DATE: April 7, 2026
TO: Board of Supervisors
SUBMITTED BY: John Zanoni, Sheriff-Coroner-Public Administrator
SUBJECT: Retroactive Revenue Agreement with Canteen of Fresno, Inc. to Provide Commissary Services
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
TITLE
Approve and authorize the Chairman to execute a retroactive revenue Agreement with Canteen of Fresno, Inc., for commissary services at the Fresno County Adult Detention Facilities, effective January 1, 2026, not to exceed five consecutive years, which includes a three-year base contract and two optional one-year extensions.
REPORT
There is no additional County cost associated with the recommended action. Penal Code Section 4025 authorizes the Sheriff to establish a commissary for sale of personal items to incarcerated persons. This statute also requires that any profit from operation of the commissary be deposited into an incarcerated person welfare fund for specified purposes.
The current agreement with Canteen of Fresno, Inc. (Canteen of Fresno) to provide commissary services to the Adult Detention Facilities expired on December 31, 2025. The Department conducted an RFP and based on the evaluations of Canteen of Fresno, and the Sheriff Office’s approval, Canteen of Fresno was the recommended vendor for contract award. The recommended action will retain Canteen of Fresno as the vendor to provide commissary services to the Adult Detention Facilities. This item is countywide.
ALTERNATIVE ACTIONS:
If the recommended action is not approved, the Sheriff’s Office will be unable to continue to provide commissary services to incarcerated persons in its jail facilities.
RETROACTIVE AGREEMENT:
The recommended agreement is retroactive to January 1, 2026, due to the length of time required for negotiation and approval for commissary services that went through the Request for Proposal (RFP) process. The agreement was signed by Canteen of Fresno on March 16, 2026.
FISCAL IMPACT:
There is no increase in Net County Cost associated with this action. Canteen of Fresno will manage and operate the Adult Detention Facilities commissary services and will pay a commission to the Incarcerated Persons’ Welfare Fund (IPWF) of 35% of net sales for regular commissary purchases and 32% of Net Sales for web-based Commissary purchases. Currently there is an estimated total cost of $662,060 in pending invoices to be processed for the period of January 1, 2026 through April 6, 2026. In FY 2024-25, based on a 48% commission percentage, a total of $2,358,576 was received by the IPWF.
DISCUSSION:
The Sheriff’s Office has contracted with Canteen of Fresno since 2009 for commissary services for incarcerated persons in the County’s jail facilities.
On December 15, 2020, following an RFP process, your Board most recently approved Agreement No. A-20-491 to provide commissary services to incarcerated person effective January 1, 2021, through December 31, 2025.
RFP #26-025 was issued through County Purchasing on November 12, 2025, with the closing date of December 9, 2025, for commissary services. Summit Foods was the only other company that responded to the RFP. Aramark was the only company that came out for the walk through but did not submit a proposal. The Sheriff’s Office selected Canteen of Fresno as the best fit to complete all aspects of the RFP. Summit Foods did not have a sufficient plan in the event of a man made or natural disaster and they were not going to obtain a local storage facility in the area, which made that a major concern for the evaluation team. Under the recommended agreement, Canteen of Fresno, Inc. will provide commissary services for incarcerated persons to purchase items such as personal hygiene products, food and snacks, postage stamps, and envelopes. Canteen of Fresno may also charge incarcerated persons up to $3.00 for Personal Hygiene Kids and is required to issue indigent kits to inmates with less than $3.00 on their books at the time of booking. The welfare/indigent kit includes toothpaste, toothbrush, soap, safety razor, pencil, paper, and envelopes.
The recommended Agreement has non-standard insurance provisions. Professional Services was waived because Canteen does not provide services that would constitute “professional services” under a Professional Liability policy. The Agreement also excludes Molestation Liability and Technology Professional Liability. Cyber Liability was reduced to $1,000,000. These liability provisions are less comprehensive than those recommended by the Human Resources-Risk Division. However, Sheriff’s Office has reviewed these provisions and is comfortable with their terms.
REFERENCE MATERIAL:
BAI #50, December 15, 2020
ATTACHMENTS INCLUDED AND/OR ON FILE:
On file with Clerk - Agreement with Canteen of Fresno, Inc.
CAO ANALYST:
Fine Nai