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Council approves IT surplus recycling and employee phone buyback program
Summary
Forest Park approved a staff recommendation to declare aging IT equipment as surplus, approve electronic recycling for items with no resale value and permit a buyback or donation option for 33 city-issued phones.
Forest Park — The Forest Park Mayor and Council voted Oct. 20 to declare a set of information-technology equipment surplus, authorize electronic recycling of devices with no remaining value, and allow a buyback or donation process for 33 city-issued cell phones.
IT staff told the council the bulk of the items — older desktops, monitors, printers and broken equipment — have no usable life and should be sent to a certified electronics recycler that will issue certificates of destruction for devices that may contain city data. "They will recycle it, and they will issue a certificate of destruction, which is important for those devices that have city data on them so we know it was properly destroyed," an IT presenter said.
Staff also reported there are about 33 turned-in cell phones ranging from iPhone 7 to iPhone 13 that retain some resale value. The department offered three disposition options for council direction: donate to a partner organization, conduct an employee buyback, or run an auction. Council members favored an employee buyback option, noting the city has used that method in the past.
The council adopted a resolution declaring the equipment surplus and authorizing the recommended disposition, including the buyback option for phones. The motion was seconded and adopted on a recorded unanimous vote.
Council members asked staff to ensure proper data destruction documentation and to return with details on the buyback process and any proceeds. Procurement staff confirmed the recycler partner does not charge the city for pickup and will provide destruction certificates.
Votes at a glance
- IT hardware surplus declaration and authorization for electronic recycling and employee buyback/donation of phones: Approved unanimously (Council members James, Gunn, Gutierrez, Akins Wells, Mears: yes).
