Board committee approves amended Recology extension for city facilities, asks staff to pursue competitive solicitation

The Budget & Finance Committee voted to accept a Budget and Legislative Analyst amendment and forward to the full Board a seven‑month extension of the city's contract with Recology subsidiaries for refuse collection at city facilities.

The Office of Contract Administration proposed a second amendment to increase the contract’s not‑to‑exceed amount by $7,000,000 to $16,900,000 and extend the term through June 30, 2022 to ensure continuity of service for about 300 city sites. OCA said the expected seven‑month spend is roughly $6,000,000 and that the extension is intended to allow time for a concurrent competitive solicitation led with the Department of the Environment.

The Budget and Legislative Analyst recommended reducing the overall NTE to $15,622,000 to make contingency appropriate to new expenditures during the extension period and otherwise recommended approval. BLA staff also reminded the committee of a May settlement in which Recology agreed to repay roughly $94.5 million to ratepayers and pay $7 million in civil penalties related to earlier rate‑setting practices.

Supervisors asked OCA and the Department of the Environment about the solicitation timeline and whether there are truly multiple viable vendors able to meet the city’s zero‑waste and equipment requirements; OCA and the Department of the Environment said preparing a thoughtful solicitation and assessing vendor capacities will take time but committed to expedited work and regular updates. The controller’s office agreed to work with OCA on reviewing whether the city was overcharged under the prior rate structure.

The committee approved the BLA amendment and forwarded the item to the full board with a positive recommendation (3 ayes).

What’s next: OCA will proceed with solicitation development, working with the Department of the Environment and the controller’s office, and the Board will consider the extension and the amended NTE.