Report Prepared by: Jennifer Flachman, Senior Management Analyst, and Sarah Knoester, Management Analyst
Title
SUBJECT: Approval of the Third Amendment with California Public Policy Group for Legislative Advocacy and the Second Amendment with California Public Policy Group for Grant Writing Services for a Total Amount not to Exceed $267,500
REPORT IN BRIEF
Considers approving the Third Amendment with California Public Policy Group (CPPG) for legislative advocacy and the Second Amendment with CPPG for grant writing services for a total amount not to exceed $267,000.
RECOMMENDATION
City Council - Adopt a motion:
A. Approving a Third Amendment to Services Agreement with CPPG for legislative advocacy in an amount not to exceed $201,000; and,
B. Approving a Second Amendment to Services Agreement with CPPG for grant writing services in an amount not to exceed $66,500; and,
C. Authorizing the City Manager to execute the necessary documents.
Body
ALTERNATIVES
1. Approve, as recommend by Staff; or,
2. Approve, subject to other than recommended by Staff; or,
3. Deny; or,
4. Refer to Staff for reconsideration of specific items; or,
5. Continue to a future meeting.
AUTHORITY
Merced Municipal Code Title 3 Article III Purchases Over Twenty-Five Thousand Dollars.
CITY COUNCIL PRIORITIES
As provided for in the FY 25/26 Adopted Budget.
DISCUSSION
History and Past Actions
Legislative Advocacy:
• Original Agreement was approved at the 12/19/2022 council meeting. Original agreement was a three-year contract in the amount of $180,000.
• First Amendment was approved at the 6/28/2023 council meeting. The first amendment added $3,000 to the contract, bringing the total contract amount to $183,000.
• Second Amendment was approved at the 9/3/2024 council meeting. The second amendment was to accept the name change from Renne Public Policy Group to California Public Policy Group.
(see Attachment 1 for Original Agreement, First Amendment, and Second Amendment).
Grant Writing Services:
• Original agreement was approved at the 4/15/2024 council meeting. Original agreement was a one-year, three-month contract in the amount of $56,000. The term of the grant writing agreement was set up as to coincide with the legislative advocacy contract termination date.
• First Amendment was approved at the 9/3/2024 council meeting. The first amendment was to accept the name change from Renne Public Policy Group to California Public Policy Group (CPPG).
(see Attachment 2 for Original Agreement and First Amendment)
Current Actions
Both CPPG contracts for legislative advocacy and grant writing services expired on June 30, 2025. A Request for Proposal (RFP) for both legislative advocacy and grant writing services was advertised on Monday, June 2, 2025. This RFP closes on Friday, July 11, 2025. Proposals will be evaluated the week of July 14 - 18, 2025 with interviews of selected firms occurring July 21 - 25, 2025. Anticipated contract award and execution will be sometime in the month of August 2025.
While the City continues to work through the RFP process, CPPG remains engaged on several active projects under both the legislative advocacy and grant writing services contracts. This includes ongoing support related to state legislation and grant opportunities that align with the City’s priorities (see Attachments 3 and 4).
To ensure continuity of service and keep current efforts on track, staff is recommending a three-month extension of both contracts. This will allow CPPG to continue assisting the City without interruption while the RFP process is finalized.
Even though the new contract for legislative advocacy and grant writing services is expected to begin sometime in August 2025, staff would like to err on the safe side and extend the two CPPG contracts to September 30, 2025. This three-month extension will provide for a sufficient time frame for the new legislative advocacy and grant writing contracts to be executed, including any time frame needed to address unforeseen circumstances. If the new vendor contract is executed before September 30, 2025, the City can invoke paragraph 13 of the Original Agreements with CPPG.
13.TERMINATION FOR CONVENIENCE OF CITY. The City may terminate this Agreement any time by mailing a notice in writing to Consultant that the Agreement is terminated. Said Agreement shall then be deemed terminated, and no further work shall be performed by Consultant. If the Agreement is so terminated, the Consultant shall be paid for that percentage of the phase of work actually completed, based on a pro rata portion of the compensation for said phase satisfactorily completed at the time the notice of termination is received.
The three-month extension will add additional compensation to each contract.
• Third Amendment to Services Agreement for legislative advocacy will add $18,000 to the contract, bringing the contract total to $201,000 (see Attachment 5).
• Second Amendment to Services Agreement for grant writing services will add $10,500 to the contract, bring the contract total to $66,500 (see Attachment 6).
IMPACT ON CITY RESOURCES
The City Manager fiscal year 25/26 budget allocated $74,160 for legislative advocacy and $43,260 for grant writing services. The Third Amendment for legislative advocacy will utilize the first three months (July 2025 - September 2025) of the $74,160 budget with the RFP awardee utilizing the last 9 months (October 2025 to June 2026) of the budget. The Second Amendment for grant writing services will utilize the first three months (July 2025 to September 2025) of the $43,260 budget with the RFP awardee utilizing the last 9 months (October 2025 to June 2026) of the budget.
ATTACHMENTS
1. Original Agreement, First Amendment, and Second Amendment for legislative advocacy
2. Original Agreement and First Amendment for grant writing services
3. List of position letters for 2025
4. List of grants in process, grants submitted and pending award, and upcoming grants
5. Third Amendment to Services Agreement for legislative advocacy
6. Second Amendment to Services Agreement for grant writing services