Title
Consideration of and action on a resolution to award a contract for Primary Depository Bank Services.
Body
Summary: Pursuant to Section 105.017 of the Texas Local Government Code, Chapter 105, Depositories for Municipal Funds, the term of a bank depository contract may not exceed five years. The City's current depository agreement with Wells Fargo Bank will complete a five year term on January 31, 2019.
On August 7, 2018, City Council approved a resolution to allow the City to consider applications from financial institutions not doing business within the City’s boundaries to allow for a more competitive field of applicants. With that resolution, qualified financial institutions with a physical location within 6.5 miles of City Hall became eligible to submit an application in response to the Request for Applications (RFA), which City Council authorized on August 21, 2018. Valley View Consulting, the City’s investment advisor, helped to develop the RFA, which was distributed to 19 financial institutions on August 29, 2018.
A pre-application meeting was held on September 5, 2018 and representatives from two banks attended: Texas First Bank and Wells Fargo Bank. Applications were due on October 1, 2018, and five (5) banks responded: BB&T (Pasadena Branch), Capital One Bank (LaPorte Branch), JPMorgan Chase Bank (Deer Park Branch), The Moody National Bank (Pasadena Branch), and Wells Fargo Bank (Deer Park Branch). City staff (Director of Finance, Accounting Supervisor, and Accountant) worked with Valley View Consulting to complete the review and evaluation of responses in order to present a recommendation to City Council at the December 4, 2018 meeting.
As discussed in the workshop prior to this meeting, the responses were evaluated based on numerous factors including, but not limited to, ability to perform and provide services, quality and cost of services, experience in the public sector, references, transition cost, convenience of locations, interest to be paid on interest bearing accounts, earnings credit, and completeness of application and agreement to points outlined in the RFA. Following the initial evaluation, JPMorgan Chase Bank and Wells Fargo Bank were identified as the most qualified to meet the City’s primary depository banking needs and were invited to submit a best and final offer and to then make presentations to the City staff. Both banks made great presentations to expand on their services and product offerings. While JPMorgan Chase Bank offers competitive rates and service capabilities to meet the City’s needs, the City concluded that the overall terms of the contract were not sufficient to merit the overall expense to the City to change depository banks. The staff concluded, and Valley View Consulting concurred, that Wells Fargo Bank provides the “best value” to the City.
City staff recommends continuing the depository banking relationship with Wells Fargo Bank. The initial three-year term for the contract will begin on February 1, 2019 and end on January 31, 2022. The contract includes an option for annual renewals in the successive two years for a total of five years (final term ending on January 31, 2024).
Fiscal/Budgetary Impact:
Depository bank services are included in the City’s Fiscal Year 2018-2019 Budget under General Government (Account Number 10-105-4252, Dues & Fees).
Recommended action
Approve the resolution awarding the contract for Primary Depository Bank Services to Wells Fargo Bank, N.A.