NEWS NEEDED AND SHARED

Bill Gellman, Secretary, opened up the meeting at 2:00pm. Our traditional member introductions were conducted.

Wayne Casper was introduced. National Intergovernmental Purchasing Alliance (National IPA) is a two-year old / organization that is a collective effort of participating public agencies around the United States. Their purpose / goal is to reduce procurement costs through pooling group volume. This organization attempts to use aggregate purchasing volumes of member agencies, serving to receive larger volume discounts from suppliers. Their optional program is available to us at no cost, and no minimum volume requirements. A 'participation form' is needed for registration in the program. All master agreements are publicly solicited, awarded through an RFP process, and administered by a Primary Procurement Agency. National IPA serves as a nationwide conduit to offer awarded agreements to public agencies. Their agreements, to name a few, include:

· Toro · Corporate Express
· Panasonic Toughbooks
· National Furniture
· Kimball Office Furniture
· Mannington Carpeting / Flooring

Six additional agreements are in the works. National IPA has over 2,600 nationally registered agencies using these agreements.

Don Hirsch noted that Corporate Express was acquired by Staples. They are the strongest of the Big Three companies serving this business. They offer:

· Synergy of product offerings
· More branding
· Better availability of products
· Greater stability and growth
· 1,300 item core contract with website (instant pricing) access
· Quarterly reports of savings
· Large list of janitorial sustainable supplies 'All Green' catalogue (Facility Supplies)
· Firm fixed prices change only once a year
· Copy paper prices may change two times per year due to volatility
· Desktop delivery by Corporate Express staff

Christine Roberto told us that the City of Norwalk is dealing with cost containment / reduction efforts along with implementing a hiring freeze due to the difficult economic times so many agencies are similarly facing.

Mark Monforte informed us that LAUSD is installing a 1.2 megawatt energy production solar panel system on the roof of their 400,000 square foot warehouse in Pico Rivera. It will save them $10,000 per month in electrical costs. LAUSD is looking at the prospect of a 15% staffing cut in addition to furlough days-off in order to reduce costs.

Bill Gellman asked if any agencies had developed specific written policy / procedure for employee use of making / requesting color copies, and purchasing efforts to reduce resulting expenses. Additionally, he provided members with several informative newspaper articles to review:

· Bankruptcy of economics
· Tightened loan environment seen
· Rough road ahead (highway funding)
· U.S. hybrids rely on foreign batteries
· Credit scores hit by card limits
· Umbrella liability insurance: Buying peace of mind

The next meeting is scheduled for November 5, 2008, at 2:00pm. Hope to see you there.

Reporting:

Bill Gellman,
Secretary