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Alamogordo joins two purchasing cooperatives; staff discusses “infrastructure-as-a-service” option
Summary
The commission approved membership in two national purchasing cooperatives to allow procurement of software and to explore infrastructure-as-a-service financing for city capital needs, including water meters, with no membership fees reported.
The Alamogordo City Commission approved two motions to join national purchasing cooperatives by unanimous votes, allowing the city to use cooperative purchasing agreements to buy software and to explore a financing model called “infrastructure as a service.”
Staff explained that membership in the National Purchasing Partners (NPP) and the Purchasing Cooperative of America (PCA) will allow the city to buy pivotal dispatch software and evaluate infrastructure-as-a-service deals without issuing citywide solicitations for each vendor. City Manager-level staff told commissioners the dispatch software is “the pivotal piece” to handle incoming calls and must be procured for the planned dispatch go-live; the cooperative route lets city staff use pre-negotiated agreements.
City staff explained infrastructure as a service (IaaS) is a financing model under which a vendor designs, procures and manages a capital project — for example, water-meter replacement or roof replacement — and the city pays monthly fees instead of upfront debt service. Staff said IaaS can be a fit for assets that do not match the lifespan of traditional municipal debt (water meters were given as a primary example). Officials warned the structure carries different ownership and default implications versus traditional debt and said the commission would see any large contracts before execution under the purchasing ordinance.
Commissioners asked whether cooperative procurement could bypass commission oversight for large-dollar projects. Staff replied that the city’s purchasing ordinance treats cooperative purchases as competitively purchased and that purchases under cooperative agreements do not always require separate commission approval; commissioners expressed concern about that and asked staff to bring more detail on thresholds and reporting. Staff said there are no annual membership fees for either cooperative.
Both membership motions passed 7-0; staff said they will return with project-specific financing or procurement plans if the city pursues IaaS or specific software selections.
