Continuing the work to reform the City’s broken procurement system

Dear Baltimore,

Today, I sent a letter to Mayor Brandon Scott reiterating my concerns with the purported contract the Board of Estimates approved at our March 16, 2022 meeting for Paymentus Corporation to provide electronic billing and payment platforms for city residents and non-residents to make payments in a variety of methods. I fully appreciate the need for a contract for these services to improve the method for individuals to make payments on their city bills. As I explained today, and I have expressed previously, I am deeply concerned by the process this administration has taken to procure these services.

A contract of this type is much more appropriate for a normal procurement process, which would require soliciting bids from a broad community of service providers and vendors and selecting the most responsive and economical option. That process encourages healthy competition and produces the best results for the city and the services we acquire across a wide variety of fields

While I understand that this method is currently permitted under the legal definition of “Professional Services Contracts”, that is a legal loophole we should not exploit when the services expand so far beyond mere consultation and have such a wide impact on city residents and customers. 

Stewardship of city funds and resources deserves a better process than we gave in this instance and I am calling on our Board to commit that this item will not set a precedent for future contract amendments.
 

In service,

Nick J. Mosby
City Council President