Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Federal Funding topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Centerville OKs two-year renewal with Ferguson Group after debate on fees, earmarks
Summary
The Centerville City Council approved a two-year renewal of its federal-advocacy contract with the Ferguson Group at $5,000 per month, following a presentation that highlighted recent earmarks, a Water Resources Development Act authorization and council discussion about procurement and competitiveness.
The Centerville City Council voted unanimously July 21 to renew its contract with the Ferguson Group for two years, keeping the retainer at $5,000 per month.
Mike Miller, a partner at the Ferguson Group, told the council the firm had helped secure multiple federal funding opportunities for the city this cycle, including earmark requests related to the 1250 West extension (request range $1 million–$4 million), a Welland pump request ($1,350,000), a $400,000 request for records digitization and an initial $55,000 request tied to Firebreak Road. He also said the Water Resources Development Act includes a $20 million authorization for Centerville, giving the city an additional avenue to pursue appropriations.
"We have a matching house senate authorization for $20,000,000," Miller said, adding that authorization is the first step toward later appropriations.
Council members pressed Miller and staff on procurement and value for money. Councilman Bangerter said he had identified 13 other firms that provide grant-writing and lobbying services and asked whether the city had done a formal request-for-proposals (RFP) recently. Staff and members said Ferguson offers "wraparound" services (grant writing, lobbying, back-end support) and that the city had not pursued a recent RFP, citing the time needed to develop strong congressional relationships.
Miller defended the firm's fee and approach, saying the $5,000 monthly retainer is below the hourly-billing value of the work the firm provides on Centerville’s behalf. "If I were billing at my billing rate for the amount of hours that I put in and my colleagues put in for Centerville, we would be in the probably $12,000 to $15,000 range," he said.
Councilmember Plummer acknowledged the city’s success in securing federal dollars but voiced reservations about the earmark process. "It is a system that I believe is flawed and and slightly corrupt," Plummer said, while noting she would support renewing the contract this year.
The formal motion to approve the agreement (two years, fixed fee $5,000/month, July 2026–June 2028) was moved, seconded and passed unanimously. The motion’s recorded mover and seconder were entered in the meeting minutes; the council chair announced the motion passed unanimously.
