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Mayor Sheng Thao is set to cast a tie-breaking vote in September to determine whether Oakland City Council will extend an $8 million contract with ABC Security, the city’s longtime provider of security services. The contract, which would cover security at City Hall and other public facilities, has become a source of friction within the council and raises questions about the selection process for security vendors.
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Background on the Oakland City Council Contract
ABC Security’s current contract with the city began in 2018 and was supposed to expire in 2021. However, due to the pandemic, the City Council has repeatedly extended it. In July 2023, the council was asked to extend the contract again through June 2025, which would increase the contract’s total value to nearly $30 million, up from its original $12.5 million for three years.
The Split Vote and Vendor Concerns
The July vote resulted in a tie, with councilmembers Dan Kalb, Nikki Fortunato Bas, Noel Gallo, and Kevin Jenkins in favor of the extension. Councilmembers Carroll Fife, Rebecca Kaplan, Janani Ramachandran, and Treva Reid either abstained or were absent. Fife, in particular, raised concerns about the city’s process for selecting a new vendor, pointing to complaints from ABC’s competitors, Marina Security Services and Allied Universal Security, about being left in the dark regarding their proposals.
Oakland Public Works confirmed that Marina and Allied were contenders for the new contract, but the process was delayed due to changes in the city’s security needs and the involvement of a former interim city administrator who sought to add armed guards to the contract.
Future of the Contract
The vote will resume in September, and Mayor Thao will decide whether to approve the contract extension. If approved, ABC Security’s contract would continue until a new vendor can be selected, a process that could take up to nine months. Currently, ABC is still providing services under the previous contract terms.
