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County says PSCBA has exceeded resident-hire goals but still lags on apprentices
Summary
GSA reported the Project Stabilization Community Benefits Agreement has exceeded its 40% Alameda-resident labor-hour goal but apprentice hours remain below the 20% state target; the agreement will automatically renew and change project thresholds in October 2025.
Kimberly Gassaway, Director of Alameda County's General Services Agency, updated the committee on the county's Project Stabilization Community Benefits Agreement (PSCBA), which the board first adopted in 2012 and extended several times. "Goals were established in the agreement, which included a minimum of 40% labor hours shall be performed by Alameda County residents," Gassaway said, and staff reported the PSCBA has surpassed that 40% target.
Gassaway gave numeric results through June 30, 2025: about 49% of labor hours on covered projects have been performed by Alameda County residents, 17% of hours have been performed by apprentices (the state requirement is 20%), and 38% of apprentice hours were performed by disadvantaged resident apprentices (the PSCBA goal is 40%). The PSCBA covers trade work on public-works projects above monetary thresholds; effective Oct. 6, 2025 the side letter that set a $3 million threshold for some public-works projects will expire and the threshold will be $1 million, aligning public-works agency projects with GSA thresholds.
The nut graf: The agreement is driving substantial local hiring, but supervisors and staff said more work is needed to hit apprentice-hour targets and to understand project-level obstacles to compliance.
Gassaway described the Joint Advisory Committee (JAC) that meets monthly to review project performance and require corrective action when contractors miss utilization goals. She said corrective steps include putting contractors on notice and requiring them to attend JAC meetings to explain how they will meet goals; she also noted some trades (for example, elevator specialists) have strict certification requirements that limit who can work on certain jobs.
Supervisors asked whether off-site hiring or apprentices working on non-county projects counts toward compliance; Gassaway said off-site hires are tracked but do not count toward compliance on the covered project. Supervisors requested project-level detail when the PSCBA report returns to the committee so the board can better understand why apprentice percentages fall short on particular contracts.
There were no public speakers on this item; staff said the PSCBA will automatically renew in October 2025 and the committee will continue to receive compliance reports from the JAC.
