Sparks Council approves month-to-month contracts for lobbying on Truckee Meadows land bill

The Sparks City Council on Monday voted unanimously to approve two addenda to existing professional services agreements for federal lobbying and outreach tied to the Truckee Meadows Public Lands Management Act, directing the city manager to convert the agreements to month-to-month terms with a 30-day written termination right and a per-contract cap of $80,000 for calendar year 2025.

The contracts cover SB Strategic Consulting Inc. (addendum to AC6013) and Barrett Resources (addendum to AC5701). Allison McCormick, assistant city manager, told the council each contract is for one year (Jan. 1–Dec. 31, 2025) at an annual price of $80,000, payable monthly; staff recommended approval. Upon passage, the city would owe consultants for January and February services as well as monthly payments going forward.

The vote followed a lengthy discussion about the city’s tight fiscal situation and the policy risk of switching from annual to short-term contracts. Councilwoman Bybee, who pulled the items for discussion, said the goal was to preserve the consultants’ work to help secure passage of the lands bill while limiting the city’s long-term financial commitment. “We’re close, we’re so close, that I don’t want to just throw out what we’ve done,” Bybee said, arguing the city should keep outreach through the bill’s final stages but avoid a full-year commitment now.

Councilmember Anderson dissented on the approach, saying a serial month-to-month review process could be inefficient and make the city a less-attractive client. “If you’re a consultant and you’re only month to month, you’re going to look elsewhere,” Anderson said, urging consistency in contracting practices. Councilmember Rodriguez suggested a middle path: require the consultants to present publicly about their work and consider quarterly reviews instead of strictly month-to-month.

City Attorney Duncan and other staff said a 30-day cancellation mechanism is already included in the 2024 contract language when the lands bill passes, and that a 30-day termination clause could be added to protect the city if council wanted month-to-month or quarterly terms. McCormick told council that the reduced contract price ($80,000 down from $90,000) is included in the current fiscal year 2025 budget and also in the draft FY2026 budget.

Council ultimately approved both addenda with identical conditions: convert the service agreements to month-to-month at $6,666.67 per month, include a 30-day written termination notice for the city, and not exceed $80,000 for calendar year 2025. The motions passed unanimously.

The council directed the city manager to finalize revised addenda consistent with those conditions. Staff also said they will coordinate with the consultants to schedule a public presentation on the work performed and planned outreach related to the Truckee Meadows Public Lands Management Act.

What happens next: the city will formalize the month-to-month contract language and begin monthly payments on approval (staff said the city would owe two months of back pay for January and February). The contracts remain contingent on the consultants’ willingness to accept month-to-month terms; staff said they would negotiate the final language. The consultants’ work is intended to support congressional consideration of the Truckee Meadows Public Lands Management Act; the bill’s passage is outside the city’s authority.