Monterey County Call Box Program: Verizon Wireless Contract Amendment #1:

1. APPROVE contract Amendment #1 with Verizon Wireless extending the term of the agreement to June 30, 2019;
2. AUTHORIZE the Executive Director to execute documentation necessary to enter into the updated user agreement with Western States Contracting Alliance and the State of California with respect to Verizon Wireless telephone services; and
3. AUTHORIZE the Executive Director to execute the contract and changes to the contract if such changes do not increase the Agency’s net cost, subject to approval by Agency Counsel. 

In 2012, following a competitive procurement process, the Transportation Agency contracted with Verizon Wireless to provide digital cellular service for call boxes in Monterey County. The service contract with Verizon Wireless is subject to the terms of the user agreement with Western States Contracting Alliance and the State of California with respect to Verizon Wireless telephone services, which has been amended to extend service through June 30, 2019. This Amendment will bring the Agency’s contract into compliance with the updated Western States Contracting Alliance agreement with Verizon Wireless.

The terms of the current contract terms will remain in effect, and currently the Agency pays a rate of $0.06 per minute. The current contract has a not to exceed amount of $34,200, of which approximately $24,000 is remaining. Staff estimates that the cost of this extension will be well within the remaining budget of the current agreement. The funding for the cellular service comes from the $1 vehicle registration fee collected by the Department of Motor Vehicles.

Monterey County’s call box system contains approximately 190 installed call boxes on most freeways and highways, as well as selected county roads. The Transportation Agency currently contracts with Verizon Wireless for digital cellular services for the call box program. The current agreement provides for a rate of $0.06/min, no monthly services fees, free nights and weekends, and no annual term requirement or termination fees. The contract expires at the end of the current fiscal year, June 30, 2017.

Although the Agency currently has approximately 190 call boxes in use, the total number of call boxes in Monterey County is expected to decrease in the coming years as the Agency implements its Call Box Modernization Plan, which is currently being drafted. Staff anticipates that the actual Verizon costs will be lower than the budgeted amount because the system is likely to be smaller over the next two years as call boxes are removed under the Modernization Plan. 

The current Verizon Wireless contract is uses the pricing and terms and conditions of the Western States Contracting Alliance (WSCA) Multi-State contract to which the State of California subscribes. Using the WSCA contract allows TAMC to receive a significantly higher discount than it would otherwise qualify for as a single entity (since the pricing under the WSCA contract is based upon the 10,000+ line attainment level). The WSCA agreement was amended in August of 2014 to extend the term of the agreement to June 30, 2019.

Staff recommends amending the current agreement with Verizon Wireless, and authorizing the Executive Director to enter into the amended WSCA agreement to allow the agency to be in concurrence with the WSCA agreement, and continue to provide digital cellular service to the Monterey County call box system through June 30, 2019.