A proposal requiring Council review of any consultant contract of $25,000 or more was approved unanimously Tuesday night.
2nd District Republican councilman Russ Jehl hinted at the draft of the measure three weeks ago, but opted to hold it until further conversations with other members and the administrations were held.
Several changes resulted; notably, Jehl increased the floor from $10,000 to $25,000 amid concerns that too many contracts could significantly slow down the progress on other work. To this point, Council could only review $100,000 contracts or higher.
Attorney fees and contracts from City Utilities were also excluded from final approval.
Jehl says his goal is to make the contractual process more collaborative between the body and Mayor’s Office.
“We're talking about at what point should council see consultant contracts, because there have been a few below the $100,000 threshold that the administration has done unilaterally that I think council would have liked to have seen.”
At-large Republican Michael Barranda concurred, noting the Red River contract as an example of one they would have liked to debate further.
Council also sought to make the process more efficient by allowing for the use of a “consent agenda.” Contracts would be introduced as normal, then compiled into a single agenda item, allowing them to be approved in one motion.
