(a) The board of trustees, common council, or other legislative body of a city or the board of trustees of a library district in which a withdrawal from the county free library system becomes effective on or after January 1, 2012, shall comply with all of the following requirements before entering into a contract to operate the city’s or the district’s library or libraries with a private contractor that will employ library staff to achieve cost savings:
(1) At least once a week for four consecutive weeks before taking any action, the board of trustees, common council, or other legislative body of the city or the board of trustees of the library district shall publish, in a newspaper designated by it and circulated throughout the city or library district, notice of the contemplated action, giving the date and place of the meeting at which the contemplated action is proposed to be taken.
(2) The board of trustees, common council, or other legislative body of a city or the board of trustees of a library district shall clearly demonstrate that the contract will result in actual overall cost savings to the city or library district for the duration of the entire contract as compared with the city’s or library district’s actual costs of providing the same services, provided that, in comparing costs, all of the following occur:
(A) The city’s or library district’s additional cost of providing the same services as proposed by the contract shall be included. These additional costs shall include the salaries and benefits of additional staff that would be needed and the cost of additional space, equipment, and materials needed to perform the necessary functions of the library.
(B) The city’s or library district’s indirect overhead costs shall not be included unless those costs can be attributed solely to the function in question and would not exist if that function was not performed by the city or library district. For purposes of this subparagraph, “indirect overhead costs” means the pro rata share of existing administrative salaries and benefits, rent, equipment costs, utilities, and materials.
(C) The cost of a contractor providing a service for any continuing city or library district costs that would be directly associated with the contracted function shall be included. Continuing city or library district costs shall include, but not be limited to, costs for inspection, supervision, and monitoring.
(3) The contract shall not be approved solely on the basis that savings will result from lower contractor pay rates or benefits. Contracts shall be eligible for approval if the contractor’s wages are at the industry’s level and do not undercut city or library district pay rates.
(4) The contract shall not cause an existing city or library district employee to incur a loss of his or her employment or employment seniority, a reduction in wages, benefits, or hours, or an involuntary transfer to a new location requiring a change in residence.
(5) The contract shall be awarded through a publicized, competitive bidding process.
(6) The contract shall include specific provisions pertaining to the qualifications of the staff that will perform the work under the contract, as well as assurances that the contractor’s hiring practices meet applicable nondiscrimination standards.
(7) The contract shall provide that it may be terminated at any time by the city or library district without penalty if there is a material breach of the contract and notice is provided within 30 days of termination.
(8) If the contract is for library services in excess of one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000) annually, all of the following shall occur:
(A) The city or library district shall require the contractor to disclose all of the following information as part of its bid, application, or answer to a request for proposal:
(i) A description of all charges, claims, or complaints filed against the contractor with any federal, state, or local administrative agency during the prior 10 years.
(ii) A description of all civil complaints filed against the contractor in any state or federal court during the prior 10 years.
(iii) A description of all state or federal criminal complaints or indictments filed against the contractor, or any of its officers, directors, or managers, at any time.
(iv) A description of any debarments of the contractor by any public agency or licensing body at any time.
(B) The city or library district shall include in the contract specific, measurable performance standards and provisions for a performance audit by the city or library district, or an independent auditor approved by the city or library district, to determine whether the performance standards are being met and whether the contractor is in compliance with applicable laws and regulations. The city or library district shall not renew or extend the contract before receiving and considering the audit report.
(C) The contract shall include provisions for an audit by the city or library district, or an independent auditor approved by the city or library district, to determine whether and to what extent the anticipated cost savings have actually been realized. The city or library district shall not renew or extend the contract before receiving and considering the audit report.
(9) The term of the contract shall not be more than five years from the date on which the board of trustees, common council, or other legislative body of a city or the board of trustees of a library district approves the contract.
(b) This section does not preclude a city, library district, or local government from adopting more restrictive rules regarding the contracting of public services.
(c) This section shall not apply to contracts between a city or library district and a nonprofit organization if both of the following requirements are met:
(1) The nonprofit organization shall not be a parent or subsidiary of a for-profit entity.
(2) The contract shall prohibit the nonprofit organization from subcontracting the obligation to operate the library or libraries and to employ and supervise library staff.
(d) This section shall not apply to a library or libraries that are funded only by the proceeds of a special tax imposed by the city or library district pursuant to Article 3.5 (commencing with Section 50075) of Chapter 1 of Part 1 of Division 1 of Title 5 of the Government Code.
(e) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2019, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, that is enacted before January 1, 2019, deletes or extends that date.
(Amended by Stats. 2013, Ch. 196, Sec. 1. (AB 583) Effective January 1, 2014. Repealed as of January 1, 2019, by its own provisions.)
Last modified: October 25, 2018