Sacramento council approves $6.2 million cleanup contract and $2.7 million transfer; staff to report back on encampment response

The Sacramento City Council on a unanimous voice vote approved a new citywide trash and encampment cleanup contract with FS Global and authorized transferring $2.7 million from a Department of Community Response (DCR) fund to cover the higher cost.

The action, moved and seconded during the meeting, follows a rebid of the city's cleanup contract after a prevailing wage determination from the state. Brian Pedro, director of the Department of Community Response, told the council the low bid came down through negotiations from an initial $9.4 million proposal to a $6.2 million contract and that the city trimmed hours and weekend service to reduce cost. "I just wanted to let you know where we're spending $6,200,000 on cleanup," Pedro said in his presentation.

Why it matters: the new contract raises city spending on cleanup roughly 48 percent from the previous $4.2 million contract, and staff said the lower negotiated price reflects reduced operational hours (an eight‑hour daily window that includes ramp up and ramp down) and elimination of routine weekend pickup except as needed. Council members and a member of the public emphasized the tradeoffs between higher pay for workers and reduced weekend or overtime coverage.

Pedro told the council the RFP originally drew 14 responses, which the panel winnowed to two finalists: FS Global and Forensic Clean. Pedro said a state Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) determination and a letter from the Department of Transportation required the city to treat the contract as subject to prevailing wages and rerun the RFP. He described the evaluation as a best‑value assessment that weighed cost, experience with prevailing wage compliance, operational plans and ramp‑up time; FS Global was selected in part for prevailing‑wage experience, local hiring commitments and references from Sonoma County.

Public comment: Barbara Ram, a member of the public, praised the negotiations and said she supported the prevailing wage outcome. "So before I spoke to Brian Pedro earlier, I was thinking $6,000,000 was a lot for trash pickup, but when he explained it so nicely, I think he did a great job with getting a new contract and I'm all for prevailing wage," Ram said.

Council response and follow up: Several council members asked for more transparency about scoring and bidder evaluations. Council Member Dickinson requested the detailed proposer scores and evaluation materials be provided to the council after the meeting. Council Member Jennings and others asked staff to return in August with a comprehensive report on the city's unhoused encampment response protocol and its effectiveness across multiple jurisdictions. The motion that passed included direction for staff to come back with that broader encampment‑response review.

Contract specifics and service changes outlined by staff: the contract term and vendor price to the city was described as $6,200,000 after negotiation; staff emphasized changes that lowered cost included limiting daily operational time to eight hours (including ramp up/ramp down) and cutting routine weekend pickups while retaining the ability to authorize weekend work when needed. Pedro said those operational changes reduced overtime and premium pay; staff also noted FS Global has begun hiring locally as part of its ramp up.

Next steps: staff will finalize the FS Global agreement and return requested procurement documentation and evaluation scores to council members as requested. The council also asked for a six‑month post‑implementation update comparing 311 call volumes and response times under the new contract.