Meeting_Body
CONSTRUCTION COMMITTEE
NOVEMBER 16, 2017
Subject
SUBJECT: SMALL BUSINESS BONDING ASSISTANCE
PILOT PROGRAM
Action
ACTION: APPROVE RECOMMENDATIONS
Heading
RECOMMENDATION
Title
CONSIDER:
A. AUTHORIZING the Chief Executive Officer to award a Contract to Merriwether & Williams Insurance Services (MWIS) for a not to exceed amount of $1,315,417 for a one year Bonding Assistance Pilot Program, effective January 1, 2018 to February 28, 2019, which includes a 2-month ramp-up period;
B. ADOPT a resolution, Attachment A, authorizing the Chief Executive Officer and other Authorized Officers to negotiate and execute a $4,000,000 line of credit with Bank of America at a cost of $18,000 and to execute as needed, individual standby letters of credit at a cost of $2,000 each or 2% of the value of each letter of credit executed, whichever is greater, for the pilot year;
(REQUIRES SIMPLE, SEPARATE MAJORITY VOTE OF THE FULL BOARD)
C. AUTHORIZING the Chief Executive Officer to approve a no cost Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the City of Los Angeles for participation in the City's Contractor Development and Bonding Assistance Program (CDBAP) for a one year Pilot Program; and
D. AMENDING the FY18 budget for $1,413,417 to include the contract with MWIS, and the associated line of credit and standby letter of credit fees.
Issue
ISSUE
The Small Business community has expressed concerns that obtaining the necessary bonding for small contractors has been a barrier to participating in Metro construction contracts. The City of Los Angeles has also identified bonding as a barrier for small contractors and implemented the Citywide Bonding Assistance Program in 2005.
The City's Administration Office issued a Request for Proposal (RFP) in October 2015 for continuation of their existing program and asked Metro to participate in the RFP process. Metro participated in the RFP process after receiving approval from the Board on May 20, 2015. Metro was include...
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