their
proposal.
3. The City, in its sole discretion, expressly reserves the right to request and/or require any
additional information from the Proposer(s) that it deems relevant with respect to this RFP.
4. Cost for developing proposals is entirely the responsibility of the Proposer and shall not be
chargeable to the City.
5. Samples of reports may be requested by the City for evaluation purposes. Any sample that fails
evaluation process for any reason may be considered sufficient reason to reject a proposal. The
City reserves the right to determine if a sample fails to meet specifications.
6. Proposals should not contain promotional or display materials, except as they may directly
answer, in whole or in part, questions contained in the RFP. Such exhibits shall be clearly
marked with the applicable reference number of the questions in the RFP.
7. The contents of the proposal and any clarification or counter proposal thereto submitted by the
successful Proposer shall become part of the contractual obligation and incorporated by
reference into the ensuing contract.
8. Products and services not specifically mentioned in this RFP, but which are necessary to provide
the functional capabilities described by the Proposer shall be included in the proposal.
9. It is intended that this RFP describe the requirements and response format in sufficient detail to
secure comparable proposals.
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10. A Proposer may withdraw his/her proposal by submitting a written request for its withdrawal
over the signature of an authorized individual to the Purchasing Manager any time prior to the
submission deadline. The Proposer may thereafter submit a new proposal prior to the deadline.
Modifications offered in any manner will not be considered if submitted after the deadline.
11. The successful Proposer may be required to provide an affidavit that he/she has not conspired
with other potential suppliers in any manner to attempt to control competitive pricing. This
paragraph does not, however, preclude two or more suppliers of certain parts of the
requirements from presenting a combined or joint proposal for the purpose of providing a
complete proposal.
12. Pursuant to Texas Local Government Code Section 262.030 of VTCA, proposals shall be opened
so as to avoid disclosure of the contents to competing offers. Details will not be released until all
ensuing negotiations have been completed and contractual agreements have been executed. All
information submitted on this RFP will be public record.
13. All proposals become the property of the City and will not be returned to the Proposer.
14. By submitting a response, Proposer certifies that he/she is a duly qualified, capable and
otherwise bondable business entity that he/she is not in Receivership or contemplates same,
and has not filed for bankruptcy.
15. Submission of a proposal in response to this RFP shall affirm that the Proposer shall not
discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment because of race, religion, sex,
sexual preference, color or national origin and that the firm shall make efforts to ensure that
employment is offered to applicants without regard to their race, religion, sexual preference,
color and national origin.
16. Proposer, its employees, subcontractors, and agents shall comply with all applicable federal and
state laws, the charter and ordinances of the City of Georgetown, Texas, and all applicable rules
and regulations promulgated by all local, state, and national boards, bureaus, and agencies.
Successful Proposer shall further obtain and maintain all permits and licenses required, if any,
for the performance of any services required hereunder.
B. Award of Contract
1. The award of the contract shall be made to the responsible Proposer, whose proposal is
determined to be the best evaluated offer from negotiation, taking into consideration the
relative importance of price and other evaluation factors set forth in Sections 9.0. All proposals
must be valid for a minimum of sixty days from the RFP closing date.
2. All proposals submitted in accordance with the requirements of this RFP shall be considered
offers to contract on the terms contained in the proposals and in this RFP and at the price
offered by the successful Proposer. When the City awards a contract to the successful Proposer,
it will constitute an acceptance of that offer and a contract between the City and the successful
Proposer embodying the terms of this RFP and the proposal will become effective on the date of
such award.
C. Reservations
1. The City expressly reserves the right to:
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i. Waive any defect, irregularity or informality in any proposal;
ii. Reject or cancel any or all proposals, or part(s) of any proposal;
iii. Accept proposals from one or more Proposers; and/or;
iv. Procure services by other means.
2. In considering the proposal(s), the City reserves the right to select the acceptable Proposer(s)
who will offer contractual terms and conditions most favorable to the City.
3. Requirements stated in the RFP shall become part of any contract with the Proposer(s) resulting
from this RFP, and any deviations from these requirements must be specifically defined by the
Proposer in the resulting proposal, request for clarification and/or counter proposal which, if
accepted, shall also become part of any contract resulting from this RFP. The City, however,
reserves the right to modify the specifications of this RFP contract for segments of this RFP,
and/or negotiate the price and any other terms with prospective Proposers, as needed.
D. Other Conditions
1. Venue:
Any contract awarded based on this RFP shall be governed by and construed in accordance with
the laws of the State of Texas, is fully performable in Georgetown, Texas, and venue for any
action related to this contract will be Georgetown, Texas.
2. Warranties and Service:
The implied warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose shall not be
waived under this RFP or any contract awarded from this RFP except as expressly authorized in
writing by the City granting the waiver.
3. Assignment:
The work to be provided under this RFP, or any part of the work to be provided under this RFP,
shall not be assignable by the Proposer without the express written permission of the City.
E. Insurance
Successful Proposer shall procure and maintain, at its sole cost and expense for the duration of any
contract resulting from this RFP, insurance against claims for injuries to persons or damages to
property which may arise from or in connection with the performance of the work hereunder by
successful Proposer, his agents, representatives, volunteers, employees or subcontractors, the
following coverages:
a. Workers’ Compensation Insurance at statutory limits, including employer’s liability
coverage at minimum limits. In addition to these, the successful Proposer must meet
each stipulation required by the Texas Workers Compensation Commission (TWCC)
(Note: for questions concerning these requirements, contact the TWCC at (512) 440-
3789). This requirement may be waived only with satisfactory evidence that the
successful Proposer is a sole proprietor/has no employees.
b. Commercial General Liability Insurance at minimum combined single limits of
$1,000,000 per occurrence and $2,000,000 general aggregate for bodily injury and
property damage, which coverage shall include premises/operations,
products/completed operations, independent contractors, and contractual liability each
at $500,000 per occurrence. Coverage must be written on an occurrence form.
Additional insured endorsement is required.
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c. Business Auto Liability Insurance shall be no less than $1,000,000 combined single limit
each accident for bodily injury and property damage, including owned, non-owned, and
hired vehicle coverage. In the event successful Proposer provides evidence that it owns
no vehicles, this requirement may be amended to require coverage for hired and non-
owned vehicles. The amended coverage requirement may be satisfied by way of
endorsement to the Commercial General Liability, or separate Business Auto policy.
d. Professional Liability Insurance shall be no less than $1,000,000 per occurrence and shall
pay all sums the successful Proposer shall become legally obligated to pay as damages
by reason of any act, malpractice, error or omission of the successful Proposer or any
person employed by or acting on the successful Proposer’s behalf, including but not
limited to subcontractors. For policies written on a “claims-made” basis, the successful
Proposer shall maintain a retroactive date prior to or equal to the effective date of any
contract resulting from this RFP and that continuous coverage shall be maintained or a
supplemental extended reporting period shall be purchased with a minimum reporting
period of not less than two years after completion of any contract resulting from this
RFP, including any extensions/renewals. The successful Proposer shall be solely
responsible for any additional premium(s) for the supplemental extended reporting
period.
e. Umbrella or Excess Liability coverage may be procured to satisfy minimum liability limits
for Commercial General Liability and/or Business Auto Liability. The annual aggregate
shall not be less than the higher “per occurrence” limit. Successful Proposer shall
endorse the City as an additional insured unless the Certificate states the Umbrella or
Excess Liability provides coverage on a pure “True Follow Form” basis.
f. Successful Proposer shall provide certificates of insurance executed by a duly authorized
representative of each insurer, showing compliance with all insurance requirements nop
later than five days from notification of intent to award, but in any event prior to
commencement of work. The certificates must be from a company with an A.M. Best
rating of “A-VI” or better, and/or as acceptable to the City. Certificates must be
submitted using the ACORD form and all endorsements must be included. The
certificates must contain a provision that coverage under such policies shall be endorsed
to provide the City a thirty day notice of cancellation, material change in coverage, or
non-renewal of coverage. Applicable policies shall also be endorsed to name the City as
an additional insured on General Liability and Auto. In the event a required insurance is
cancelled or non-renewed during the term of any contract resulting from this RFP, the
successful Proposer shall furnish prior to the expiration of such insurance, new or
revised certificates as proof of equal and like coverage in effect. The City may withhold
payment to the successful Proposer until coverage is reinstated. If the successful
Proposer fails to maintain the required minimum insurance coverages, the City reserves
the right to procure the required insurance at the successful Proposer’s expense.
g. Waiver of Subrogation in favor of the City with respect to General Liability, Auto and
Workers’ Compensation.
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h. Noncompliance may result in the contract being awarded to the next lowest responsive
and responsible Proposer.
i. Successful Proposer’s insurance shall be deemed primary with respect to any insurance
or self-insurance carried by the City for liability arising out of operations under any
contract resulting from this RFP. Successful Proposer shall be fully and solely
responsible for any and all costs or expenses as a result of coverage deductible,
coinsurance penalty or self-insured retention, including any loss not covered because of
the operation of such deductible, coinsurance penalty or self-insured retention.
j. The City reserves the right to review these requirements and to modify minimum
requirements to best serve the City’s interest. The City reserves the right to review and
reject any insurer providing covering in the event of insurer’s poor financial condition.
F. Safety – successful Proposer shall perform the work in accordance with applicable laws, codes,
ordinances, and regulations of the state of Texas and the United States and in compliance with
OSHA and other laws as they apply to its employees. Proposer shall be solely responsible. successful
Proposer assumes responsibility and liability and hereby agrees to indemnify the City from any
liability caused by successful Proposer’s failure to comply with applicable federal, state, or local
regulations, touching upon the maintenance of a safe and protected working environment.
G. Authorized Signature
1. Persons who have the legal authority must sign all proposal forms.
H. Successful Proposer’s Understanding and Duty
1. The successful Proposer, its employees, subcontractors, and agents shall comply with all
applicable federal and state laws, the charter and ordinances of the City of Georgetown, Texas,
and all applicable rules and regulations promulgated by all local, state, and national boards,
bureaus, and agencies. Successful Proposer shall further obtain and maintain all permits and
licenses required, if any, for the performance of any services required hereunder.
2. Successful Proposer will be responsible for conducting criminal background checks and verifying
employment eligibility on all custodial employees that will have access to City property in
accordance with the state and federal laws.
I. Identification
1. Identification must be worn by employees of the successful Proposer while fulfilling their duties
at the specified City sites.
8.0 Terms and Conditions
The City expects the successful Proposer to agree to the standard terms and conditions that would be
extended by the City for the purchase of comparable products and services. The City’s standard terms
and conditions are attached for referenced. These terms and conditions or, in the sole discretion of City,
terms and conditions substantially similar, will constitute and govern any agreement resulting from this
RFP. If Proposer takes exception to any terms or conditions, Proposer must submit a list of the
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exceptions as part of its proposal. Proposer’s exceptions will be reviewed by City and may result in
disqualification of Proposer’s proposal as non-responsive to this RFP. If Proposer’s exceptions do not
result in disqualification of Proposer’s proposal, then City may consider Proposer’s exceptions when City
evaluates the Proposer’s proposal. Any additional agreements, contracts, terms and conditions, or
other required documents must be included in response.
9.0 Mandatory Requirements, Scope of Work, Detailed Specifications
9.1 Mandatory Requirements
Proposers not meeting the mandatory minimum requirements will not be evaluated further. For
consideration of award, Proposer must submit satisfactory documentation of the following:
· Proposer is independent and licensed to practice in the State of Texas;
· Proposer has no conflict of interest with regard to any other work performed for the City;
· Proposer’s professional personnel have received adequate continuing professional education
within the preceding two years to meet the Government Audit Standards;
· Proposal includes a copy of Proposer’s most recent external quality control review report;
· Proposer has record of quality audit work;
· Proposer has performed a minimum of five audits of comparable Texas municipalities in the past
two years;
· Proposer has performed a minimum of two or more audits of comparable Texas municipalities
with municipal electric utilities or Texas public power entities;
· Proposer has prepared and/or reviewed a minimum of five CAFRs which have received GFOA’s
Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting; and
· Proposer adheres to the instructions in this RFP with regard to preparation and submission of a
response.
9.2 Scope of Work
The successful Proposer must:
· Provide a written opinion on the fair presentation of the City’s basic financial statements in
conformity with the generally accepted accounting principles;
· Audit the basic financial statements, consisting of government wide statements and combined
statements for all fund types including major and non-major funds. The successful Proposer must
provide an “in-relation-to” statement on the combining and non-major fund type statements and
supplementary schedules based on auditing procedures applied during the audit of the basic
financial statements. The successful Proposer will not be required to audit the statistical section of
the report; this section will remain unaudited but must be reviewed;
· Perform certain limited procedures involving supplementary information required by the
Governmental Accounting Standards Board (“GASB”) as mandated by generally accepted auditing
standards;
· Advise the City on meeting the most current Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) or other
post disclosure requirements in its supplementary section of the CAFR;
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· Audit information contained in a schedule of federal and state financial assistance – this
information must be subjected to the auditing procedures applied in the audit of basic financial
statements and in accordance with Governmental Auditing Standards, the Single Audit Act as
amended in 1996, US Office of Management and Budget (“OMB”) Circular A-133 and the State of
Texas Uniform Grants Management Standards, Chapter IV, Texas State Single Audit Circular. As
needed, an opinion of the fair presentation of this schedule in relation to the basic financial
statements taken as a whole must be provided; and
· Perform certain limited procedures on management controls on investments and adherence to
the City’s established investment policies, as required by Texas state law.
The successful Proposer’s primary contact with the City will be the Controller. The City will have all
records prepared for audit and all management personnel available to meet the successful Proposer’s
personnel after award at a mutually established date/time/location.
9.3 Additional Services
In addition to the services above, the successful Proposer may be requested to provide other types of
services, collectively referred to as “special projects”. Examples include additional audits or reviews of
specific areas such as the City’s utility funds, component units, cost studies and other consulting services.
The scope of the City’s annual audit may be broadened and/or special projects assigned with the advance
written consent of the City, and fees for such additional services must be determined in writing in advance.
9.4 Compliance with Auditing Standards
All auditing services must be provided in accordance with:
· Generally accepted auditing standards as adopted by the membership of the American Institute of
Certified Public Accountants and GASB;
· Standards for financial audits as set forth in the US General Accounting Office’s (“GAO”)
Government Auditing Standards (2011);
· Provisions of the federal Single Audit Act of 1996 and the provisions of OMB Circular A-133, Audits
of State and Local Governments;
· Applicable state and federal laws or regulations; and
· Procedures established by applicable City Charter and City Ordinances
9.5 Required Reports
The primary purpose of the required auditing services shall be to express an opinion on the basic financial
statements taken as a whole. The combining and non-combining major fund type statements and
supplementary schedules shall be subject to the same auditing procedures as the audit of the basic
financial statements.
Following the completion of audit of the fiscal year’s financial statements, the successful Proposer shall
issue all reports currently required by the state and federal grantors, the American Institute of Certified
Public Accountants, GASB, the Government Finance Officers Association (“GFOA”) of the United States and
Canada, and any other regulatory agencies.
In the required reports on internal audits, the successful Proposer shall communicate any reportable
conditions discovered during the audit to the Chief Financial Officer and the City’s governing body. A
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reportable condition shall be defined as a significant deficiency in the design or operation of the internal
control structure which could adversely affect the City’s ability to record, process, summarize and report
financial data consistent with the assertions of management in the financial statements. Reportable
conditions that are also material weaknesses shall be identified as such in the report.
Non-reportable conditions discovered by the successful Proposer shall be reported in a separate letter to
management, which shall be referenced in the reports on internal controls.
A report shall also be issued on the supplementary schedule of federal and state financial assistance
programs and the internal control structure used in administering those financial assistance programs.
The successful Proposer shall be required to make an immediate written report to the Chief Financial
Officer and the governing body detailing any and all irregularities and illegal acts discovered.
Upon written request, the successful Proposer shall provide detailed reports including audited financial
statements on the City’s component units or the utility, the cost for which must be established in writing in
advance.
The successful Proposer shall ensure that the City’s Mayor and governing body are informed of all items
required by regulatory agencies including:
· Responsibilities of auditors under generally accepted and government auditing standards;
· Significant accounting policies;
· Management judgments and accounting estimates;
· Significant audit adjustments;
· Other information in documents containing audited financial statements;
· Disagreements with management;
· Management consultation with other professional accountants;
· Major issues discussed with management prior to retention of the selected firm; and
· Difficulties encountered in performing the audit.
The successful Proposer shall provide the City with information relating to regulation changes that affect
the City and its operations such as timely notification of changes proposed or initiated by GASB, FASB or
GAO.
9.6 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR)
City staff prepares all information included in the City’s CAFR, and the success Proposer shall review this
information and approve the CAFR prior to printing. The successful Proposer shall prepare or assist in the
preparation of GASB Statement 34 entries, and advise and assist in the implementation of any new
pronouncements. The schedule of federal and state financial assistance, and related auditor’s reports as
well as reports on internal control structure and compliance must be included in the CAFR. As the CAFR
must be submitted no later than the fourth Tuesday in February, coordination of schedules shall be
required between the successful Proposer and the City's staff during December and January of each year.
9.7 Special Considerations
The City has received the Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting from the
Government Finance Officers Association annually since 1987. The City submits its CAFR annually for
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consideration and the successful Proposer shall be required to provide assistance in meeting the
requirements of this program. The successful Proposer shall advise and assist in addressing reviewer
comments and ensuring GFOA guidelines are appropriately met.
The schedule of federal and state financial assistance and related auditor’s report, as well as the reports on
the internal control structure and compliance must be included in the CAFR.
The City anticipates preparation of one or more official statements in connection with the sale of debt
securities containing the general purpose financial statements and the successful Proposer’s report on
such statements. The successful Proposer shall be required to issue a “consent and citation of expertise”
as the auditor and any necessary “comfort letters” upon request by the financial advisor and/or the
underwriter.
9.8 Retention of and Access to Working Papers
At the request of the City, copies of any or all working papers prepared in connection with the audit
engagement shall be provided on a timely basis at no additional cost to the City.
All working papers and reports must be retained, at the successful Proposer’s expense, for a minimum of
three years unless the firm is notified in writing by the City of the need to extend the retention period. The
successful Proposer shall be required to make working papers available upon request to the following
parties:
· The City;
· Federal grant agencies and other federal agencies;
· State of Texas grant agencies and other State of Texas agencies; and
· Auditors of entities of which the City is a sub recipient of grant funds
Additionally, the successful Proposer shall respond to reasonable inquiries of successor auditors and allow
successor auditors to review working papers relating to matters of continuing accounting significance.
9.9 Schedule for Initial Fiscal Year Audit
The successful Proposer shall submit a schedule of the following audit functions to the Controller for
review:
1. Audit planning and scheduling – expected to be performed in late June.
2. Interim – expected start and completion dates (early to mid-September). Historically, auditors
have spent 2 weeks or less on site.
3. Information to be provided by the City – a list of all schedules and other assistance to be provided
by the City’s staff. The list must be submitted to the Controller no later than August 1, 2014 and of
each fiscal year if renewed.
4. Completion of field work for initial audit – the successful Proposer shall make every effort to
complete all required field work no later than December 5, 2014. Historically, auditors have spent
two weeks or less on site.
9.10 Entrance Conferences, Progress Reports and Exit Conferences
The successful Proposer shall schedule an entrance conference, periodic progress reports and an exit
conference with the Chief Financial Officer or the Finance Director. Fees for these events must be stated
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in the proposal. In the event additional meetings are required, such meetings must be agreed upon in
writing in advance by the City.
9.11 Final Report Due Date
City staff will prepare draft financial statements, notes and all required supplementary schedules and
statistical data for submission to the successful Proposer for review no later than January 16, 2014 and the
successful Proposer shall provide all recommendations, revisions and suggestions for improvements to the
Chief Financial Officer within five days of receipt of the draft. The City must file a draft copy of the CAFR
with the City Secretary no later than January 31st of each year.
City Staff will complete revisions to the draft as expeditiously as possible, expected not to exceed one
week. During this period the successful Proposer shall be available for required discussions of the audit
reports.
After resolution of all issues for discussion, the original opinion letters shall be delivered to the Chief
Financial Officer. Completion of the process is expected in time for presentation to the City Council at its
second meeting in February, the fourth Tuesday of the month. City Council meetings are held the second
and fourth Tuesdays of each month, and City staff will make a presentation covering significant matters of
financial operations and on any material findings reported in the management letter.
9.12 Assistance Provided by City Staff; Report Preparation
City staff will prepare supporting schedules and all financial statements. All working papers and schedules
to be prepared by the City must be submitted in writing to the Chief Financial Officer on or before August
1st of each year, along with adequate detail and explanation as to the purpose of the working papers as
well as the method of preparing the working papers. City staff will be available to the successful Proposer
for purposes of pulling invoices, providing access to proper files or for explanation of procedures.
City staff and responsible management will be available during normal working hours throughout the
course of the audit to assist the successful Proposer by providing information, documentation and
explanations. Preparation of confirmation shall be the sole responsibility of the successful Proposer but
will be typed by City staff.
Additionally, clerical support will be made available to the successful Proposer for preparation of routine
letters and memoranda during mutually acceptable hours.
9.13 Facilities, Equipment
The City will provide the successful Proposer with a reasonable work space, table and chairs. Additionally,
the successful Proposer will have access to phones, photocopying equipment and FAX machines provided
no long distance charges accrue to the City – all long distance charges must be include in cost proposal as
well as any other associated charges.
9.14 Report Preparation
Unless otherwise agreed upon in advance and in writing, report preparation, editing, typing and printing
will be the City’s responsibility – the successful Proposer shall review the draft report and provide the City
with opinion letters for inclusion in the CAFR after acceptance of the report.
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EXHIBIT A
CITY OF GEORGETOWN
Standard Terms and Conditions
By acceptance of a purchase order or agreement, or response to a solicitation, Vendor agrees the following terms and conditions, without
modification, will govern:
I. DEFINITIONS
The following definitions shall be used to identify terms throughout procurement documents:
A. AGREEMENT/CONTRACT – A mutually binding legal document obligating the Vendor to furnish the goods,
equipment or services specified within the solicitation and obligating the City to pay for the goods, equipment, or
services specified. .
B. BID/PROPOSAL /RESPONSE/OFFER/QUOTATION– A complete, properly signed response to a solicitation
that, if accepted, would bind the Respondent to perform the resulting contract.
C. BIDDER/PROPOSER/RESPONDENT/OFFERER – The Respondent identified throughout the solicitation that
they consider themselves qualified to provide the goods, equipment or services specified herein, and are
interested in making an offer to provide the goods, equipment or services to the City.
D. CITY – The City of Georgetown, located in Williamson County, Texas.
E. GOODS –Materials, supplies, commodities and/or equipment.
F. PIGGYBACK CONTRACT – A contract or agreement that has been competitively bid in accordance with State
of Texas statutes, rules, policies and procedures and has been extended for the use of state and local agencies
and active State of Texas CO-OP entities.
G. PURCHASE ORDER – An order placed by the City for the purchase of goods or services issued on the City’s
standard purchase order form and which, when accepted by the Vendor, becomes a contract. The purchase
order is the Vendor’s authority to deliver and invoice the City for goods or services specified, and the City’s
commitment to accept the goods or services for an agreed upon price.
H. SERVICES – Work performed to meet the requirements and demand of the purchase order. The furnishing of
labor, time, or effort by the Vendor and their ability to comply with promised delivery dates, specification and
technical assistance specified.
I. SOLICITATION/INVITATION TO BID/REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS/REQUEST FOR QUOTES – The
solicitation document issued by the City containing terms, conditions and specifications for the service or
commodity to be procured.
J. SUBCONTRACTOR – Any person or business enterprise providing goods, labor, and/or services to a Vendor if
such goods, equipment, labor, and/or services are procured or used in fulfillment of the Vendor’s obligations
arising from a contract with the City.
K. VENDOR/CONTRACTOR – Person or business enterprise providing goods, equipment, labor and/or services
to the City as fulfillment of obligations arising from an agreement or purchase order.
II. SOLICITATIONS
A. CONFLICT OF INTEREST:
Effective January 1, 2006, Chapter 176 of the Texas Local Government Code (HB 914) requires an entity
contracting or seeking to contract for the sale or purchase of property, goods, or services with a local
governmental entity to disclose any affiliation or business relationship which might create a conflict of interest
with a local government entity. The Conflict of Interest Questionnaire is available from the Texas Ethics
Commission at www.ethics.state.tx.us, and completed forms must be submitted to the appropriate records
administrator of the City not later than the seventh business day after the date the entity begins contract
discussions or negotiations with the local governmental entity, or submits to the local governmental entity an
application, response to a Request for Proposals or Bids, correspondence, or another writing related to a
potential Agreement with the local governmental entity. If responding to a Solicitation, the Conflict of Interest
Form may be submitted with the Response. The completed forms may be mailed or hand delivered to the City
Secretary at the following address: The City of Georgetown, Office of the City Secretary, City Hall, 113 East 8th
Street, Georgetown, TX 78626. This legislation is subject to change and each entity should consult its own
attorney regarding the current law. Any attempt to intentionally or unintentionally conceal a conflict of interest
may result in disqualification of any response to a solicitation. The validity of the Contract is not affected solely
because of failure to comply with the conflict of interest disclosure requirements.
B. COMMUNICATIONS WITH THE CITY:
To insure the proper and fair evaluation of a Solicitation, the City prohibits ex parte communication (e.g.,
unsolicited) initiated by the Offeror to the City Official or Employee evaluating or considering the Responses
prior to the time an award has been made. Communication between Offeror and the City will be initiated by the
appropriate City Official or Employee in order to obtain information or clarification needed to develop a proper
and accurate evaluation of the Solicitation. Ex parte communication may be grounds for disqualifying the
offending Offeror from consideration or award of the Solicitation then in evaluation, or any future Solicitation.
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Unless otherwise specified, all requests for clarification or questions regarding a Solicitation must be directed to
the City of Georgetown Purchasing Department, Attn.: Purchasing Manager, PO Box 409, 300-1 Industrial
Avenue, Georgetown, TX 78627, 512-930-3647, FAX: 512-930-9027, purchasing@georgetown.org.
C. DISCLOSURE OF PENDING LITIGATION:
Each Respondent shall include in its proposal a complete disclosure of any material civil or criminal litigation or
pending investigation which involves the Respondent or in which the Respondent has been judged guilty.
D. CONFIDENTIALITY OF RESPONSES, PUBLIC INFORMATION ACT:
All Responses are subject to release as public information unless the Response or specific parts of the
Response can be shown to be exempt from the Texas Public Information Act. Respondents are advised to
consult with their legal counsel regarding disclosure issues and take the appropriate precautions to safeguard
trade secrets or any other proprietary information. The City assumes no obligation or responsibility for asserting
legal arguments on behalf of potential Respondents.
If a Respondent believes that a Response or parts of a Response are confidential, then the Respondent shall
so specify. The Respondent shall stamp in bold red letters the term "CONFIDENTIAL" on that part of the
Response, which the Respondent believes to be confidential. Vague and general claims as to confidentiality
shall not be accepted. All Responses and parts of Responses that are not marked as confidential will be
automatically considered public information. Notwithstanding, responses to Requests for Proposals shall be
opened in a manner that avoids disclosure of the contents to competing offeror and keeps the proposals secret
during negotiations as provided for in Section 252.049 of the Local Government Code.
E. CLARIFICATIONS, WAIVER OF MINOR TECHNICALITIES OR DISCREPANCIES:
The City reserves the right to request clarification or additional information specific to any response after all Responses
have been received and the Solicitation due date has passed. Additionally, the City reserves the right to accept or reject
all or part of any Response, waive any formalities or technical inconsistencies, delete any requirement or specification
from the Solicitation, or terminate the Solicitation when deemed to be in City’s best interest.
F. COST OF PREPARATION OF RESPONSE:
All costs directly or indirectly related to preparation of a Response to this Solicitation or any oral presentation
required to supplement and/or clarify a Response which may be required by the City shall be the sole
responsibility of the Respondent.
G. RESPONSES BECOME PROPERTY OF THE CITY:
Submissions received in response to a Solicitation become the sole property of the City.
H. WITHDRAWAL OF A RESPONSE:
A Response may be withdrawn prior to the submission deadline by submitting a written request for its
withdrawal to the Purchasing Manager. A new Response may be submitted and must be received prior to the
submission deadline to be considered. Modifications offered in any manner will not be considered if submitted
after the submission deadline.
I. DETERMINATION OF AWARD, RESULTING AGREEMENT:
In determining award, the City reserves the right to select the acceptable Respondent who will offer contractual
terms and conditions most favorable to the City. All requirements stated in the Solicitation shall become a part
of any Contract, Agreement or Purchase Order awarded as a result of the Solicitation, and any deviations from
these requirements must be specifically stated and defined by the Respondent in their Response. Requests for
clarification and the responses(s) shall also become a part of any Contract, Agreement or Purchase Order
resulting from the Solicitation.
J. AFFIRMATIONS AND CERTIFICATIONS:
By signature on and submission of a Response, Respondent certifies they have not conspired with any other
potential supplier in any manner to attempt to control competitive pricing. By signature on and submission of a
Response, Respondent certifies they are duly qualified, capable and a bondable business entity not in
receivership or contemplating same, and has not filed for bankruptcy. By signature on and submission of a
Response, Respondent affirms that they will not discriminate against any employee or applicant as prohibited
by law.
K. REQUIREMENTS FOR SUBMISSION OF RESPONSE:
1. All Responses must be submitted on the form provided by the City, and accompanied by all required
attachments. Each Response shall be placed in a separate envelope and properly identified with
Solicitation Number and Opening Date. Responses must be time-stamped at the Purchasing Department,
300-1 Industrial Avenue, PO Box 409, Georgetown, TX 78626, on or before due date and time shown on
the Solicitation form. Late Responses will not be considered.
2. If applicable, Respondent will show exact cost to deliver. Responses must specify unit price on the quantity
specified, extend and show total. Unit prices shall govern, including in case of errors. Pricing will be
considered firm for acceptance for a minimum of 60 days after the due date unless otherwise specified in
the Solicitation. The validity period may be extended beyond that date on agreement of parties. Cash
discounts will not be considered in determining award; all cash discounts offered will be taken if earned.
Respondent will list and deduct all discounts not based on early payment from prices quoted.
3. The City is exempt from all federal excise, state and local taxes unless otherwise stated. The City claims
exemption from under Texas Tax Code §151.309, as amended. Texas Limited Sales Tax Exemption
Certificates will be furnished upon request. Do not include taxes in Response to any Solicitation.
4. Unless stated otherwise, any catalog, brand name or manufacturer's reference used in the Solicitation is
descriptive (not restrictive), and is used to indicate type and quality desired. Responses on brands of like
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nature and quality will be considered. If quoting on other than referenced specifications, the Response
MUST show manufacturer brand or trade name and description of product offered. Illustrations and
complete descriptions of product offered should be made part of the Response. If Respondent does not
identify exceptions to the specifications shown in this Invitation, Respondent will be required to furnish
brand names, numbers, etc., as shown in the Solicitation.
5. Response must show the number of days required to deliver items or provide services to the City’s
designated location under normal conditions. Unrealistically short or long delivery promises may cause
Response to be disregarded. Failure to state delivery time obligates Respondent to complete delivery in 14
calendar days.
III. PURCHASE ORDERS
A. GENERAL TERMS AND CONDITIONS
1. ACCEPTANCE:
A Purchase Order is the City’s commitment to make procurement and is subject to Vendor’s acceptance of the City’s
terms and conditions
2. ABSENCES OF PURCHASE ORDER OR AGREEMENT:
The City is not responsible for delivery of any materials or services without a proper Purchase Order
3. VENDOR’S OBLIGATIONS:
The Vendor shall fully and timely provide all deliverables described in the Solicitation and in the Vendor’s Offer in
strict accordance with the terms, covenants, and conditions of the Agreement and all applicable Federal, State, and
local laws, rules, and regulations.
4. EFFECTIVE DATE/TERM:
Unless otherwise specified in the Solicitation, this Agreement shall be effective as of the date the City issues and
signs the Purchase Order, and shall continue in effect until all obligations are performed in accordance with the
Agreement.
5. SUBCONTRACTORS:
If the Vendor utilizes Subcontractors in providing the goods and/or services under this Purchase Order, the Vendor
shall be fully responsible to the City for all acts and omissions of the Subcontractors just as the Vendor is
responsible for the Vendor’s own acts and omissions. The Vendor shall:
a. Require that all deliverables to be provided by the Subcontractor be provided in strict accordance with the
provisions, specifications and terms of the Agreement;
b. Prohibit the Subcontractor from further subcontracting any portion of the Agreement without the prior
written consent of the City and the Vendor. The City may require, as a condition to such further
subcontracting, that the Subcontractor post a payment bond in form, substance and amount acceptable to the
City;
c. Require Subcontractors to submit all invoices and applications for payments, including any claims for
additional payments, damages or otherwise, to the Vendor in sufficient time to enable the Vendor to include
same with its invoice or application for payment to the City in accordance with the terms of the Agreement;
d. Require that all Subcontractors obtain and maintain, throughout the term of their contract, insurance in the
type and amounts specified for the Vendor, with the City being a named insured as its interest shall appear;
e. Require that the Subcontractor indemnify and hold the City harmless to the same extent as the Contractor is
required to indemnify the City; and
f. Shall pay each Subcontractor its appropriate share of payments made to the Vendor not later than ten (10)
calendar days after receipt of payment from the City.
6. DELAYS:
The City may delay scheduled delivery or other due dates by written notice to the Vendor if the City deems it is in its
best interest. If such delay causes an increase in the cost of the work under the Agreement, the City and the Vendor
shall negotiate an equitable adjustment for costs incurred by the Vendor in the Agreement price and execute an
amendment to the Agreement. The Vendor must assert its right to an adjustment within ten (10) calendar days
from the date of receipt of the notice of delay. Failure to agree on any adjusted price shall be handled under the
Dispute Resolution Process specified in Section Z. However, nothing in this provision shall excuse the Vendor from
delaying the delivery as notified.
7. FORCE MAJEURE:
Neither party shall be liable for any default or delay in the performance of its obligations under this Agreement if,
while and to the extent such default or delay is caused by acts of God, fire, riots, civil commotion, labor disruptions,
sabotage, sovereign conduct, or any other cause beyond reasonable control. In the event of default or delay in
performance due to any of the foregoing causes, then the time for completion of the services will be extended;
provided, however, in such an event, a conference will be held within three (3) business days to establish a mutually
agreeable period of time reasonably necessary to overcome the effect of such failure to perform.
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8. INSURANCE REQUIREMENTS:
Unless specific insurance requirements are noted, Vendor shall maintain insurance coverage appropriate for the
fulfillment of the Purchase Order. In the event the Vendor, its employees, agents or subcontractors enter premises
occupied by or under the control of the City, the Vendor agrees to maintain public liability and property damage
insurance in reasonable limits covering the obligations set forth in this Purchase Order, and will maintain Workers’
Compensation coverage (either by insurance or if qualified pursuant to law, through a self-insurance program)
covering all employees performing on premises occupied by or under control of the City. Upon request, Vendor
shall provide a copy of its insurance policies to the City.
9. EXCEPTIONS TO SPECIFICATIONS:
Any deviation from the specifications must be clearly indicated in the Response to the Solicitation or promptly
documented in writing at or before the time of the award. Any deviations or exceptions are subject to review by
the City and may be grounds for rejection.
10. TRAVEL EXPENSES:
All travel, lodging and/or per diem expenses associated with providing the materials, equipment or services
specified must be included in the original Quotation and/or the resulting Purchase Order or Agreement. All travel
expenses are subject to review by the City and documentation of actual itemized expenses may be requested. No
reimbursement will be made without prior authorization, or for expenses not actually incurred. Airline fares in
excess of coach or economy will not be reimbursed.
11. HUB REQUIREMENTS:
The City complies with the requirements of the State of Texas Local Government Code, Chapter 252, Section
252.0215.
12. SPECIAL TOOLS AND EQUIPMENT:
If the price stated in the Offer includes the cost of any special tooling or special test equipment fabricated or
required by the Vendor to fulfill the Agreement, such special tooling and/or equipment and all process sheets
associated thereto shall become the property of the City and shall be identified by the Vendor as such.
B. SERVICES
1. PLACE AND CONDITIONS OF WORK, ACCESS TO SITE:
If Services are to be performed principally on the City’s premises or in public rights of way, the City shall provide the
Vendor access to the sites where the Vendor is to perform the Services as required in order for the Vendor to
perform in a timely and efficient manner, in accordance with and subject to applicable security laws, rules and
regulations. The Vendor acknowledges that it has satisfied itself as to the nature of the City’s service requirements
and specifications, the location and essential characteristics of the work sites, the quality and quantity of the
materials, equipment, labor and facilities necessary to perform the Services and any other conditions or states of
fact which could, in any way, affect performance of the Vendor’s obligations under the Agreement. The Vendor
shall promptly notify the City if the actual site or service conditions differ from the expected conditions and failing
to do so, hereby releases and holds the City harmless from and against any liability or claim for damages of any kind
or nature.
2. VENDOR TO PROVIDE ALL MATERIAL, EQUIPMENT, LABOR:
Vendor shall provide all goods and labor necessary to perform Services. All material must be new and all equipment
utilized must be in good safe working condition and suitable for Services. Vendor shall employ all personnel for
Services in accordance with the requirements of applicable local, state, and federal law.
3. WORKFORCE:
If Services are to be performed principally on the City’s premises or on public right-of-ways:
a. Vendor shall employee only orderly and competent workers, skilled in the performance of the Services which
they will perform under the Agreement.
b. Vendor, its employees, subcontractors and subcontractor’s employees while engaged in participating in a
Solicitation or while in the course and scope of delivering goods and services under City Purchase Order or
Agreement may not:
i. use or possess a firearm, including a concealed handgun that is licensed under state law, except as
required by the terms of the Agreement; or
ii. use or posses alcoholic or other intoxicating beverages, illegal drugs or controlled substances, nor may
such workers be intoxicated or under the influence of alcohol or drugs while on the job.
c. If the City or the City’s representative notifies the Vendor that any work is incompetent, disorderly or
disobedient, has knowingly or repeatedly violated safety regulations, has possessed firearms, or has
possessed or was under the influence of alcohol or drugs on the job, the Vendor shall immediately remove
such worker from Agreement Services and may not employ such worker again on Agreement Services without
the City’s prior consent.
4. COMPLIANCE WITH ALL SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL REQUIREMENTS:
If Services are to be performed principally on the City’s premises or on public rights of way, the Vendor, its
subcontractors and their respective employees, shall comply fully with all applicable federal, state and local health,
safety and environmental laws, ordinances, rules and regulations in the performance of the Services, including but
not limited to those promulgated with the City and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). In
the case of conflict, the most stringent safety requirement shall govern. The Vendor shall defend, indemnify and
hold the City harmless from and against all claims, demands, suits, actions, judgments, fines, penalties and liabilities
of any kind or nature arising from the breach of the Vendor’s obligations under this paragraph.
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5. STOP WORK NOTICE:
The City may issue an immediate Stop Work Notice in the event the Vendor is observed performing in a manner
that is in violation of Federal, State or local guidelines, or in a manner that is determined by the City to be unsafe to
either life or property. Upon notification, the Vendor shall cease all work until notified by the City that the violation
or unsafe condition has been corrected. The Vendor shall be liable for all costs incurred by the City as a result of the
issuance of such Stop Work Notice.
6. WARRANTY OF SERVICES:
Vendor warrants and represents that all Services to be provided to the City under the Agreement will be fully and
timely performed in good and workmanlike manner in accordance with generally accepted industry standards and
practices, the terms, conditions and covenants of the Agreement and all applicable Federal, State and local laws,
rules or regulations. This warranty may not be limited, excluded or disclaimed and any attempt to do so will be
without force or effect. Unless otherwise specified, the warranty period shall be a minimum of one year from
acceptance by the City of Services. In the event any applicable warranty is breached, the Vendor shall promptly
upon receipt of demand of performance, perform the Services again in accordance with the above standard at no
additional costs to the City. All costs incidental to such additional performance shall be borne solely by the Vendor.
The City shall endeavor to give the Vendor written notice of the breach of warranty within thirty (30) calendar days
of discovery of the breach of warranty, but failure to give timely notice shall not impair the City’s rights under this
section.
In the event the Vendor is unable or unwilling to perform the Services in accordance with the above standards as
required by the City, then in addition to any other available remedy, the City may reduce the amount of Services
originally required to purchase from the Vendor under the Agreement and procure conforming Services from other
sources. In such event, the Vendor shall pay the City upon demand the increased cost, if any, incurred by the city to
procure such services from an alternative source.
C. COMMODITIES/EQUIPMENT
1. MATERIAL SAFETY DATA SHEETS:
Under the “Hazardous Communication Act,” commonly known as the “Texas Right to Know Act,” a Vendor must
provide to the City WITH EACH DELIVERY Material Safety Data Sheets, which are applicable to hazardous substances
as defined in the Act.
2. GOODS:
Goods furnished shall be the latest improved model in current production, as offered to commercial trade, and shall
be of quality workmanship and material. The Vendor represents that all goods and equipment offered shall be new.
Unless otherwise specified, used, shopworn, demonstrator, prototype or discontinued models are not acceptable.
3. PACKAGING OF DELIVERABLES:
Vendor must package deliverables in accordance with good commercial practice and shall include a packing list
showing the description of each item, the quantity and the unit price. Unless otherwise provided in writing by the
City, each shipping container shall be clearly and permanently marked with the Vendor’s name and address, and the
City’s name, address and Purchase Order number. Vendor shall bear all costs of packaging. Deliverables must be
suitably packed to secure lowest transportation cost, conform with requirements of common carriers and ensure
safe delivery. The City’s count or weight shall be final and conclusive on shipments not accompanied by packing
lists.
4. WARRANTY:
The goods or equipment specified shall be warranted against defects in material or workmanship for a period of not
less than twelve (12) months from date of acceptance by the City. If the manufacturer’s warranty exceeds twelve
(12) months, then the manufacturer’s warranty shall be in effect. Vendor shall furnish a copy of the manufacturer’s
warranty at the time of delivery.
5. NO LIMITATION OF MANUFACTURERS’ WARRANTIES:
Vendor may no limit, exclude or disclaim any warranty provided by manufacturer.
D. DELIVERY
1. DELIVERY TERMS, TRANSPORTATION CHARGES, FOB:
Deliverables shall be shipped FOB point of delivery unless otherwise specified on the Purchase Order or in the
Solicitation. The Vendor’s price shall be deemed to include all delivery and transportation charges. The City shall
have the right to designate what method of transportation shall be used to ship deliverables. The place of delivery
shall be specified in the Purchase Order.
2. NO SUBSTITUTIONS OR CANCELLATIONS:
Unless specifically permitted in writing by the City, no substitutions or cancellations shall be acceptable.
3. NOTICE OF DELAY IN DELIVERY:
If a delay in delivery is anticipated, Vendor shall give written notice to the City. The City has the right to extend the
delivery time/service date, or to cancel the Purchase Order or Agreement. Vendor shall keep the City advised at all
times of the status of the order. Default in promised delivery, service or failure to meet specifications authorizes
the City to procure the goods or services from an alternate source and charge the full increase, if any, in cost and
handling to defaulting Vendor. Default on delivery may result in legal action and recourse.
4. DELIVERY LOCATION, HOURS, DAYS, HOLIDAYS:
Unless otherwise specified, all deliveries must be made to City of Georgetown, Central Receiving, 300-1 Industrial
Avenue, Georgetown, TX, between the hours of 8AM and 4PM (CST), Monday through Friday except regularly
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observed state and federal holidays (see http://georgetown.org/contact-us/holiday-schedule/ for schedule).
Receipt of goods or materials does not signify acceptance.
5. NO SHIPMENT UNDER RESERVATION:
Vendor is not authorized to ship deliverables under reservation and no tender of bill of lading will operate as a
tender of deliverables.
6. TITLE/RISK OF LOSS:
Title to and risk of loss of the deliverables shall pass to the City only when the City actually receives and accepts the
deliverables (no delivery, no sale).
7. RIGHT OF INSPECTION AND REJECTION:
The City expressly reserves all rights under law, including but not limited to, the Uniform Commercial Code, to
inspect the deliverables at delivery or at a reasonable time subsequent to delivery, and to reject defective or non-
conforming deliverables. If the City has the right to inspect the Vendor’s or the Vendor’s subcontractors facilities,
or the deliverables at the Vendor’s or the Vendor’s subcontractors premises, the Vendor shall furnish or shall cause
to be furnished without additional charge all reasonable facilities and assistance to the City to facilitate such
inspection.
8. ACCEPTANCE OF INCOMPLETE OR NON-CONFORMING GOODS:
If, instead of requiring immediate correction or removal and replacement of defective or non-conforming
deliverables, the City prefers to accept such deliverables, the City may do so. The Vendor shall pay all claims, losses
and damages attributable to the City’s evaluation of and determination to accept such defective or non-conforming
deliverables. If any such acceptance occurs prior to final payment, the City may deduct such amounts as are
necessary to compensate the City for the diminished value of the defective or non-conforming deliverables. If
discovery that the deliverables are defective or non-conforming occurs after final payment, Vendor may be required
to refund such amounts to the City.
E. PAYMENT
1. TAX EXEMPT STATUS:
The City is exempt from all federal excise, state and local taxes unless otherwise stated in this document. The City
claims exemption from all sales and/or use taxes under Texas Tax Code §151.309, as amended. Texas Limited Sales
Tax Exemption Certificates are furnished upon request. Vendor will not charge for such taxes. If billed, the City will
not remit payment until a corrected invoice is received.
2. INVOICING REQUIREMENTS:
Unless otherwise specified, all invoices shall be submitted to City of Georgetown, Accounts Payable, PO Box 409,
Georgetown, TX 78627, and issued as required by the Purchase Order or Agreement. Each invoice must reference
the unique Purchase Order number, and include the Vendor’s complete name and remit to address. If applicable,
transportation and delivery charges must be itemized on the each invoice. A copy of the bill of lading and the
freight waybill must be submitted with the invoice if applicable. Invoices for labor must include a copy of all time
sheets with labor rate and Purchase Order or Agreement number clearly identified. Invoices for labor shall also
include a tabulation of hours worked at the appropriate rates and grouped by work order number, if applicable.
Time billed for labor shall be limited to hours actually worked at the work site.
3. PAYMENT TERMS:
All payments will be processed in accordance with Texas Prompt Payment Act, Texas Government Code, Subtitle F,
Chapter 2251. The City will pay Vendor within thirty days after acceptance of goods, supplies, materials, equipment
or the day of performance of services was completed, or the day of receipt of a correct invoice for goods, supplies,
materials, equipment or services, whichever is later. The Vendor may charge a late fee (fee shall not be greater
than that permitted under the Texas Prompt Payment Act) for payments not made in accordance with this prompt
payment policy; however, the policy does not apply to payments made by the City in the event: (a) there is a bona
fide dispute between the City and Vendor concerning the goods, supplies, materials, equipment delivered, or the
services performed, that causes the payment to be late; (b) the terms of a federal agreement, grant, regulation or
statute prevents the City from making a timely payment with Federal funds; (c) there is a bona fide dispute between
the Vendor and a subcontractor and its suppliers concerning goods, supplies, material or equipment delivered, or
the services performed, which caused the payment to be late; or (d) the invoice is not mailed to the City in strict
accordance with instructions on the Purchase Order or Agreement, or other such contractual agreement.
4. RIGHT TO AUDIT:
The Vendor agrees that the representatives of the City shall have access to, and the rights to audit, examine, or
reproduce, any and all records of the Vendor related to the performance under this Agreement. The Vendor shall
retain all such records for a period of four (4) years after final payment on this Agreement or until all audit and
litigation matters that the City has brought to the attention of the Vendor are resolved, whichever is longer. The
Vendor agrees to refund to the City any overpayments disclosed by any such audit.
5. FIRM PRICING:
The price shall remain firm for the duration of the Purchase Order or Contract, or extension periods. No separate
line item charges shall be permitted for either bidding or invoice purposes, which shall include equipment rental,
demurrage, fuel surcharges, delivery charges, and cost associated with obtaining permits or any other extraneous
charges. Vendor further certifies that the prices in the Offer have been arrived at independently without
consultation, communication, or agreement for the purpose of restricting competition, as to any matter relating to
such fees with any other firm or with any competitor.
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6. PRICE WARRANTY:
The Vendor warrants the prices quoted are not materially higher than the Vendors current prices on orders by
others for like deliverables under similar terms of purchase. In addition to any other remedy available, the City may
deduct from any amounts owed to the Vendor, or otherwise recover, any amounts paid for items materially in
excess of the Vendor’s current prices on orders by others for like deliverables under similar terms of purchase.
7. VENDOR OWING TAXES OR FEES TO THE CITY:
Payment will not be made to any person, firm or in arrears in taxes or fees to the City.
IV. TERMS, CONDITIONS AND ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS
A. VENDOR’S OBLIGATION:
Vendor shall fully and timely provide all deliverables described in Solicitation, Vendor’s Offer in strict accordance with the
terms, covenants and conditions of the Agreement and all applicable federal, state and local laws, rules and regulations.
B. DEFAULT:
Vendor shall be in default under the Agreement if the Vendor (a) fails to fully, timely and faithfully perform any of its
material obligations under the Agreement, (b) becomes insolvent or seeks relief under the bankruptcy laws of the United
States or (c) makes a material misrepresentation in Vendor’s Offer, or in any report or deliverable required to be
submitted by Vendor to the City.
C. ABANDONMENT OR DEFAULT:
A Vendor who abandons or defaults the work on the Agreement and causes the City to purchase the services elsewhere
may be charged the difference in service if any and may not be considered in the re-advertisement of the service and may
be rejected as an irresponsible bidder and not considered in future Solicitations for the same type of service unless the
scope of work is significantly modified.
D. TERMINATION/CANCELLATION:
1. TERMINATION FOR CAUSE:
In the event of default by the Vendor, the City shall have the right to terminate the Agreement for cause, by written
notice effective ten (10) calendar days, unless otherwise specified, after the date of such notice, unless the Vendor,
within such ten (10) day period cures such default, or provides evidence sufficient to prove to the City’s satisfaction
that such default does not, in fact, exist. In addition to any other remedies available under law or in equity, the City
shall be entitled to recover all actual damages, costs, losses and expenses incurred by the City as a result of the
Vendor’s default, including without limitation, cost of cover, reasonable attorneys’ fees, court costs and
prejudgment and post-judgment interest at the maximum lawful rate. Additionally, in the event of default by the
Vendor, the City may remove the Vendor from the City’s Vendor List and any Offer submitted by the Vendor may be
disqualified for up to three (3) years. All rights and remedies under the Agreement are cumulative and not exclusive
of any other right or remedy provided by law.
2. TERMINATION WITHOUT CAUSE:
The City shall have the right to terminate the Agreement, in whole or in part, without cause any time upon thirty
(30) calendar days’ prior written notice. Upon receipt of a notice of termination, the Vendor shall promptly cease
all further work pursuant to the Agreement, with such exceptions, if any, specified in the notice of termination. The
City shall pay the Vendor, to the extent of funds appropriated or otherwise legally available for such purposes, for
all goods delivered and services performed and obligations incurred prior to the date of termination in accordance
with the terms hereof.
3. NON-APPROPRIATION:
The resulting Agreement is a commitment of the City’s current revenues only. It is understood and agreed that the
City shall have the right to terminate the Agreement at the end of any City fiscal year (September 30th) if the
governing body of the City does not appropriate funds sufficient to purchase the estimated yearly quantities, as
determined by the City’s budget for the fiscal year in question. The City may effect such termination by giving the
Vendor a written notice of termination at the end of its then current fiscal year.
4. CANCELLATION:
The City reserves the right to cancel the Agreement for default all or any part of the delivered portion of the
deliverables if the Vendor breaches any term hereof including warranties, or becomes insolvent or commits acts of
bankruptcy. Such right of cancellation is in addition to and not in lieu of any remedies which the City may have in
law or in equity.
E. FRAUD:
Fraudulent statements by the Vendor on any Offer or in any report or deliverable required to be submitted by the Vendor
to the city shall be grounds for termination of the Agreement for cause by the City and may result in legal action.
F. INDEMNITY:
VENDOR SHALL DEFEND, INDEMNIFY AND HOLD HARMLESS THE CITY, ITS OFFICERS, AGENTS, SERVANTS AND EMPLOYEES
FROM AND AGAINST ANY AND ALL SUITS, ACTIONS, LEGAL PROCEEDINGS, CAUSES OF ACTION, CLAIMS, DEMANDS,
DAMAGES, JUDGMENTS, LOSSES, LIENS, COSTS, EXPENSES, ATTORNEYS’ FEES AND ANY AND ALL OTHER COSTS, FEES
AND/OR CLAIMS OF ANY KIND OR DESCRIPTION ARISING OUT OF, IN CONNECTION WITH OR RESULTING FROM THE
AGREEMENT OR THE GOODS OR SERVICES PROVIDED UNDER THE AGREEMENT.
IF THE VENDOR AND THE CITY ARE CONCURRENTLY NEGLIGENT, EACH PARTY’S LIABILITY SHALL BE LIMITED TO THAT
PORTION OF NEGLIGENCE ATTRIBUTABLE TO IT AS DETERMINED UNDER THE APPLICABLE PROPORTIONATE
RESPONSIBILITY RULES OF THE STATE OF TEXAS.
G. LIABILITY:
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Any person, firm or corporation performing services pursuant to this Agreement or Purchase Order shall be liable for all
damages incurred while in the performance of such services. Vendor assumes full responsibility for the work to be
performed hereunder and hereby releases, relinquishes, and discharges the City, its officers, agents and employees from
all claims, demands and causes of action of any nature including the cost of defense thereof, for any injury to, including
death of, any person whether that person be a third party, supplier or an employee of either of the parties hereto, and
any loss of or damage to property, whether the same be that of either of the parties, caused by or alleged to have been
caused by, arising out of or in connection with the issuance of the Agreement or Purchase Order to the Vendor and the
negligence of the Vendor, whether or not said claims, demands and causes of action in whole or in part are covered by
insurance. Certificates of insurance may be required for, but not limited to, Commercial General Liability, Business Auto
Liability, Workers Compensation and Professional Liability Insurance.
H. INFRINGEMENT:
Vendor represents and warrants to the City that: (a) Vendor shall provide the City good and indefeasible title to the
deliverables and (b) the deliverables supplied by the Vendor in accordance with the specifications of the Agreement shall
not infringe, directly or contributory, any patent, trademark, copyright, trade secret or any other intellectual property
right of any kind of any third party; that no claims have been made by an person or entity with respect to the ownership
or operation of the deliverables and the Vendor does not know of any basis for any such claims. Vendor shall, at its sole
expense, defend, indemnify and hold the City harmless from and against all liability, damages and costs (including court
costs and reasonable fees of attorneys and other professionals) arising out of or resulting from: (a) any claim that the
City’s exercise anywhere in the world of the rights associated with the City’s ownership, and if applicable, license rights,
and its use of the deliverable infringes the intellectual property rights of any third party; or (b) Vendor’s breach of any of
the Vendor’s representations or warranties stated in this Agreement. In the event of any such claim, the City shall have
the right to monitor such claim or, at its option, engage its own separate counsel to act as co-counsel on the City’s behalf.
Further, Vendor agrees that the City’s specifications regarding the deliverables shall in no way diminish Vendor’s
warranties or obligations under the Section, and the City makes no warranty that the products, development or delivery
of such deliverables will not impact such warranties of Vendor.
I. DAMAGE TO CITY PROPERTY:
Vendor shall be responsible for any and all damage to the City’s equipment and/or property, the workplace and its
contents, by its work, negligence in work, its personnel and equipment. Vendor shall be responsible and liable for the
safety, injury and health of its working personnel while its employees are performing service work.
J. OVERCHARGES:
Vendor hereby assigns to the City any and all claims for overcharges associated with this Agreement which arise under
the antitrust laws of the United States, 15 USCA Section 1 et seq., and/or which arise under the antitrust laws of the State
of Texas, Business and Commerce Code Ann., Section 15.01, et seq.
K. CONFIDENTIALITY:
In order to provide the deliverables to the City, Vendor may require access to certain of the City’s and/or its licensors’
confidential information (including, but not limited to, inventions, employee information, trade secrets, confidential
know-how, confidential business information and other information which the City or its licensors consider
confidential)(collectively, “Confidential Information”). Vendor acknowledges and agrees that the Confidential
Information is the valuable property of the City and/or its licensors, and any unauthorized use, disclosure, dissemination
or other release of the Confidential Information will substantially injure the City and/or its licensors. The Vendor
(including its employees, subcontractors, agents or representatives) agrees that it will maintain the Confidential
Information in strict confident and shall not disclose, disseminate, copy, divulge, recreate or otherwise use the
Confidential Information without the prior written consent of the City, or in a manner not expressly permitted under this
Agreement, unless the Confidential Information is required to be disclosed by law or as a result of an order of any court
or other governmental authority with proper jurisdiction, provided the Vendor promptly notifies the City prior to
disclosing such information so as to permit the City reasonable time to seek an appropriate protective order. The Vendor
agrees to use protective measures no less stringent than the Vendor uses within its own business to protect its own most
valuable information, which protective measures shall under all circumstances be at least reasonable measures to ensure
the continued confidentiality of the Confidential Information.
L. CODES, PERMITS, LICENSES:
Vendor shall comply with all federal, state and local standards, codes and ordinances and the terms and conditions of the
services of the electric utility, as well as other authorities that have jurisdiction pertaining to equipment and materials
used and their application. None of the terms or provisions of the specification shall be construed as waiving any rules,
regulations or requirements of these authorities. Vendor shall be responsible for obtaining all necessary permits,
certificates and/or licenses to fulfill contractual obligations to the City.
M. ADVERTISING/PUBLICITY:
Vendor shall not advertise or otherwise publicize, without the City’s prior written consent, the fact that the City has
entered into the Agreement, except to the extent required by applicable law.
N. INDEPENDENT CONTRACTOR:
The Agreement shall not be construed as creating an employer/employee relationship, a partnership or joint venture.
The Vendor’s services shall be those of an independent contractor. The Vendor agrees and understands that the
Agreement does not grant any rights or privileges established for employees of the City. Vendor shall not be within
protection or coverage of the City’s Worker Compensation insurance, Health Insurance, Liability Insurance or any other
insurance that the City, from time to time, may have in force.
O. LIENS:
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Vendor shall defend, indemnify and hold the City harmless from and against any and all liens and encumbrances for all
labor, goods and services provided under this Agreement. At the City’s request, the Vendor or its subcontractors shall
provide a proper release of all liens or satisfactory evidence of freedom from liens shall be delivered to the City.
P. ASSIGNMENT/DELEGATION:
The Agreement shall be binding upon and endure to the benefit of the City and the Vendor, and their respective
successors and assignees, provided however, that no right or interest in the Agreement shall be assigned and no
obligation shall be delegated by the Vendor without the prior written consent of the City. Any attempted assignment or
delegation by the Vendor shall be void unless made in conformity with this Section. The Agreement is not intended to
confer any rights or benefits on any person, firm or entity not a party hereto; it being the intention of the parties that
there be no third party beneficiaries to the Agreement.
Q. INTERPRETATION:
The Agreement is intended by both parties as the final, complete and exclusive statement of the terms of their
agreement. No course of prior dealing between the parties or course of performance or usage of the trade shall be
relevant to supplement or explain any term used in the Agreement. Although the Agreement may have been
substantially drafted by one party, it is the intent of the parties that all provisions be construed in a manner fair to both
parties, reading no provision more strictly against one party of the other. Whenever a term defined by the Uniform
Commercial Code (the “UCC”), as enacted by the State of Texas, is used in the Agreement, the UCC definition shall control
unless otherwise defined in the Agreement.
R. GOVERNING LAW AND VENUE:
This Agreement is made under and shall be governed by the laws of the State of Texas, including when applicable, the
UCC as adopted in Texas, VTCA, Business & Commerce Code, Chapter 1, excluding any rule or principle that would refer to
and apply the substantive law of another state or jurisdiction. This Agreement is fully performable in Georgetown, TX,
and the venue for any action related to this Agreement shall be Georgetown, TX. All issues arising from this Agreement
shall be resolved in the courts of Williamson County, Texas and the parties agree to submit to the exclusive personal
jurisdiction of such courts. The foregoing, however, shall not be construed or interpreted to limit or restrict the right or
the ability of the City to seek and secure injunctive relief from any competent authority as contemplated herein and does
not waive the city’s defense of sovereign immunity.
S. INTERLOCAL COOPERATIVE PURCHASING/PIGGYBACK CONTRACTS:
Other governmental entities may be extended the opportunity to purchase from Solicitations of the City, with the
consent and agreement of the awarded Vendor(s) and the City. Such consent and agreement shall be conclusively
inferred from lack of exception to this clause in Vendor’s Response. However, all parties indicate their understanding and
all parties hereby expressly agree that the City is not an agent of, partner to or representative of those outside agencies
or entities and that the City is not obligated or liable for any action or debts that arise out of such independently
negotiated piggyback procurements.
T. SURVIVABILITY OF OBLIGATIONS:
All provisions of the Agreement that impose continuing obligations on the parties, including but not limited to the
warranty, indemnity and confidentiality obligations of the parties, shall survive the expiration or termination of the
Agreement.
U. CLAIMS:
If a claim, demand, suit or other action is asserted against the Vendor which arises under or concerns the Agreement, or
which could have a material adverse effect on the Vendor’s ability to perform thereunder, the Vendor shall give written
notice to the City within ten (10) calendar days after receipt of notice by the Vendor. Such notice to the City shall state
the date of notification of any such claim, demand, suit or other action; the names and address of the claimant(s); the
basis thereof; and the name of each person against whom such claim is asserted. Such notice shall be delivered to the
Purchasing Department as set forth below and to the City Attorney at PO Box 409, Georgetown, TX 78627.
V. NOTICES:
Unless otherwise specified, all notices, requests or other communications required or appropriate to be given under the
Agreement shall be in writing and deemed delivered three (3) business days after postmarked if sent by US Postal Service
Certified or Registered Mail, Return Receipt Requested. Notices delivered by other means shall be deemed delivered
upon receipt by the addressee. Routine communications may be made by first class mail, fax, or other commercially
accepted means. Notices to the Vendor shall be sent to the address specified in the Vendor’s Offer or at such other
address as a party may notify the other in writing. Notices to the City shall be addressed to: City of Georgetown,
Purchasing Department, PO Box 409, Georgetown, TX 78627 and marked to the attention of the Purchasing Manager.
W. GRATUITIES:
The City may, by written notice to the Vendor, cancel the Agreement without liability if it is determined by the City that
gratuities were offered or give by the Vendor or any agent or representative of the Vendor to any officer or employee of
the City with the intent of securing the Agreement or securing favorable treatment with respect to awarding or amending
or the making of any determinations with respect to performing of the Agreement. In the event the Agreement is
cancelled by the City pursuant to this Section, the City shall be entitled, in addition to any other rights and remedies, to
recover the benefits or payments to the Vendor, as a result of the gratuities.
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X. PERSONAL INTEREST PROHIBITED:
No officer, employee, independent consultant or elected official of the City who is involved in the development,
evaluation or decision-making process of the performance of the any Solicitation shall have a financial interest, direct or
indirect, in the resulting Agreement. Any willful violation of this Section shall constitute impropriety in office, and any
officer or employee guilty thereof shall be subject to disciplinary action up to and including dismissal. In the event a
member of the governing body or an appointed board or commission of the City belongs to a cooperative association, the
City may purchase equipment or supplies for the association only if no member of the governing body, board or
commission will receive pecuniary benefit from the purchase, other than as reflected as in increase in dividends
distributed generally to members of the association. Any violation of this provision with the knowledge, expressed or
implied, by the Vendor shall render the Agreement voidable by the City. Nevertheless, the City may obtain the
equipment or service if a conflict of interest affidavit is filed and the Council member recuses his/herself.
Y. WAIVER:
No claim or right arising out of a breach of the Agreement can be discharged in whole or in part by a waiver or
renunciation of the claim or right unless the waiver or renunciation is supported by consideration and is in writing signed
by the aggrieved party. No waiver by either the Vendor or the City of any one or more events of default by the other
party shall operate as, or be construed to be, a permanent waiver of any rights or obligations under the Agreement, or an
express or implied acceptance of any other existing or future default(s), whether of similar or different character.
Z. DISPUTE RESOLUTION:
If either the Vendor or the City has a claim, dispute or other matter in question for breach of duty, obligations, services
rendered or any warranty that arises under this Agreement, the parties shall first attempt to resolve the matter through
this dispute resolution process. The disputing party shall notify the other party in writing as soon as practicable after
discovering the claim, dispute or breach. The notice shall state the nature of the dispute and list the party’s specific
reasons for such dispute. Within ten (10) business days of receipt of the notice, both parties shall make a good faith
effort, in person or through generally accepted means, to resolve any claim, dispute, breach or other matter in question
that may arise out of, or in connection with, this Agreement. If the parties fail to resolve the dispute within sixty (60)
days of the date of receipt of the notice of the dispute, then the parties may submit the matter to non-binding mediation
upon written consent of authorized representatives of both parties in accordance with the Arbitration Rules of the
American Arbitration Association or other applicable rules governing mediation than in effect. If the parties cannot
resolve the dispute through mediation, then either party shall have the right to exercise any and all remedies available
under law regarding the dispute.
AA. INVALIDITY:
The invalidity, illegality or unenforceability of any provision of this Agreement shall in no way affect the validity or
enforceability of any other portion or provision of the Agreement. Any void provision shall be deemed severed from the
Agreement and the balance of the Agreement shall be construed and enforced as if the Agreement did not contain the
particular portion or provision held to be void. The parties further agree to reform the Agreement to replace the stricken
provision with a valid provision that comes as close as possible to the intent of the stricken provision. The provisions of
this section shall not prevent the entire Agreement from being void should a provision which is the essence of the
Agreement be determined to be void.
BB. RIGHT TO ASSURANCES:
In the event the City, in good faith, has reason to question the intent of the Vendor to perform, the City may demand
written assurances of the intent to perform. In the event no written assurance is given within the time specified, the City
may treat this failure as an anticipatory repudiation of the Agreement.