REPORT TO THE CITY COUNCIL
December 10, 2020
FROM: WILMA QUAN, City Manager
BY: JOHN ELLIS, Government Affairs Manager
Office of the Mayor & City Manager
SUBJECT
Title
Actions pertaining to Professional Lobbying and Consulting Services:
1. Approve the City Manager’s finding that Campbell Strategy and Advocacy, LLC., is uniquely qualified.
2. Approve a Consultant Services Agreement, with Campbell Strategy and Advocacy, LLC., for an amount not to exceed $180,000.
Body
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends that the City Council approve the contract for consultant services agreement with Campbell Strategy and Advocacy, LLC., for an amount not to exceed $180,000. The term of the agreement is one year with the option to extend for an additional six months.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The Office of the Mayor and City Manager seeks City Council approval of a new professional consultant services agreement with Campbell Strategy and Advocacy, LLC., the City’s current State lobbyist, to continue in its role performing professional lobbying and consulting activities regarding State governmental activities for 12 months, with a possible additional six-month extension.
BACKGROUND
All functions of the City are significantly affected by state legislative votes and administrative actions in Sacramento. From funding and revenue streams that can help ensure the City can build affordable housing and address homelessness, to support for local road, transit and trail programs, to addressing the COVID-19 pandemic and its long-term implications, what happens in the state Capitol affects the entire state.
The City of Fresno engaged a state lobbyist on June 16, 2016, for the first time since 2012. The hiring of Campbell Strategy and Advocacy, LLC., was a pivotal move for the City, coming at a time of great change for local governments. In the past four and a half years as the City’s lobbyist, Campbell’s biggest strength has been helping the City receive much needed state funding. As the state’s fifth-largest City - and one with a numerically small legislative delegation - it had been difficult for Fresno to make its voice heard as it was often drowned out by the Bay Area and Los Angeles-area delegations. Campbell worked nearly two decades as a State Capitol staffer, including serving as chief of staff to Assembly Speakers Toni Atkins and John Perez, and in August was named to Capitol Weekly’s list of the Top 100 Sacramento influencers. That clout and insight has brought significant benefits to Fresno on multiple fronts. For instance, Campbell played a critical role in helping Mayor Brand and the state’s other Big City Mayors secure hundreds of millions of dollars to address the state’s homelessness challenge. In addition, Campbell and his team assisted in the City’s successful effort to secure more than $20 million in Project Homekey and Project Roomkey funds, which are currently being used to purchase area motels to house the homeless. Looking ahead, Campbell’s top priority will be securing significant discretionary funds to help alleviate the local impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. This worldwide health crisis has strained the local and state economy, as well as our healthcare delivery systems, and exacerbated existing societal challenges such as homelessness and poverty. Campbell will work to identify resources and opportunities at the State level to help the City rebuild and support its residents.
At the critical time, it is important that the City is represented in order to coordinate and review of all legislative proposals that may affect the City and its residents. Campbell Strategy and Advocacy, LLC., has deep relationships with the Governor’s Office, key legislative leaders and committee staff, and the Governor’s cabinet members. Fresno remains its sole City client, and Campbell’s team’s familiarity with the budget and legislative negotiating process and key actors have proven - and will continue to prove - beneficial for the City. This is especially important at this time, when State finances are shaky due to COVID-19 and competition for limited funds will be intense. As much as securing funds is important, in these uncertain times making sure bad actors at the State level do not take away what we already have. Only a keen eye on the ground in Sacramento can ensure this doesn’t happen.
As stated in the Scope of Services in the attached agreement, work at the California State Capitol this coming year will be anything but business as usual. With the Legislature’s primary focus on mitigating the effects of the pandemic, uncertainties related to the economy resulting in future and state budget vulnerabilities for the foreseeable future, policy makers are in crisis mode. They will focus their efforts on only the state’s most pressing issues. It will take a disciplined plan of attack to get traction on any issue. Timelines may again be significantly compressed. While discussions will still happen in public, the decisions will be made quickly and often behind closed doors to a magnitude that hasn’t been experienced in quite some time. This increases the urgency to formulate a comprehensive strategy on not only what we are asking for but when and with whom we will make the requests.
Campbell and his team, led by lobbyist Angie Manetti, will continue to review all bills introduced and amended throughout the Legislative Session to identify those that affect the City, will make recommendations as to whether the City should support, oppose, seek amendments to, or simply monitor bills of interest. Campbell Strategy and Advocacy, LLC., will have a focused lobbying strategy for each bill of interest to the City, and its work in conjunction with City staff has helped derail legislation that could have financially harmed the City. The firm has also shown that it will go beyond straightforward lobbying on bills. When necessary, it has built coalitions of cities or other entities that share our vision for certain legislative proposals - bad or good. This strategy has helped the City mount successful campaigns to defeat or win approval for important legislation.
To date, Campbell Strategy and Advocacy, LLC., has proven that no other state firm has developed the web of relationships necessary to navigate the complexities of state government during this time of political uncertainty.
ENVIRONMENTAL FINDINGS
Approval of the consultant services agreement amendment is not a “project” within the meaning of Public Resources Code Section 21803 (CEQA Guidelines Section 15378) because the organizational and administrative activities as identified in the consultant agreement will not result in direct or indirect physical changes in the environment.
LOCAL PREFERENCE
Local preference was not implemented because Campbell Strategy and Advocacy, LLC., is uniquely qualified.
FISCAL IMPACT
Funding for the period beginning January 2021 is part of the FY 2021 Budget and would carry over into the FY 2022 Proposed Budget. Any extension of the contract would be part of the FY 2022 Proposed Budget.
Attachments:
Draft Consultant Services Agreement
Uniquely Qualified Memo