PREPARED BY: ARTURO CASTILLO DATE OF MEETING: 08/03/2026
SUBJECT:
TITLE
CONSIDER AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SAN PABLO AMENDING CHAPTER 3.16 OF THE SAN PABLO MUNICIPAL CODE TO (1) INCREASE THE CITY MANAGER’S CONTRACTING AUTHORITY; (2) INCREASE MONETARY THRESHOLDS RELATED TO PUBLIC PROJECT BIDDING TO ALIGN WITH CURRENT STATE OF CALIFORNIA THRESHOLDS; AND (3) INCREASE THE MONETARY THRESHOLDS RELATED TO FORMAL AND INFORMAL PROCUREMENT OF NON-PUBLIC PROJECTS
CEQA: This proposed action is not a project as defined by CEQA.
Label
CITY MANAGER RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
(1) Receive the presentation and acknowledge the independent survey data and findings of Eide Bailly LLP; and (2) Introduce the attached Ordinance, waive the first reading, and set the second reading and adoption for the next regular City Council meeting.
Body
Compliance Statements
Continue Best Management Practices, Fiscal Excellence, and Fiscal Transparency is a major policy goal contained in the FY 2024-26 City Council Priority Workplan, effective April 7, 2025.
Background
The San Pablo Municipal Code limits the City Manager’s general contracting authority to $50,000, last increased in January 2017 pursuant to Ordinance 2017-001. The monetary thresholds for the formal and informal procurement of non-public projects (supplies, services, and equipment) have not been updated since November 2009 (Ordinance 2009-008).
The City’s public project (construction) thresholds are current. The City previously elected to participate in the California Uniform Public Construction Cost Accounting Act (CUPCCAA) in 1995, and under San Pablo Municipal Code (SPMC) Section 3.16.070 those thresholds automatically track State law. As part of its advisory engagement, Eide Bailly LLP independently analyzed the City’s procurement thresholds against inflation, peer-agency practices, and industry best practices; the full report is included with this staff report as Attachment C.
Inflation
The two thresholds proposed for increase have different starting dates. The City Manager’s $50,000 signing authority was last set in January 2017; the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for the San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward MSA has risen approximately 34% and the California Construction Cost Index (CCCI) approximately 59% since then. The $25,000 formal non-public procurement threshold was last set in November 2009; the CPI has risen approximately 63% and the CCCI approximately 91% since then. The full data is in the table below.
|
Value |
2009 |
2017 |
2026 |
Change |
|
CPI (SF-Oakland-Hayward MSA) |
222.166 |
271.626 |
363.211 |
|
|
CPI-Adjusted Budget Authority Threshold |
|
$50,000 |
$66,859 |
33.72% |
|
CPI-Adjusted Formal Procurement Threshold |
$25,000 |
|
$40,872 |
63.49% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
CCCI |
5,309 |
6,373 |
10,159 |
|
|
CCCI-Adjusted Budget Authority Threshold |
|
$50,000 |
$79,703 |
59.41% |
|
CCCI-Adjusted Formal Procurement Threshold |
$25,000 |
|
$47,839 |
91.35% |
Section 1. City Manager’s Signing Authority
State law leaves the City Manager’s contracting limit to local decision. Eide Bailly’s survey of comparable area cities found delegated authority well above San Pablo’s current $50,000, averaging $182,000 for construction, $92,500 for services, and $97,500 for materials and equipment:
|
City |
Construction |
Services |
Materials & Equipment |
|
San Pablo (current) |
$50,000 |
$50,000 |
$50,000 |
|
Berkeley |
$200,000 |
$50,000 |
$100,000 |
|
Concord |
$220,000 |
$95,000 |
$95,000 |
|
Dublin |
$220,000 |
$100,000 |
$100,000 |
|
Hercules |
$100,000 |
$50,000 |
$50,000 |
|
Livermore |
$220,000 |
$200,000 |
$200,000 |
|
Orinda |
$220,000 |
$60,000 |
$60,000 |
|
Pinole |
$220,000 |
$45,000 |
$45,000 |
|
San Leandro |
$100,000 |
$100,000 |
$100,000 |
|
San Ramon |
$100,000 |
$100,000 |
$100,000 |
|
Walnut Creek |
$220,000 |
$125,000 |
$125,000 |
|
Peer City Average |
$182,000 |
$92,500 |
$97,500 |
The proposed Ordinance increases the City Manager’s signing authority from $50,000 to $100,000 for all procurement types, construction, services, and materials and equipment, establishing a single, consistent delegated limit.
Continuing City Council oversight. Anything exceeding $100,000 still requires Council approval; only the trigger shifts from $50,000 to $100,000. Below that ceiling, oversight is maintained through: (1) Council appropriation of all spending through the annual budget; (2) public reporting of all expenditures through the check register; and (3) mandatory compliance with Chapter 3.16 procurement procedures and the City’s internal controls.
Note: construction projects between $100,000 and $220,000 may still be bid informally under CUPCCAA (Section 3), but because they exceed the City Manager’s $100,000 signing authority, City Council approval is required before award.
Section 2. Formal and Informal Procurement Thresholds for Non-Public Projects (Chapter 3.16)
All surveyed cities have non-public-project thresholds above San Pablo’s current $25,000 (formal) and $5,000 (informal), with most at $100,000 (formal) and $10,000 (informal). The proposed Ordinance raises the City’s thresholds to $100,000 (formal) and $10,000 (informal), aligning the formal threshold with the $100,000 City Council approval level so that a single dollar amount applies to both procurement method and Council authorization. The City Manager’s $100,000 emergency procurement authority and the small local business preference are retained. While Eide Bailly recommended an automatic annual CPI-based adjustment to these thresholds, the City is not proceeding with that recommendation at this time; any future threshold changes will be brought to the City Council for action.
Section 3. Public Projects and Continued Use of CUPCCAA
The City’s public project (construction) thresholds require no dollar increase; they are already current. The City has participated in the California Uniform Public Construction Cost Accounting Act (CUPCCAA) since 1995, and the City’s Public Works Department uses CUPCCAA procedures for all public project bidding. Under CUPCCAA, the current State limits are $75,000 for force-account or negotiated work and $220,000 for informal bidding, with formal bidding required above $220,000 far above the $5,000 limit that applies to non-participating cities under the Public Contract Code.
The key long-term benefit is that CUPCCAA limits are State-maintained: the Legislature and the California Uniform Construction Cost Accounting Commission raise them periodically, and SPMC Section 3.16.070 is drafted to automatically conform to Public Contract Code Section 22032 as amended, so the City’s construction thresholds stay current without further Council action. Accordingly, the attached Ordinance and Municipal Code redline remove the fixed construction-threshold dollar figures from Section 3.16.070 and instead cite the CUPCCAA limits in Public Contract Code Sections 22032 and 22034, as amended; this is an administrative update that keeps the City’s code aligned with State law and does not grant the City Manager or staff any new authority, as the City’s existing code already conforms to the State limits.
Budget, Fiscal & Legislative Standing Committee (BFLSC) Review
On June 10, 2026, the BFLSC (Council Member Ponce and Mayor Pabon-Alvarado) reviewed the FY 2026-28 Eide Bailly LLP financial assessment, including the proposed increase to the City Manager’s signing authority, and directed that the matter be brought forward for formal consideration and action by the full City Council.
Fiscal Impact
The proposed Ordinance will not create additional expenditures, but will allow staff to operate more efficiently. All expenditures remain subject to appropriation through the budget process and to existing reporting and internal controls.
Attachments:
Att A. Proposed Ordinance Amending Chapter 3.16 (Purchasing System)
Att B. Chapter 3.16 (Purchasing System) - Redline
Att C. Eide Bailly LLP, Analysis of Procurement-Related Monetary Thresholds