Number
241916
Version
SUBSTITUTE 1
Reference
Sponsor
ALD. DIMITRIJEVIC
Title
A substitute ordinance relating to an environmentally sustainable business enterprise program.
Section
366 cr
Analysis
This ordinance creates an environmentally sustainable business enterprise contracting program that provides preferential treatment to environmentally sustainable businesses in the competitive bidding process for city contracts.
The Mayor and Common Council of the City of Milwaukee do ordain as follows:
Part 1. Chapter 366 of the code is created to read:
Chapter 366
ENVIRONMENTALLY SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS ENTERPRISE PROGRAM
366-1. Creation. There is created an environmentally sustainable business enterprise contracting program to promote the use and purchase of environmentally sustainable products and services and to reduce and minimize the use of wasteful, non-recyclable, non-biodegradable and single-use items by city departments and affiliated agencies and bodies.
366-3. Definitions. In this chapter:
1. CONTRACTING AGENCY means any city department, agency, board, commission or officer that has contracting authority.
2. ENVIRONMENTALLY SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS ENTERPRISE means a business which engages in practices that do all of the following:
a. Reduce negative impacts to human health and natural resources.
b. Prevent pollution.
c. Reduce waste.
d. Conserve resources.
e. Support environmental sustainability.
366-5. Administration. The environmentally sustainable business enterprise contracting program shall be administered by the city purchasing director in partnership with the environmental sustainability director. Both directors shall develop appropriate rules, procedures and regulations to ensure compliance with the purpose and intent of this chapter, and supervise, coordinate, monitor and enforce the implementation of the environmentally sustainable business enterprise contracting program goals in accordance with those rules, procedures and regulations.
366-7. Obligations of Contracting Departments. 1. CONTRACT AWARD. a. For any formal competitive bid valued at $100,000 or more, a contracting agency shall, unless contrary to federal, state or local law or regulation, apply an award standard so that an otherwise responsive and responsible bidder which is an environmentally sustainable business enterprise shall be awarded the contract, provided that its bid does not exceed the lowest bid by more than 5%.
b. A contracting agency shall, unless contrary to federal, state or local law or regulation, apply an award standard in the composition of scales used to evaluate proposals submitted in response to formal requests for proposals to procure goods and services. An additional number of points, equal to 5% of the maximum number of points used in the evaluation, shall be applied to increase the total score attained by an environmentally sustainable business enterprise.
c. If the bids of 2 or more environmentally sustainable business enterprises do not exceed the lowest bid by more than 5%, the contract shall be awarded to the environmentally sustainable business enterprise that submitted a bid that exceeded the lowest bid by the smallest amount.
d. If a bid submitted by a non-environmentally sustainable business enterprise and a bid submitted by an environmentally sustainable business enterprise are identical, the contract shall be awarded to the environmentally sustainable business enterprise, even if the bids are only identical due to the 5% award standard provided for in this chapter.
e. If 2 bids submitted by 2 environmentally sustainable business enterprises are identical, the winner will be determined in accordance with the process for tie-breaking as established by the city purchasing director.
f. If an environmentally sustainable business enterprise is also certified as a small business enterprise under s. 370-25, the award standards set forth in pars. a to d shall be 10%.
g. The preference under par. a shall not exceed $25,000 for any one solicitation and award determination. The preference under par. f shall not exceed $30,000 for any one solicitation and award determination.
2. WAIVER. The requirements of this section may be waived in writing by the purchasing director and the environmental sustainability director if the good or service is not applicable or critical to the public health and safety of city residents or city operations.
3. EXEMPTIONS. The requirements of this section shall not apply to any of the following:
a. The purchase of a commodity that is considered to be a raw material, including salt, gravel or petroleum, or any petroleum-based fuel products.
b. The purchase of a commodity that is considered to be a chemical, including liquid oxygen, fluoride or anhydrous ammonia.
3. DUTIES OF CONTRACTING AGENCY. Each contracting agency shall:
a. Obtain affidavits from environmentally sustainable business enterprises with their bids or proposals verifying their status.
b. Cooperate with the purchasing director and the environmental sustainability director in the implementation of this chapter.
c. Provide monthly reports to the purchasing director and the environmental sustainability director not later than 30 calendar days after the end of the previous month specifying with respect to contracts:
c-1. The dollar amounts of those contracts awarded to environmentally sustainable business enterprises.
c-2. Other information as may be requested by the purchasing director and the environmental sustainability director.
366-9. Sanctions. Every contract awarded under this chapter shall contain language indicating that if any document submitted by a contractor contains false, misleading or fraudulent information, the contracting agency or the purchasing director, as the case may be, may direct the imposition of any of the following sanctions on the offending contractor:
a. Withholding of payment.
b. Termination, suspension or cancellation of the contract in whole or in part.
c. Denial to participate in any further contracts awarded by the city.
366-11. Penalty. Any person, firm or corporation knowingly engaging in fraud, misrepresentation or in any attempt, direct or indirect, to evade the provisions of this chapter by providing false, misleading or fraudulent information shall, upon conviction, forfeit not less than $2,000 nor more than $5,000 together with the costs of prosecution.
LRB
APPROVED AS TO FORM
K. Broadnax
________________________________
Legislative Reference Bureau
Date: April 21, 2025
___________________________
Attorney
IT IS OUR OPINION THAT THE ORDINANCE IS LEGAL AND ENFORCEABLE
________________________________
Office of the City Attorney
Date: ___________________________
Requestor
Drafter
LRB179846-2
Max Drickey
4/22/2025