DLT SOLUTIONS, LLC to approve spending authority in an amount not to exceed $600,000.00 through the Master Intergovernmental Cooperative Purchasing Agreement with U. S. Communities to Purchase the renewal of Amazon Web Services for Cloud Computing Services and Business Support for Houston Public Works - 7 Months - Enterprise Fund

S49-H26512 - Approve spending authority to purchase the renewal of Amazon Web Services for cloud computing services and business support through the Master Intergovernmental Cooperative Purchasing Agreement (MICPA) with U. S. Communities from DLT Solutions, LLC in an amount not exceed $600,000.00 for Houston Public Works.

Specific Explanation:

The Director of Houston Public Works and the Chief Procurement Officer recommend that City Council approve the renewal of Amazon Web Services (AWS), which provides cloud computing services and business support services, in an amount not to exceed $600,000.00 for a seven (7) month period from the Master Intergovernmental Cooperative Purchasing Agreement (MICPA) with U.S. Communities and that authorization be given to issue purchase orders, as needed, to the U.S. Communities’ Lead Public Agency contractor DLT Solutions, LLC.

Amazon Web Services cloud computing renewal is required as this service provides the server computing capacity and storage space needed to run the Combined Utility System’s (CUS) billing system and work management system. This cloud based service also provides the server and storage space needed to run the Houston Permitting Center’s (HPC) ProjectDox Electronic Plan Review (EPR) application. Failure to renew AWS will result in the department not being able to operate the Combined Utility System’s billing operations resulting in the loss of water and sewer revenue to the department. Additionally, HPC customers will not be able to electronically submit building plans increasing the cycle time for permit approval and adversely impacting customer convenience.

The Houston Information Technology Services Department is working towards a multi-year agreement that will supplement this service.

The utilization of the MICPA allows the City to leverage numerous existing U.S. governmental contracts with over 50,000 participating agencies with an estimated purchasing power value of $1.5 billion annually. The City is eligible to participate in the U.S. Communities Purchasing Alliance as set out in Section 791.011 of the Government Code and such purchases satisfy State bid laws as set out in Section 791.025 of the Government Code.

M/WBE Participation:

M/WBE Zero Percentage Goal document approved by the Office of Business of Opportunity.

Hire Houston First:

This procurement is exempt from the City’s Hire Houston First Ordinance. Bids/proposals were not solicited because the department is utilizing a Cooperative Purchasing Agreement for this purchase.

Fiscal Note:

Funding for this item is included in the FY18 Adopted Budget. Therefore, no Fiscal Note is required as stated in the Financial Policy Ord. 2014-1078.