Title
Treasurer-Tax Collector's Office recommending the Board approve the following:
1) Award Bid 2025-0115 for the purchase of short-term rental compliance software to the low qualified bidder, Deckard Technologies, Inc;
2) Authorize the Purchasing Agent to issue a purchase agreement in the amount of $143,360.00 for a three-year period following Board approval, with a retroactive term of July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2028; and
3) Authorize the Purchasing Agent to increase the purchase agreement on an "as needed" basis during the awarded period as long as funding is available within the requesting Office's budget.
FUNDING: General Fund.
Body
DISCUSSION / BACKGROUND
The Treasurer-Tax Collector's (TTC) Office, Tax Division, administers the County's Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT) Program in accordance with Revenue and Taxation Code 7280 and El Dorado County Ordinance, Title 3, Chapter 3.28. Under the Program, the Office issues Short-Term Rental (STR) Business Liceses/TOT Certificates to property owners and manages the activities related to the filing and collection of quarterly TOT taxes. There are approximately 1,100 active Business License/TOT certificates indicating 4,436 yearly tax filings.
The Planning and Building Department administers the County's Vacation Home Rental Program in accordance with El Dorado County Ordinance, Title 5, Chapter 5.56. Under the Program, the Department issues hosted or Vacation Home Rental (HHR/VHR) Permits and manages the Code Enforcement actions. Currently, there are approximately 900 active VHRs within the unincorporated areas of El Dorado County.
The short-term rental industry continues to experience a significant increase in internet-based rental companies advertising, with reservation links, overnight lodging accommodations, ranging from single rooms to entire homes. Online companies include Airbnb, VRBO, Booking, Flipkey, Expedia and over 10,000 websites worldwide. It is estimated that approximately 1,460 unique properties within the unincorporated areas of El Dorado County are listed as short-term rental properties on vacation rental websites.
The Treasurer-Tax Collector had Agreement 8712 in place with Deckard Technologies, Inc. The RentalScape platform has provided short-term rental compliance, monitoring software, and advanced data analytics since July 1, 2024. The platform is utilized by the Treasurer-Tax Collector to prepare Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT) assessments and audits, along with Building & Planning Vacation Home Rental/Hosted Home Rental (VHR/HHR) Permitting and Code Enforcement.
The Treasurer-Tax Collector reached out in early March 2025 to Procurement and Contracts (P&C) to initiate a Request For Proposal (RFP). A draft RFP was provided to the department on April 21, 2025 and was posted to PlanetBids on May 7, 2025. Three proposals were received on June 11, 2025 and reviewed by the Evaluation Committee on June 17, 2025. The successful proposer, Deckard Technologies, Inc. was notified on June 17, 2025. County Counsel will review the draft agreement in July 2025 and provide any necessary revisions for the vendor to review. The County’s internal processing timeline has resulted in the need for retroactive approval.
Deckard Technologies, Inc has continued to provide access to the software and monitoring after Agreement 8712 expired on June 30, 2025. This Agreement will allow the County continued use of the RentalScape platform, retroactive to July 1, 2025, for a three-year period.
ALTERNATIVES
The office could manually search for short-term rental properties that are not permitted by the County. However, this practice was used in the past and was not as successful as having an outside service.
PRIOR BOARD ACTION
N/A
OTHER DEPARTMENT / AGENCY INVOLVEMENT
CAO - Procurement and Contracts Division conducted the formal bid process.
CAO RECOMMENDATION / COMMENTS
[This section is completed by the CAO's Office. This section is required]
FINANCIAL IMPACT
There is no change to the Net County Cost associated with this item. Funding for this contract has been included in the 25-26 Treasurer-Tax Collector budget. The TTC Office recovers these costs through the assessment and audit of short term rentals.
CLERK OF THE BOARD FOLLOW UP ACTIONS
N/A
STRATEGIC PLAN COMPONENT
N/A
CONTACT
Sean Coppola, Assistant Treasurer-Tax Collector