County to favor local businesses for goods

A bad economy may be good news for some local vendors looking for county government bids. In a response to the shrinking local economy, the Kings County Board of Supervisors this week adopted an ordinance amendment setting a new policy that offers preferential treatment for local vendors when purchasing supplies, materials and equipment.

Surrounding counties, such as Tulare, Kern and Fresno, already have similar policies.

The policy will take effect on July 30.

"We tried this about 14 years ago, and the county counsel at the time advised us not to saying that it was to the best advantage of the taxpayers to get the lowest price regardlless of location," said county Board of Supervisors Chairman Joe Neves. "In the 14 years since, other counties have established this preferential buying policy."

But the interest in the policy was quickly rekindled when Supervisor Richard Valle raised concerns with a recent bidding process in which a local vendor was denied an opportunity to do business with the county because its bid came in a close second to the lowest bid, officials say.

As the county looked for a replacement for a recently wrecked probation department vehicle, three businesses submitted a bid. Among them was Richards Chevrolet of Corcoran, but its bid was beaten by a $22,000 bid for a Chevy sedan submitted by a Fresno dealership, which came in only $200 cheaper. The Corcoran dealership lost the bid as a result.

"Just for that, $22,000 of taxpayer dollars were leaving the county, and sales tax was going to another county," said Valle. He subsequently began advocating for the policy.

Under the new policy, the county will give any local vendor who submits a bid within 5 percent of the lowest bid a chance to submit a new bid within 48 hours that would either match or beat that lowest bid submitted by an out-of-county vendor.

This would only apply to bids and proposals for equipment, materials and supplies, but not for construction projects.

"Had this policy been in effect, the local vendor would have gotten the bid," said Deb West, assistant county administrative officer.

In other words, the county would have still gotten a better price and keep the business local. That's important to businesses that are struggling to survive in the recession and to taxpayers to reap the benefit of the economic multiplier effect, Valle said.

"We can keep our tax dollars here. We keep our sales tax revenues here. At the end of the day, the closer you spend your dollars to home, the better chance you have of getting those dollars back," Valle said.

Neves agreed.

"Every sale that local vendors can make -- whether that be heavy equipment or vehicles or fuel -- and every advantage we can give to our local economy is what we need to do," Neves said. "Because that's where jobs are, and that's the folks who pay the property tax and support local sports programs."

The reporter can be reached at 583-2429.

(July 4, 2009)