HomeMy WebLinkAbout051 - 04/16/2019 - AMENDING SECTION 8-161 OF THE CITY CODE TO ADD AN EXCEPTION TO THE COMPETITIVE PURCHASING PROCESS FOORDINANCE NO. 051, 2019
OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS
AMENDING SECTION 8-161 OF THE CODE OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS
TO ADD AN EXCEPTION TO THE COMPETITIVE PURCHASING PROCESS FOR
PURCHASES OF VIDEO CONTENT LICENSING
WHEREAS, the Charter of the City of Fort Collins contains provisions concerning
purchasing practices in Article V, Part IV;and
WHEREAS, Chapter 8, Article IV of the Code of the City of Fort Collins prescribes
particular methods for competitive purchasing for the construction of improvements and the
procurement of services and materials and
WHEREAS, on November 7, 2017, a majority of the City's electorate approved an
amendment to the City Charter to authorize the City to operate and maintain telecommunications
utility facilities, including Internet facilities and services using technology having the capacity to
transmit data to enable users to originate and receive high-quality voice, data, graphics and video;
and
WHEREAS, on January 16, 2018, City Council adopted Ordinance No. 011, 2018,
establishing a telecommunications division within the City's electric utility ("Fort Collins
Connexion") and authorizing the Electric Utility Enterprise to exercise powers,consistent with the
City Charter at Art. XII, §7(b),regarding funding for the provision of telecommunication facilities
and services; and
WHEREAS,pursuant to authorities granted in the City Charter and City Code,the City has
begun acquisition and construction of telecommunications utility facilities in preparation for Fort
Collins Connexion to deliver Internet, telecommunication, and video services;and
WHEREAS, City staff has reviewed the competitive purchasing requirements in the City
Code and identified various issues that inhibit efficient procurement of video content licensing
rights by Fort Collins Connexion,due to the nature and practices of the video content rights market,
including uniqueness and limited availability of comparable content, consolidation of supply, and
proprietary content restrictions imposed by content developers on bundling and duration of
licensing; and
WHEREAS, based on the uniqueness of the video content market and the need of Fort
Collins Connexion to acquire such rights in order to effectively deliver telecommunication utility
services, staff has recommended that City Council exempt the acquisitions of video content
licensing rights from the City's standard competitive purchasing practices;and
WHEREAS, City staff has recommended to City Council amendments to the City's
competitive purchasing process in Chapter 8, Article IV of the City Code to specifically increase
flexibility in the Purchasing Agent's exercise of authority to procure video content licensing rights
for the operation of Fort Collins Connexion telecommunication facilities and services; and
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WHEREAS, City Council has determined the amendments described in this Ordinance are
in the best interests of the City and its citizens.
NOW,THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT
COLLINS as follows:
Section 1. That the City Council hereby makes and adopts the determinations and
findings contained in the recitals set forth above.
Section 2. That Section 8-161 of the Code of the City of Fort Collins is amended by
the addition of a new subsection (g) which reads in its entirety as follows:
Sec. 8-161. Exemptions to use of competitive bid or proposal.
g)purchase of content for City-delivered video programming and streaming services. The
Purchasing Agent shall have the authority to negotiate without formal competition the purchase of
video content licensing rights for the City's delivery of cable or other subscriber video content,
programming, and streaming services. The Purchasing Agent is authorized to procure such
licensing from local channels, individual channels and channel families, and video content
aggregation companies when he or she determines i) viable market demand supports obtaining
rights to deliver the specific content,and ii)the anticipated cost to acquire such rights is reasonable
based on the uniqueness of the content, region, and market. The Purchasing Agent shall submit a
summary of such transactions and determinations to the City Manager's Office for each purchase
under this Subsection:. The Purchasing Agent and the City Manager designee with direct
responsibility to manage City telecommunication facilities-and services,as defined in Section 7(f)
of Charter Article XII, shall jointly advise City Council regarding any purchase under this
Subsection that exceeds an annual cost of one million dollars ($1,000,000)..
Introduced, considered favorably on first reading, and ordered published this 19th day of
March, A.D. 2019, and to be presented for final passage on the 16th ril, A.D. 2019.
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Passed and adopted on final reading on the 16th day of April, A.D. 2019.
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