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Committee weighs reciprocity, centralized certification and procurement prequalification to expand JSEB access
Summary
Members discussed aligning certification processes among city agencies and independent authorities, using a centralized database (B2Gnow) and reducing duplicative procurement prequalification to make JSEB certification more portable across regional counties and agencies.
Committee members and JSEB staff debated ways to reduce duplicative certification steps and increase opportunities for certified firms to work across local agencies and neighboring counties.
JSEB Administrator Gregory Grant told the committee he is working with a joint-agency task force to identify overlaps in agency certifications and said one practical step would be a centralized database and shared application system. "What all the agencies are using is B2Gnow now programming," Grant said. "If we are on that system, we could then unify them all." He added that the city currently is the only major agency not fully on that shared platform.
Procurement and prequalification concerns: Council members described a common complaint from business owners: being certified by JSEB does not always eliminate additional procurement prequalification steps required by the purchasing department or by independent authorities. "You become JSEB qualified, but then you still have to go through the prequalification of procurement," said a councilmember. Grant said the department recently hired Gregory Pease, a former procurement chief, to help bridge that gap.
Reciprocity with adjacent counties: Grant proposed expanding reciprocity to neighboring counties'Saint Johns, Nassau, Baker and Clay'so Duval-certified firms can access regional contracts and vice versa. He noted reciprocity requires legislative language in all involved jurisdictions. Council members raised concerns about protecting Duval County resources and suggested interlocal agreements or county fee-sharing for administrative costs; one councilmember proposed charging counties a fee rather than using Duval taxpayer dollars to support expanded services.
Centralized database and costs: Grant reported a vendor quote for an initial B2Gnow implementation at about $30,000 annually, and that recurring costs would vary with the level of services. IT staff and procurement representatives said consolidation could save money long-term and reduce administrative duplication, but they flagged integration work and recurring licensing costs as items for further analysis.
Ending: Committee members generally supported product and policy alignment but asked staff to craft concrete proposals, including model interlocal language, costs and safeguards to protect Duval County priorities before any reciprocity or system-joining proposal moves to council for ordinance or appropriation action.
