RESOLUTION NO. 230969
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Sponsor: Mayor Quinton Lucas and Councilperson Melissa Patterson Hazley
RESOLUTION - Directing the City Manager to launch a Contract Assistance Team pilot program to facilitate increased efficiency and cross-departmental coordination in the execution of funding agreements authorized by the Council.
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WHEREAS, the City administers a variety of grant and loan programs that are awarded via solicitation processes; and
WHEREAS, proposals received through those solicitation processes undergo rigorous evaluation by City staff, oversight boards, and the City Council before projects are selected to receive funding; and
WHEREAS, there are many City departments involved in executing funding agreements after funds are authorized by Council, including but not limited to the Civil Rights and Equal Opportunities (CREO), Law, Procurement, and Finance Departments, in addition to the department running the solicitation process; and
WHEREAS, the number of projects receiving funds via solicitation has increased in recent years, as increased funds have been made available through programs like CCED, the Housing Trust Fund, Rebuild KC, and Violence Prevention; and
WHEREAS, there has been substantial variation in the length of the process to execute contracts and distribute funds after they are authorized by Council; and
WHEREAS, delays in the disbursement of these funds can halt important projects and disrupt their ability to secure other financing needed to complete the work; and
WHEREAS, different software solutions and systems for managing contracting processes have been built over time as new programs were created; and
WHEREAS, a new project management model could more proactively identify potential delays and facilitate increased cross-departmental coordination and transparency in addressing issues that may emerge through the contracting process; NOW, THEREFORE,
BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF KANSAS CITY:
Section 1. That the City Manager is directed to establish a Contract Assistance Team pilot program for upcoming grant solicitations, such as the Housing Trust Fund or CCED.
a. Purpose. The Contract Assistance Team shall be charged with overseeing the timely execution of funding agreements authorized by Council as a result of a solicitation.
b. Membership. The Contract Assistance Team shall be composed of City staff and shall include at least one representative from the Civil Rights and Equal Opportunities (CREO), Law, Procurement, and Finance Departments, in addition to representatives from the department charged with running the solicitation.
c. Duties. The Contract Assistance Team shall have the following duties.
(1) Conduct regular project management meetings to track the status of all contract processes, identify issues that could cause the delay of contracts, and implement solutions to address those issues.
(2) Identify or develop a shared systems and software for tracking project statuses, such that they may be more easily monitored and reported upon.
(3) Provide recommendations to the City Manager and Council on opportunities to improve the City’s processes for distributing funds for community-based projects.
d. Reporting. The Contract Assistance Team shall provide monthly reports to the City Manager and Council on the status of all contracts that have been authorized via solicitation until all contracts from that solicitation are complete.
Section 2. That the City Manager is directed to report back to the Council within 90 days on the establishment of the Contract Assistance Team and which upcoming solicitation(s) it will be deployed to oversee. Additionally, the City Manager is directed to report back to Council on the impact of the Contract Assistance Team and recommend whether the practice should continue beyond a pilot program.
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