Special Notice / Hearing: None__
Vote Required: Majority
To: Honorable Board of Supervisors
From: Carlos G. Bolanos, Sheriff
Subject: Agreement with Keefe Group for Inmate Commissary Services
RECOMMENDATION:
title
Adopt a resolution authorizing an agreement with Keefe Group for the provision of inmate commissary services for a term beginning September 1, 2018 through August 31, 2021.
body
BACKGROUND:
Commissary services are provided to inmates to give them the opportunity to obtain food, beverages, and other items that would otherwise not be available to them while incarcerated. Section 4025 of the California Penal Code authorizes the establishment, maintenance, and operation of a commissary store, but does not mandate it. The industry standard is for law enforcement agencies to contract with an outside vendor for the provision of commissary services. The Sheriff’s Office is one of only two law enforcement agencies in all of California to operate its own commissary.
DISCUSSION:
To modernize and improve the Sheriff’s Office Commissary Services, the Sheriff’s Office would like to contract out for these services.
In November 2017, the Sheriff’s Office issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) for the provision of inmate commissary services in the Maguire Correctional Facility and the Maple Street Correctional Center. Two proposals were received in response to the RFP. A proposal review panel consisting of representatives from County Purchasing, the Sheriff’s Office Corrections Division, and the Sheriff’s Office Fiscal Bureau closely evaluated and considered both proposals. The evaluation included review of the written proposals and receipt of information through in-person presentations made by both vendors. The committee determined Keefe Group to be the recommended provider of service. Contract negotiations between Keefe Group and the proposal review panel were completed in March 2018.
Keefe Group offered the best overall services and will provide the correctional facilities with a state of the art commissary system with an expanded menu of items at prices that are reasonable and fair to family and friends of inmates. In some instances, prices are lower and the quantity greater than is provided under the current system.
Sheriff’s Office staff worked with the existing commissary staff and their labor representative to discuss changes to the system. All current commissary employees will maintain their positions with the Sheriff’s Office. Their role will focus on distribution of the commissary items to inmates within the correctional facilities.
In addition, as authorized and contemplated by law, all funds generated by this agreement will be deposited into the Inmate Welfare Trust Fund. The funds will be spent for the benefit, education, and welfare of inmates confined within the Sheriff’s Office’s correctional facilities and other related costs associated with operating the commissary program.
The agreement and resolution have been reviewed and approved by County Counsel as to form.
Approving this agreement contributes to the County’s Shared Vision 2025 Outcome of a Healthy Community by raising the morale and satisfaction of inmates and providing their families and friends with a variety of options for depositing funds into inmates’ personal fund accounts.
PERFORMANCE MEASURE:
|
Measure |
FY 2017-18 |
FY 2018-19 |
|
Number of commissary menu items available to inmates |
191 |
400 |
FISCAL IMPACT:
Keefe Group will provide inmate commissary services for a term beginning September 1, 2018 through August 31, 2021, in exchange for a minimum annual guaranteed sum of $580,000 to partially fund inmate welfare services and recover costs associated with operating the commissary program. There is no Net County Cost associated with this agreement.