Commission approves Testing for Public Safety claim while commissioners seek meeting on rising prices

Commissioners voted Oct. 7 to approve a claims invoice from Testing for Public Safety, but several members said they are concerned about recent price increases and asked staff to arrange discussions with the company before negotiating the next contract.

The commission first bifurcated claims so that the claim for a different vendor (Mr. Barrett) could be handled separately. For the Testing for Public Safety invoice, a commissioner said their review showed prices have “consistently ... increased” since 2015 and that the latest invoice was roughly 27% higher than 2023 rates. Commissioners questioned line items that included a roughly $2,600 charge for developing interview assessment questions, which one commissioner said amounted to more than $500 per officer given the department’s small promotion cohorts.

The city attorney and commission president said the invoice billing conforms to the existing contract and therefore must be paid, but recommended approving the claim now while scheduling follow-up talks. Commissioners agreed the president and attorney (and other commissioners if needed) should open negotiations and that staff would draft a memo to the vendor requesting a meeting. The commission discussed inviting the vendor to a future meeting (November or January) or addressing pricing in a smaller negotiation group before presenting an outcome to the full commission.

The motion to approve the Testing for Public Safety claim passed on a voice vote.

Commissioners said the review and a planned vendor meeting should inform whether the city continues with the vendor for future promotion cycles or seeks alternatives.