Subject:
Title
Permission for Board of County Commissioner Chair to Execute Contract Amendments to Existing Contracts to Add Clauses Required by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)
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Fiscal Impact:
None Anticipated
Dept/Office:
Central Services
Requested Action:
Recommendation
It is requested that the Board of County Commissioners authorize the Chair to sign contract amendments to existing contracts to add clauses required by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in order to qualify those contracts for reimbursement related to past hurricanes and current emergencies, upon review and approval by the County Attorney’s Office, Risk Management and Purchasing Services.
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Summary Explanation and Background:
In the process of applying for federal reimbursement of expenses incurred during hurricane Dorian and the current COVID-19 Emergency, the Florida Department of Emergency Management (FDEM) has informed Brevard County that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is closely scrutinizing contracts to ensure that they have certain required federal contract clauses.
At the time that the contracts were awarded/executed it was not anticipated that the contracts would be utilized during a hurricane or the current COVID-19 emergency and as such the federal clauses were not included in the awarded contract.
If the federal clauses are absent, the County’s claim may be denied. FDEM has informed the County that it is permissible to amend the contracts that were or are being utilized in response to these emergencies to add the federal clauses while the contracts are being routed for payment to FEMA.
Additionally, if the contracts do not currently include certain Brevard County clauses, like E-Verify, those clauses are also being added to the contract amendment.
All new contracts being awarded are being drafted with the required federal clauses so as to ensure they are eligible for reimbursement if they are utilized in the response of a declared emergency.
Central Services is requesting that the Board authorize the Chair or designee to execute the contract amendments, upon review and approval by the County Attorney’s Office, Risk Management, and Purchasing Services, to existing contracts through the end of fiscal year 2019/2020 (September 30, 2020) in order to expeditiously route these existing contracts for reimbursement.
Clerk to the Board Instructions:
None