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Council removes Tesla from cooperative purchase list after debate over safety and procurement
Summary
Council approved cooperative contracts for fleet purchases but voted to remove Tesla Inc. from the vendor list after an amendment prompted debate over safety reports, litigation and procurement precedent.
Charlotte City Council voted to approve cooperative contract awards for a range of vehicles and equipment but approved an amendment removing Tesla, Inc. from the vendor list in item 43.
Councilmember Lawanna Mayfield proposed the amendment to remove vendor line item 25‑11‑0912 (Tesla, Inc.) from the cooperative contract award. Mayfield cited reports of quality and safety concerns and national litigation involving the manufacturer, and she said the city should not use tax dollars to increase its fleet purchases from a vendor with repeated safety questions. “We have multiple accounts of that product being an unsafe product,” Mayfield said during debate.
Opponents of the amendment, including Councilmember Ed Driggs, warned that excluding specific manufacturers for reasons unrelated to unit price and performance sets a dangerous precedent and risks politicizing procurement. Driggs noted that nearly every major manufacturer faces litigation at some point and said staff and cooperative contracts are intended to meet bid requirements.
Interim City Attorney Anthony Fox explained that the cooperative agreement satisfies statutory bidding requirements under North Carolina law (reference to N.C. Gen. Stat. § 143‑128 was discussed in committee); however he said council retains discretion to consider bidder qualifications, performance and quality when making purchasing decisions.
After debate the council approved the overall cooperative contract awards with the specific removal of Tesla from the vendor list. The transcript records the final voice tally as 6 in favor and 3 opposed on the amendment to remove Tesla (council roll‑call names were not read in the transcript excerpt). Councilmembers said procurement policy review is warranted if the city wants to formally incorporate additional criteria beyond the cooperative contract process.
Council directed staff to continue work on procurement policy improvements and noted that future contract approvals could address concerns about total contract value versus change orders and contingency spending.
