Pomona : Cost Analysis Too Costly

The price wasn’t right, so the Pomona City Council on Monday decided not to spend $300,000 to find out whether the city charges the right price for its services.

The vote was 4 to 1 against hiring Management Services Institute of Anaheim to develop a computer program that would have enabled the city to track costs and adjust fees of services. The analysis would have determined whether services are fully funded by users or subsidized by taxpayers.

Two other firms submitted lower bids, but lacked the qualifications of Management Services Institute, a city staff report said.

Under the proposed contract, the city could have withheld $105,000 from the fee if the analysis failed to produce at least $500,000 a year in added revenue.

But council members said the cost was still too steep for work that could be done by city workers. Mayor Donna Smith disagreed, saying the staff does not have the time to do such work.