To: Board of Supervisors
Department or Agency Name(s): Sonoma County Public Infrastructure
Staff Name and Phone Number: Johannes J. Hoevertsz, 707-565-2550
Vote Requirement: Majority
Supervisorial District(s): All
Title:
Title
Blanket Purchase Order Agreements for As Needed Temporary Staffing Services
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Recommended Action:
Recommended action
A) Determine that it is in the economic interest of the County to contract temporary staffing during certain peak workloads, temporary absences, and emergency temporary staffing rather than hiring employees for those limited purposes.
B) Authorize the Purchasing Agent to execute the proposed Blanket Purchase Order (BPO) Agreements:
i.) Five (5) BPO agreements for as-needed temporary staffing services, each with a not to exceed amount of $2,000,000.
ii.) Five (5) BPO agreements for as-needed temporary staffing services during emergencies and declared disasters.
iii.) Authorize the Purchasing Agent to issue Purchase Orders of up to $500,000 under the agreements, subject to sufficient available funding for each Purchase Order.
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Executive Summary:
Sonoma County Public Infrastructure (SPI) requests that the Board authorize Blanket Purchase Order (BPO) Agreements in an amount not to exceed $2,000,000 for each of the following temporary staffing firms:
1. Bolt Staffing Services, Inc.
2. AppleOne, Inc.
3. Abacus Service Corporation
4. InfoStride, Inc.
5. 22nd Century Technologies, Inc.
The County would execute five (5) standard BPO agreements for routine operations and five (5) agreements that meet Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) requirements for use only during an emergency or declared disaster.
The proposed BPO agreements will provide as-needed short-term staffing to support routine County operations and responses to emergency or declared disasters.
Agreements shall be for an initial term of one (1) year with four (4) optional one (1) year extensions.
To satisfy legal requirements for such arrangements, the Board is also being asked to find that contracting out for temporary staffing under certain circumstances is in the economic interest of the County.
Discussion:
A Blanket Purchase Order (BPO) is a procurement instrument established and administered by the Purchasing Division to secure goods and services under negotiated pricing, terms, and conditions. BPOs streamline purchasing activities by allowing County departments to obtain commonly used goods and services without issuing separate solicitations, reducing administrative work, while ensuring consistent pricing and contract terms.
The County utilizes temporary staffing firms to provide continuity of County operations by addressing immediate and short-term staffing needs caused by peak workloads, unexpected absences, and emergencies. Staffing firms maintain pools of workers in multiple classifications and can fill assignments quickly, including same-day absence. Use of such temporary, short-term help when needed is more cost-effective compared to the alternative of retaining additional permanent positions for unpredictable, short-term demand.
California Government Code Section 31000.4 authorizes counties to contract with temporary staffing firms to provide personnel during periods of peak workload, temporary employee absences, or emergencies, provided the Board of Supervisors determines that contracting for such services is more economical than direct employment. The statute limits the use of temporary staffing services to no more than 90 days for any single peak workload, temporary absence, or emergency.
To establish a qualified pool of temporary staffing providers, the Purchasing Division, in collaboration with the Human Resources Department, issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) for Temporary Agency Staffing Services on December 13, 2025. The RFP closed on February 10, 2026, and eighty-two (82) proposals were received; sixty-seven (67) proposals met the minimum qualifications and advanced to the evaluation phase.
The qualified proposals were evaluated by a committee comprised of representatives from the Human Resources Department, Department of Health Services, Information Systems Department, and Human Services Department. Evaluations were conducted in accordance with the criteria established in the RFP.
Based on the committee’s review and consensus scoring, staff recommends establishing BPOs with the following five firms, in ranked order:
1. Bolt Staffing Services, Inc.
2. AppleOne, Inc.
3. Abacus Service Corporation
4. InfoStride, Inc.
5. 22nd Century Technologies, Inc.
The committee determined that the five (5) highest-ranked firms would provide the County with sufficient breadth of staffing resources, geographic coverage, and specialized expertise while maintaining efficient contract administration and ensuring the best overall value.
County policy promotes business opportunities for local firms and provides for the application of local preference in competitive solicitations. Local preference was included in the RFP and applied during the evaluation process. Of the firms recommended for award, two (2) qualify for local preference: Bolt Staffing Services, Inc. and AppleOne, Inc.
Strategic Plan:
This item directly supports the County’s Five-year Strategic Plan and is aligned with the following pillar, goal, and objective.
Pillar: Organizational Excellence
Goal: Goal 1: Strengthen operational effectiveness, fiscal reliability, and accountability
Objective: Objective 1: Align the Board of Supervisor’s strategic priorities, policy, and operational goals with funding and resources.
This item supports the Organizational Excellence pillar by providing departments a timely, efficient way to maintain public services during peak workloads, temporary absences, and emergencies.
Racial Equity:
Was this item identified as an opportunity to apply the Racial Equity Toolkit?
No
Prior Board Actions:
12/14/2021 - Board approved agreements with Apple One, Bolt Staffing, Inc., Nelson Staffing, and Tryfacta, Inc., for temporary staffing services, January 1, 2022, to December 31, 2024, with three one-year extension options.
12/15/2015 - Board approved agreements with Nelson Staffing, Star Staffing, and Apple One for temporary staffing services, from January 1, 2016, through December 31, 2018, with three one-year extension options.
Fiscal Summary
Narrative Explanation of Fiscal Impacts:
Approval of the recommended Blanket Purchase Order Agreements will not have a direct fiscal impact to the County. Departments may order temporary staffing services when existing Board-approved appropriations are available, including salary savings from vacant positions and employee leaves, and budgeted extra-help funds.
Each agreement includes a maximum not-to-exceed amount of $2,000,000 over the potential five-year term. Based on historical usage and anticipated operational needs, the proposed limits provide sufficient capacity for Countywide temporary staffing services. The not-to-exceed amounts represent maximum contract authority and do not constitute a commitment to spending those amounts.
Narrative Explanation of Staffing Impacts (If Required):
None.
Attachments:
Blanket Purchase Order Professional Services Agreements:
1. Bolt Staffing Services, Inc.
2. Bolt Staffing Services, Inc. - Emergency
3. Apple One, Inc.
4. Apple One, Inc. - Emergency
5. Abacus Service Corporation
6. Abacus Service Corporation - Emergency
7. InfoStride, Inc.
8. InfoStride, Inc. - Emergency
9. 22nd Century Technologies, Inc.
10. 22nd Century Technologies, Inc. - Emergency
Related Items “On File” with the Clerk of the Board:
None.