Fresno City Council Approves $1.3 Million Contract for Utility Department PR and Outreach — Photo: USEPA Environmental-Protection-Agency — Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Fresno City Council Approves $1.3 Million Contract for Utility Department PR and Outreach
The Fresno City Council approved a three-year contract worth up to $1,338,000 with Southwest Strategies Group on December 12, 2024, to handle public education and stakeholder engagement for the city’s Department of Public Utilities.
The contract covers development of a five-year engagement and education strategy, advising on the department’s annual outreach program budget, conducting campaigns for each of the utility department’s operating divisions, and producing materials for what the staff report calls “the unique cultural, linguistic, and socioeconomic diversity of Fresno.”
The agreement includes an option for two additional one-year extensions beyond the initial three years. The Director of Public Utilities is authorized to sign the contract on behalf of the city.
According to the staff report from Department of Public Utilities Director Brock D. Buche, the work is intended to communicate “the value of utility services” and build “trust and support of customers.”
The Breakdown
- The contract runs three years with a maximum payment of $1,338,000 to Southwest Strategies Group, a Delaware corporation.
- The scope includes creating a five-year plan for how the utility department talks to the public, running outreach campaigns, and producing materials.
- The contract can be extended for two additional one-year periods at the city’s option.
- The city council voted to approve it on December 12, 2024.
What This Means for You
Your city council just committed over a million dollars to hire an outside firm to manage how the Department of Public Utilities talks to you about water, sewer, and other utility services.
When you see materials from the city explaining a rate increase, a new program, or asking for your input on utility decisions over the next three to five years, this is the contractor behind much of that work. The people your council elected to oversee city departments decided this spending was worth it — that’s a choice you can weigh when those council members are up for reelection.
What to Watch
The material does not state what the Department of Public Utilities currently spends on public outreach and education, or what work it handles in-house versus what it was already contracting out — so there’s no way to know from this staff report whether $1.3 million represents new spending or a continuation of existing costs. The staff report also does not break down the annual cost (roughly $446,000 per year over three years).
The real question is value: what does nearly half a million dollars a year in public education and stakeholder engagement actually buy that the department couldn’t do itself, or couldn’t do more cheaply? A consultant advising on the department’s own outreach budget is itself a budget line — who decided that expertise was worth this price, and what accountability measure will show whether the spending produced the trust and support the staff report promises?
Southwest Strategies Group is the named beneficiary here, receiving over a million dollars. The material offers no competing bid, no cost comparison, and no explanation of how this contract amount was set — whether it was the result of a competitive process or a sole-source award. If you want to know how this contract was selected and what the city considered before committing this amount, the procurement records and any competing proposals would show that. Those are public records the city is required to maintain.
