TO: HONORABLE MAYOR AND MEMBERS OF THE CITY COUNCIL
FROM: Anthony Conrad, Police Chief
PREPARED BY: Dawnn Jackson, Management Analyst
SUBJECT: Five-Year Agreement with Motorola for Radio Purchases
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RECOMMENDATION
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Approve a five-year agreement with Motorola Solutions, Inc., in the amount not to exceed $1,222,876.30 for the purchase and replacement of critical police radios; and
Authorize the Mayor to execute the agreement.
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PRIOR ACTION/VOTE
On March 3, 2015, the City Council adopted Resolution 15-3351, amending the Fiscal Year 2014-2019 Capital Improvement Plan to close the Police Station-Phase II project (#08092), and appropriating $916,120 in Law Enforcement Development Impact Fees and $321,880 in Federal Asset Forfeiture funds to establish a new project to purchase equipment and make improvements to the Public Safety Enterprise Communication (PSEC) radio system (Vote 5-0).
On June 2, 2015, the City Council adopted Resolution No. 15-3378, authorizing the City Manager to purchase additional handheld radios required for the Phase I transition to the Public Safety Enterprise Communication (PSEC) radio system and amending the 2014/15 operating budget authorizing $174,604 to be charged to the Federal Asset Forfeiture fund (Vote 4-0-1).
On December 15, 2015, the City Council adopted Resolution No. 15-3482, authorizing the City Manager to revise a Letter of Agreement with Riverside County Information Technology (RCIT) for the scope of services and the purchase of radio equipment and installation services with Motorola Solutions Inc (Vote 4-0-1).
CITY COUNCIL GOAL
Provide a high level of innovative public safety.
BACKGROUND
In 2015, the Police Department transitioned to the PSEC system for all law enforcement communications. PSEC is a cooperative effort between law enforcement and fire agencies in Riverside County, with the goal of communications reliability and interoperability. Although the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department currently manages PSEC’s day-to-day operations, PSEC is given direction using a Steering Committee Board of Directors made up of seven members from city and county police/fire agencies. The Steering Committee Chairperson for the last two years has been Murrieta Police Department (PD) Chief Anthony Conrad.
Murrieta PD was the first municipal police department to join PSEC in 2015 and has been instrumental in bringing the system where it is today. As of 2023, every law enforcement agency in the County has transitioned or is transitioning to PSEC. Riverside County Fire has been a participant in PSEC from the system’s inception, and Murrieta Fire and Rescue will be the first municipal fire department to join the system in 2023. PSEC is considered one of the country's most robust first-responder communication systems. It is entirely funded by member agencies through subscriber fees, and it operates on approximately a $15 million budget.
Over the last eight years, Murrieta PD has been engaged in the use of both Harris and Motorola P25-compliant radios. In conjunction with PSEC and other subscriber agencies, the Murrieta PD has tested the reliability of both radio manufacturers, and the Motorola product has been determined to be superior. At this time, there is an opportunity to switch to the Motorola radios, as the current radios are at the end of their eight-year life. Many have begun to break or have operating issues. Due to the age of these radios, they are no longer serviceable.
In 2023, both the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department and Murrieta PD chose Motorola as their PSEC radio provider because of the superiority of their product. Riverside County is currently finalizing its contract with PSEC; however, the City of San Diego has completed its contract with a discount identical to that listed in the Riverside County contract (27%), which allows for cooperative participation (Attachment 1). At this time, it is necessary for the Murrieta PD to piggyback on the City of San Diego contract to purchase 125 Motorola radios over the next five years (Attachment 2). This number was determined by the projected number of Murrieta officer positions between 2023 and 2028. The current radios in stock will be used for training of Police Explorers and volunteers and as spare/backup radios in emergencies.
Currently, each Police Officer is assigned a handheld radio and has a second radio mounted in their assigned police unit. By switching to Motorola, the PD will no longer need to purchase radios ($8,000 each) for unmarked vehicles, as the new Motorola radios can utilize a cellular 5G connection and transmit over the PSEC system anywhere in the United States with cellular coverage. It is anticipated that once the radios prove their reliability, new radios will not need to be purchased for any police units until 2031, saving the City money over time. Additional features of the new radios include:
• Clearer communications over a digital network;
• A hands-free function that provides the ability to program over the air without a technician touching the radio;
• Ability to have a redundant communication backup using cellular technology;
• Interoperability with the Motorola-built PSEC tower network works more efficiently with Motorola radio;
• GPS location service showing dispatchers exactly where the radio is when powered on; and
• WiFi capabable and completely waterproof.
FISCAL IMPACT
Motorola is offering 40% off radio orders that are received by December 15, 2023, which is reflected in the attached quote (Attachment 3) . If the order is received after that date, the discount will only be 27% discount as outlined in the City of San Diego agreement.
Per the quote attached, the total cost of the 125 radios is $1,060,054. Per the financing options attached, the Murrieta Police Department has decided to select option one with a lease factor of 0.230719 under the advisement of the Finance Department. Option one states the first payment of $244,575.26 is due one year after contract execution, which will be October 2024, Fiscal Year (FY) 2024/25.
To finance the first payment (Attachment 4), $80,278.05 will be carried over from the FY 2023/24 budget to FY 2024/25, and $180,278 savings has been identified in the current FY 2024/25 budget. The budget for subsequent fiscal years will be included in the biennial budget process.
ATTACHMENTS
1. City of San Diego Agreement
2. Draft Motorola Agreement
3. Motorola Quote
4. Motorola Financing Options