San Francisco County Municipal Code § 131.6 Waivers

(a) Waivers by Director. The Director, or duly authorized designee, may waive in whole or in part the requirements of this Article 131 in the following circumstances: (1) Sole Source. When the Director finds, upon the advice of the awarding authority, that needed goods, services, construction services for a public work or improvement, or interest in or right to use real property are available only from a sole source. (2) Only One Qualified Bidder. When the Director finds, upon the advice of the awarding authority, that there is only one qualified, responsive bidder or proposer who can perform the work under the proposed agreement and who is not at that time disqualified from doing business with the City. (3) No Compliant Bidders. When the Director finds, upon the advice of the awarding authority, that there are no qualified responsive bidders or prospective contractors who could be certified as being in compliance with the requirements of this Article 131. (4) Adverse Impact on Services. Where the Director determines that the public interest warrants the granting of a waiver because application of this Article 131 would have an adverse impact on services or a substantial adverse financial impact on the City, or would circumvent the purposes of this Article. (5) Cooperative Purchasing. When an agreement has been procured under Administrative Code Sections 6.77 or 21.16, and the Director finds that application of this Article 131 would mean (A) a purchase under such arrangement would substantially reduce the City’s cost of purchasing such services; (B) a purchase under such an arrangement is in the best interest of the City; and (C) adherence to the requirements of this Article 131 would prevent the awarding agency from entering into such an agreement. (b) Waiver by Treasurer for Investments. This Article 131 shall not apply to the following; (1) the investment of trust moneys or agreements relating to the management of trust assets, (2) City moneys invested in the City’s investment pool, or (3) the investment of City moneys, where the Treasurer finds that: (A) No person, entity, or financial institution doing business in the City that is in compliance with this Article is capable of performing the desired transaction(s); or (B) Applying this Article would, in the opinion of the Treasurer, violate the Treasurer’s fiduciary duties. (c) Waiver by Public Utilities Commission. The General Manager of the Public Utilities Commission may waive the requirements of this Article 131 where the Contractor is providing wholesale or bulk water, power, or natural gas, the conveyance or transmission of same, or ancillary services such as spinning reserve, voltage control, or loading scheduling, as required for assuring reliable services in accordance with good utility practice, to or on behalf of the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission; provided, that the purchase of same may not practically be accomplished through the City’s standard competitive bidding procedures; and further provided, that this exemption shall not apply to Contractors or franchisees providing direct, retail services to end users within the City. (d) Documentation. All proposed waivers must set forth the reasons the Contracting Officer is requesting the waiver. (Added by Ord. 192-25, File No. 250192, App. 10/16/2025, Eff. 11/16/2025, Oper. 4/1/2026) (Former Sec. 131.6 added as Administrative Code Sec. 12B.5-1 by Ord. 481-96, App. 12/20/96; amended by Ord. 401-97, App. 5/27/97; Ord. 286-97, App. 7/18/97; Ord. 431-97, App. 11/21/97; redesignated by Ord. 221-23, File No. 230835, App. 11/3/2023, Eff. 12/4/2023, Oper. 1/4/2024; replaced by Ord. 192-25, File No. 250192, App. 10/16/2025, Eff. 11/16/2025, Oper. 4/1/2026)