Title
Sheriff’s Office recommending the Board:
1) Find that, in accordance with Section 3.13.03(b) of the El Dorado County Ordinance Code, that the work requires specialty skills and qualifications not expressly identified in County classifications;
2) Find that, in accordance with Section 3.4.2 of the El Dorado County Procurement Policy, Exemption from Competitive Bidding, due to the unique nature of the property or services required competitive bidding is precluded;
2) Authorize the Chair to sign Agreement 7165 in the amount of $267,000 with CA Leo Technologies, LLC. from February 1, 2023 to January 31, 2026, for use of Verus software and systems and services for recording, analyzing and transcribing inmate phone calls for potential criminal activity; and
3) Authorize the Purchasing Agent to increase the Agreement on an "as-needed" basis during the awarded period as long as funding is available within the requesting department's budget.
FUNDING: General Fund.
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DISCUSSION / BACKGROUND
On May 2, 2022, the Purchasing Agent signed Agreement # 6355 with CA Leo Technologies, LLC., for a one-year term in the amount of $75,800 for the Verus software and services. The purchase of this system and services allowed the Sheriff’s Office the ability to search for specific terms and patterns of behavior over any authorized mode of communication in and out of jails among inmates and their associates that could be used to disrupt criminal activity (such as MS-13 and opioid use and trafficking). It was during this period, that the Sheriff's Office was determining if a longer agreement was necessary and if this system was beneficial. Since utilizing the transcription services provided through Leo Technologies, the Sheriff's Office, has been alerted of various potential threats to both inmates and staff. These communications are able to be vetted and then appropriate action can be taken to ensure that all parties involved are safe and provided any services needed. Additionally, Verus’ analytical capabilities enable the constant learning of new terms, as well as alerting law enforcement to changing trends in inmate communications. As part of the Verus services, CA Leo Technologies, LLC., will notify the Sheriff’s Office of actual or suspected historic or prospective criminal activity, or harm to inmates and/or staff, this is instrumental in proactively responding to any potential risks and remedying the situation as quickly as possible. The initial purchase of this product was made under urgent circumstances. During the one-year initial purchase term, the Sheriff's Office reached out to other law enforcement agencies to see if other similar products were in use and found only one other similar product, which proved to be error-prone in testing.
The Sheriff’s Office wishes to continue to use this software and services, and is therefore, requesting a new three-year contract in the annual amount of $89,000 per year for a total of $267,000 for the three-year term. Typically, the pricing for these agreements is re-assessed annually based on the number of minutes to be transcribed, however, Leo Technologies has agreed to maintain the same annual price for the three-years of the agreement regardless of transcription minutes. If the Sheriff's Office were to continue with an annual agreement, the cost would be approximately $100,000 annually based on the average of the last 4 months of service. Therefore, this agreement would provide at least $30,000 in savings over the three-year period.
ALTERNATIVES
N/A.
PRIOR BOARD ACTION
N/A
OTHER DEPARTMENT / AGENCY INVOLVEMENT
County Counsel reviewed and approved Agreement #7165 and Procurement and Contracts has approved the exemption from competitive bidding.
CAO RECOMMENDATION / COMMENTS
Approve as recommended.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
Funding is included in the Sheriff’s Office FY 2022-23 budget.
CLERK OF THE BOARD FOLLOW UP ACTIONS
Please return signed Agreement # 7165 to Sheriff's Office for distribution.
STRATEGIC PLAN COMPONENT
Providing enhanced services to the community increases public safety.
CONTACT
Undersheriff Bryan Golmitz.