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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMINUTES - 06021998 - C115-C117 TO: BOARD OF SUI'I;RNISORS Contra FROM: SHERIFF-CORONER Cost. May 14 , 2998 -*UAW , County DATE: r,q'x41ut� CONTRACT FOR SENTENCING CONCEPTS, INC. FOR SUBJECT: PRIVATE ELECTRONIC HOME MONITORING. SPECIFIC R£OUEST(S)OR RECOMMENDATION(S)&BACKGROUND AND JUSTIFICATION 1. RECOMMENDED ACTION Approve and authorize the Sheriff-Coroner, or designee, to execute on behalf of the COUNTY, a contract with Sentencing Concepts, Inc. to increase the existing contract, in the amount of $10, 000 . 00. This brings the total of this contract to $35, 000 for the continued , provision of private Electronic Home Monitoring services for the period ending July 1, 1598 . II. FINANCIAL IMPACT Cost of running the program will be paid through the Custody Alternative facility program fees. III. REASONS FOR RECOMMENDATION/BACKGROUND Certain inmates referred to the Sheriff for out-of-custody programs cannot be accommodated due to their residing outside ; Contra Costa County. Section 1203 . 016 of the Penal Code authorizes the Sheriff, with the Board of Supervisors" approval, to enter into an electronic home monitoring contract with a private company to provide services outside Contra Costa County. The existing agreement for $25, 000 covers the period July 1, 1997 through July 1, 1998 . This extension Agreement increases the total contract amount to $35, 000 . The number of participants during 1997/98 year fiscal has exceeded our estimates, therefore an increase under this contract'; with Sentencing Concepts, Inc . is necessary. CONTINUED ON ATTACHMENT: YES SIGNAYURE: RECOMMENDATION OF COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR _RECOMMENDATION OF HOARD 40MMITTEE ...APPROVE OTHER SIGNATURE S ACTION OF BOARD ON APPROVED AS RECOMMENDED OTHER VOTE;OF SUPERVISORS I HEREBY CERTIFY THAT THIS IS A TRUE UNANIMOUS{ASSENT __ ____ } AND CORRECT COPY OF AN ACTION TAKEN AYES: NOES: AND ENTERED ON THE MINUTES OF THE BOARD ABSENT: ABSTAIN: OF SUPERVISORS ON THE DATE SHOWN. JUN - 1998 ATTESTED Contact: Bill Schmidt x5-1526 PHIL BATCHELOR,CLERK OF THE BOARD OF Cc: County Administrator SUPERVISORS AND COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR Sentencing Concepts, Inc. County Auditor-Controller Sheriff-Coroner $Y ; - a:, DEPUTY Risk Management .....:. 116 TO: BOARD OF SUPERVISORS Contra FROM: Edward P. Meyer, Agricultural Commissioner Costa - Director of Weights & Measures `" r County DATE: June 2, 1998 SUBJECT: Licensing agreement for software program SPECIFIC REQUEST(S)OR RECOMMENDATION($)&BACKGROUND AND JUSTIFICATION R =R=10N Authorize the Chair, Board of Supervisors, to sign ' a licensing agreement necessary for the purchase of the "Price 'Verification System, Features and Reports" (software) . EINAMIAL IMPAC The County of Merced will provide Contra Costa County with this software for a total price of $3,217.50. BACKQR M/REASQ FOR REr.QMMEMAT'ION To simplify the process of entering inspection and enforcement data and allow for computerized searches of that data. CONTINUED ON ATTACHMENT; YES SIGNATURE: 44 RECOMMENDATION OF COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR RECOMMENDATION OF BOARD COMMITTEE APPROVE OTHER & SIGNATURES 2Z4.4e Z��v L40� ACTION OF BOARD ON JUN APPROVED AS RECOMMENDED OTHER VOTE OF SUPERVISORS { I HEREBY CERTIFY THAT THIS IS A TRUE UNANIMOUS(ABSENT } AND CORRECT COPY OF AN ACTION TAKEN AYES. NOES: AND ENTERED ON THE MINUTES OF THE BOARD ABSENT: ABSTAIN: OF SUPERVISORS ON THE DATE SHOWN. ATTESTED JUN - 2 ,v Contact: PHIL BATCHELOR,CLERK OF THE BOARD OF cc: SUPERVISORS AND COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR BY : f A.� 4. as1 DEPUTY SOFTWARE LICENSING AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE COUNTY OF MERCED AND THE COUNTY OF CONTRA COSTA FOR PRICE 'VERIFICATION INSPECTION SYSTEM BY MCWAM A. RECITALS: S: I. WHEREAS,the County of Centra Costa (hereinafter"CONTRA COSTA")performs inspections of retail}king practices as required by State law;and 2. WHEREAS, CONTRA COSTA is required to maintain records of voluminous inspections results,failures and enforcement actions in a reasonably accessible and searchable fashion; and 3. WHEREAS, the County of Merced (hereinafter "MERCED") has developed a software program, Price Verification inspection System by McWam(hereinafter"SOFTWARE"), which simplifies the process of entering inspection and enforcement data and allows for computerized searches of that data; and 4. WHEREAS,it would be beneficial to CONTRA COSTA if it were to acquire the right to use this SOFTWARE in maintaining records of its inspection data: NOW, THEREFORE, CONTRA COSTA and MERCED, by and through their respective authorized representatives whose signatures appear below, agree as follows: B. In consideration for the sum of three thousand dollars($3,000), MERCER agrees to license the use of SOFTWARE to CONTRA COSTA: USE QE nX 50EEW-AM MERCED will provide CONTRA COSTA with one copy of the program Price Verification Inspection System by McWain C SOFTWARE")on 3.25 inch floppy disks. CONTRA COSTA may install the SOFTWARE on hard disk or other storage device;install and use the SOFTWARE on a file server for use on a network for the purposes of(T)permaivatt installation,onto hard disks or other storage devices or(ii) use of the SOFTWARE over such network;and make backup copies of the SOFTWARE. MERCED grunts to CONTRA COSTA the right to use the SOFTWARE for the purpose of conducting inspections of retail pricing practices, recording the results of such, ,inspections, maintaining records of such inspections and conducting enforcement actions for the violations of local,state and federal laws with respect to retail pricing practices. Use of the SOF'T'WARE is limited to employees of CONTRA COSTA and is exclusively for inspections and enforcement done within CONTRA COSTA County, and response to Public records requests. x:\tcwso ou Ts\coxcosTn.wPn 1 .......... ...... .......... ............... ......... COPYRI The SOFTWARE is Owned by MERCED and its structure, organization and code are the valuable trade secrets ofMERCED. The SOFTWARE is protected by United States copyright laws and international treaty provisions.CONTRA COSTA agrees to treat the SOFTWARE as any other copyrighted material,except as otherwise permitted in this agreement. This License Agreement does not grant CONTRA COSTA any intellectual property rights in the SOFTWARE. CONTRA COSTA is granted the limited right to duplicate any documentation or training materials which may be provided with the SOFTWARE, so that it can be used as a reference by each authorized user who is an employee of CONTRA COSTA. The documentation is not to be distributed or copied for distribution to anyone who is not an authorized user under this License Agreement. MANS ER This license and CONTRA COSTA's right to use the SOFTWARE is not transferable. Llhff 1ED- WARRANTY MERCED warrants that the storage media in which the SOFTWARE is embedded will be free from defects in materials and workmanship for 90 days from the date CONTRA COSTA receives it. If such a defect occurs during the warranty period, CONTRA COSTA will return the media to MERCED and the storage media will be replaced for free. The parties agree that this remedy is MERCED's sole obligation for breach of this warranty. Any misuse or unauthorized modification of the SOFTWARE will void the limited warranty. LIMITATION-OF WAMMIIES AND LJABUTMS Except for the express warranty above, the SOFTWARE is provided on an "as is" basis, without any other warranties of merchantable quality, merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose,or those arising by law, statute,usage of trade or course of dealing. Moreover,MERCED makes no warranty, representation, promise or guarantee, either express or implied, statutory or otherwise,with respect to any user documentation or related technical support. MERCED does not and ca mot warrant the performance or results which may be obtained by using the SOFTWARE or documentation. MERGED makes no warranties,express or implied, as to noninfringement of third party rights, merchantability or fitness for any particular purpose. In no event shall MERCED be liable for any consequential,incidental or special damages, including any lost profits or lost savings, even if a MERCED representative has been advised of the possibility of such damages, or for any claim by any third party. The entire risk as to the results and performance of the SOFTWARE is assumed. Because software is inherently complex and may not be completely free of errors, it is CONTRA COSTA's responsibility to verify its own work and backup copies. MERCED shall have no liability to CONTRA COSTA or any other person or entity for any indirect,incidental,special or consequential damages whatsoever arising out of this agreement or out of the SOFTWARE licensed hereunder,including but not limited to loss of revenue or profit, personal X:WCWS0FTAGREKNTW0NC0STA-WPD 2 ................... injury, injury to reputation, lost or damaged data or other commercial or economic loss, even if MERCED has been advised of the possibility of such damages or they are foreseeable. MERCED shall have no l abflity to CONTRA COSTA for clams by a third party against CONTRA COSTA for any indirect,incidental, special or consequential damages whatsoever arising out of this agreement or out of the software licensed hereunder, including but not limited to loss of revenue or profit, personal injury,injury to reputation,lost or damaged data or other commercial or economic loss, even ifMERCED'has been advised of the possibility of such damages or they are foreseeable. MERCED's maximum aggregate liability to CONTRA COSTA shall not exceed the amount paidby CONTRA COSTA for the SOFI" ARE. The limitations in this section shall apply whether or not the alleged breach or default is a breach of a fundamental condition or term or a fundamental breach. ICIIhUCAL SMORT This License Agreement does not include the provision of technical assistance in the installation and operation of the program. MERCER may volunteer such assistance or the parties may reach a separate agreement for the provision of such assistance. The voluntary provision of technical assistance by MERCED will not give rise either to warranties not specifically provided for in this Agreement,nor will it ,give rise to an obligation to provide further technical assistance. IERM This License is effective until terminated. It will also terminate upon conditions set forth elsewhere in this License Agreement or if CONTRA COSTA fails to comply with any term or condition of the License Agreement.CONTRA COSTA agrees upon such termination to destroy the programs together with all copies, modifications, and merged portions in any form, The limitations of warranties and liability set out above shall continue in force even after any termination. This Agreement, and any additional or supplementary document or documents contemporaneously incorporated or attached hereto and separately executed and dated by both parties, contain all the terms and conditions agreed upon by the parties hereto, and no other agreements,oral or otherwise,regarding the subject matter ofthe Agreement or any part thereof shall have any validity or bind any of the parties hereto. PAEJIAL 28LALMITY If any provision of this Agreement is held by a court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, void, or unenforceable,the remaining provisions shall nevertheless continue in full.force and effect without being impaired or invalidated in any way. This License Agreement shall be governed and construed in accordance with the laws of California, and by United States law on matters where Federal law provides the exclusive remedy. Venue shall he within the County of Merced for any action to enforce the terms of this Agreement. x:WcwsaFr\AG EMNT8N.Wxcosra.WPD 3 ti MODIFICATIQNZAbom- Eha QE AQUEMUNT This agreement may be modified, amended, or extended by mutual agreement by the parties hereto but only if such modification, amendment, or extension is stated in writing and properly approved by the authorized representatives or designees of the governing bodies of the parties hereto. WBEREFORE, MERCED COUNTY and CONTRA COSTA, by and through their authorized representatives whose signatures appear below, agree to be bound by, and perform, this Agreement. COUNTY OF CONTRA COSTA MERCED COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS l YY i Chairman, Bof Sof S of Charu-man, Board of Supervisors ,pardf DATED: _ � -� ' 1998 DATED: , 1998 APPROVED AS TO FORM. APPROVED AS TO FORM. DENNIS L. MYERS Contra Costa County Counsel Merced County Counsel by by x:\Mcwsc,Fr\A RENe4rs\coNcosrn.wPD 4 MERCED COUNTY WEIGHTS AND MEASURES A PROGRAM TO IDENTIFY AND COECT RETAILPRICING INACCURACIES This final report was written at the request of the Office of the Attorney General of the State of California and the San Francisco Superior Court submitted by M~RCED COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE DIVISION OF EIGHTS AND MEASURES Michael J. Tanner Agricultural Commissioner/Sealer Dennis L. Gudgel p Deputy Director of Weights and Measures :;{: # March 12, 1998 INDEX HISTORY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . , . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 PROGRAM EVALUATION , . . . . . . . . 4 MONETARY PROJECTIONS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 CONCLUSION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 DEFINITIONS AND FORMULAS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 ACCURACY REQUIREMENTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 ENFORCEMENT CRITERIA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 HIS'T'ORY In 1973, retail outlets in California began to use electronic price retrievalsystems. This system introduced shelf pricing and made it possible to determine charges at the checkstand without pre-marking every item (item pricing). In 1977, the California Legislature repealed the requirement for item pricing. In January 1982, the California Mate Division of Measurement Standards (DMS) began monitoring pricing accuracy throughout California counties by tracking Sales Price reports. DMS has recorded the results of over 15,000 inspections since they began keeping records. DMS also conducted surveys in 1992, 1994, 1996, and 1997 to evaluate pricing accuracy in retail stores across the state. Three hundred stores were inspected generating approximately 9000 samples each year. The results of the first three surveys showed a net overcharge to the consumer. The results of the 1997 survey are not yet available. In March 1997, Merced County began a price verification program approved by the Office of the Attorney General of the State of California and the San Francisco Superior Court. Weights and Measures officials conducted the program by following existing guidelines established by DMS and the National Conference on Weights and Measures (NCWM). One temporary inspector was hired for the term of the grant to conduct inspections at every retail location in the county. The County of Merced provided training, clerical and supervisory support. The program goals were to: A. Insure fair competition between businesses by eliminating profits through overcharging on items at the checkstand, either by incorrect prices or by false or misleading advertising. B. Insure consumers are protected. The goals would be accomplished by: A. Establishing a list of all retail locations that use electronic price retrieval systems in the county. B. Conducting initial price verification inspections at all those locations. C. Identifying pricing problems at retail locations. D. Encouraging industry to implement programs to prevent consumer overcharges and maintain pricing integrity. This report details the results of Merced County's price verification program for the 12 months funded by the Levi Strauss Governmental Trust Fund. 3 ............................................................. ..................................................... ................................................. ..................- PROGRAM EVALUATION Merced County's price verification program differed from the state surveys. Rather than a random statistical survey, our objective was to inspect every location within the county, which used either manual entry or electronic price retrieval systems. We then identified the level of pricing accuracy, and corrected violations through education, administrative civil penalties, and follow-up inspections. A summary of the results is as follows: 252 locations were inspected throughout Merced County. INITIAL INSPECTION 7311 Items sampled valued at $90,497.82 194 Items overcharged valued at$677.45 166 Items undercharged valued at ($525.82) Overcharges: 2.65% of the sample and 0.75%of the value Undercharges: 2.27% of the sample and 0.58% of the value Net Overcharge: 0.38%of the sample and 0.17% of the value FINAL INSPECTION 7039 Items sampled valued at $79,931.62 120 Items overcharged valued at$341.69 152 Items undercharged valued at($375.72) Overcharges: 1.7% of the sample and 0.43% of the value Undercharges: 2.16%of the sample and 0.47% of the value Net Overcharge: -0.09% of the sample and—0.04%of the value ENFORCEMENT Oq4 I 165 Notices of Violation issued 57 Follow-up inspections 52 Administrative Civil Actions I District Attorney Civil Action 4 ......... ...vvv�........ ......... ........... ........................... ......... MONETARY PROJECTIONS The Thirty-Sixth Annual, Report of Taxable Sales in California, released by the California State Board of Equalization, contains retail sales information based on business types for 1996. When comparing retail sales of these businesses with the same types of business in the 1996 DMS survey and our program, the following data is obtained. Merced County monetary values for business types included in the 1996 state survey totaled $459,287,000. If we apply the California statewide survey results of.22%net overcharges to this value, the result is$1,032,431 net loss to the public in Merced County. The State of California monetary values for business types included in the 1995 state survey totaled $115,668,753,000. If we apply the statewide survey results of.22% net overcharges to this value, the result is_$ 254,471,257 net loss to the public in California. The final results of the program in Merced County indicate an advantage in transaction accuracy to both the retailer and the public. Pricing accuracy improved with a lower incidence of both overcharges and undercharges with a net result of.04% undercharge. If this accuracy level were in effect during 1996, the consumer in Merced County would have saved as much as $1,220,146. CONCLUSION Several local and large corporate businesses indicated they had price monitoring programs already in place; however, we found few of the programs to be as effective as industry anticipated. We also found a number of stores that did not have any program to check pricing accuracy. These stores adjusted incorrect prices only when discrepancies were brought to their attention by shoppers, and usually only for that one transaction. Even businesses which we found to have effective pricing programs found our inspections to be beneficial and requested training for their staff. During the course of the year, we have had the opportunity to work with each business individually and also to provide group workshops. We also issued notices of violation for pricing errors and levied administrative civil penalties for serious violations. Industry responded by correcting errors and instituting in-store policies and procedures, which dramatically improved pricing accuracy. Retailers in our county reduced net pricing errors to 1 ofthe initial level. We have made a commitment to make this program part of our regular division duties because of the benefit to both business and the public. (Jur results have been shared with the State Division of Measurement Standards which has used them to promote price verification programs throughout California. This grant has successfully shown accurate retail pricing can be achieved through local governtnent inspections and industry cooperation. s .......... ........... ..................... ................ ...... DEFINITIONS AND FORMULAS Price Charged. Means the price displayed on the customer view screen or printed on the receipt, whether the item is scanned, entered then voided, Purchased, or the device is computing or recording in a training or inspection mode. Overcharge. Means the price charged for an item is more than the lowest advertised, quoted,posted,or marked price. Undercharge. Means the price charged for an item is less than the lowest advertised, quoted,posted or marked price. Undercharges are not counted as errors if: The price error was intentional (e.g., an undercharge occurs when a store lowers a price in a database before it changes shelf tags or signs in anticipation of selling the item at a lower price,within 24 hours). ✓ A store increases the posted price or advertised price of an item, before increasing the price in the database,within 24 hours. ✓ A discounted price is rounded to a lower value. Sample Error. Divide the number of errors by the total sample size to obtain the error in percent. Algebraic Overcharge. The total dollar value of the overcharges less the total dollar value of the undercharges. Divide the difference by the correct total price. ACCURACY REQUIREMENTS Accuracy information is based on the percentage of errors found in a sample and/or the algebraic overcharge. Both overcharges and undercharges are considered as errors in taking lower level enforcement actions since either type of error misrepresents the price of the item. The occurrence of any error in a randomized sample may indicate poor pricing practices that would result in more errors if additional items were sampled. For higher levels of enforcement, only overcharges are considered. 6 ENFORCEMENT CRITERIA A Notice of Violation is issued when price accuracy is less than 100% of the sample. When price accuracy is less than 98%the store is placed on an increased inspection frequency. A "Minor" violation has occurred when more than 2% and fewer than 10% of the items sampled are overcharges and the algebraic overcharge is less than 2% of the total correct price. A "Moderate" violation has occurred when overcharged on 10% or more, but fewer than 12%of the items inspected, or the algebraic overcharge is 2% or more, but less than 4% of the total correct price. A "Serious" violation has occurred when overcharged on 12% or more of the items inspected,or the algebraic overcharge is 4% or more of the total correct price. For Minor, Moderate,and Serious violations, a penalty may be assessed. 7 TO: Board of Supervisors FROM: Phil Batchelor, County Administrator DATE: June Z, 1998 court y SUBJECT: Contract Amendment for Study of Contra Costa County Fire Protection District SPECIFIC REQUEST($)OR RECOMMENDATION(S)&BACKGROUND AND JUSTIFICATION RECOMMENDATIOWSI: AMEND contract with The Davis Company for study of Contra Costa County Fire Protection District to extend due date for submittal of final report from June 12, 1998 to June 18, 1998 with no change in the contract payment amount. BACKGROUNDIREASON(S) FOR RECOMMENDATIONS) The contract awarded to The Davis Company by the Board on April 14, 1998 provided for the contractor's final report to be submitted to the county by June 12, 1998. In a recent meeting with the County Administrator to discuss the status of the study, the contractor requested a six day extension of the final report due date to complete data collection and analysis. The reason for such request is based in part on delayed responses from jurisdictions which have been requested to submit detailed information on various aspects of fire agency operations. The contract required an extensive amount of work to be done in a very short timeframe. A six day delay for submittal of the contractor's report is not significant but will allow much needed time for the contractor to complete data gathering and analysis and develop a comprehensive report including all of the information requested in the desired format. CONTINUED ON ATTACHMENT: YES SIGNATURIphs RECOMMENDATION OF COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR (t COMMENDATION OF BOARD COMMITTEE APPROVE OTHER SIGNATURE(S): ACTION OF BOAD ON JUN " 2 1998 APPROVED AS RECOMMENDED OTHER I hereby certify that this is a true and correct copy of an action taken and entered on the minutes of the Board of Supervisors on the date shown. ;SUN ATTESTED. -z-- cc: County Administrator PHIL BATCHELOR, Clerk of the Board Fire Chief, CCC Fire Prot. District of Supervisors and County Administrator Firefighter's Union Local 1230 By '�y 1 ,r ;a , 5 �> Deputy