DATE: April 21, 2026
TO: Board of Supervisors
SUBMITTED BY: Raymond T. Hunter, Director, General Services Department
SUBJECT: Agreement with E.J. Ward, Inc.
RECOMMENDED ACTION(S):
TITLE
Approve and authorize the Chairman to execute an Agreement with E.J. Ward, Inc., through a cooperative agreement with Sourcewell, for Fuel View Software-as-a-Service annual hosting, support, and fuel site-related parts and repair services, effective May 1, 2026, not to exceed five consecutive years, which includes an approximate three-year base contract and two optional one-year extensions, total not to exceed $1,000,000.
REPORT
There is no increase in Net County Cost associated with the recommended action, which will allow the General Services Department - Fleet Services Division (GSD-Fleet) to access E.J. Ward’s Inc.’s (E.J. Ward) Fuel View cloud-hosted Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) solution and fuel-site related parts and repairs for GSD-Fleet automated fuel management and asset monitoring. This item is countywide.
ALTERNATIVE ACTION(S):
Should your Board not approve the recommended action, GSD-Fleet would need to acquire and implement a new fuel management system to monitor and manage all County-owned fuel sites.
FISCAL IMPACT:
There is no increase in Net County Cost associated with the recommended action. Costs associated with the recommended Agreement will not exceed $1,000,000 for the potential approximate five-year term and are recovered through charges to user departments. Sufficient appropriations and estimated revenues are included in the GSD-Fleet Org 8910 FY 2025-26 Adopted Budget and will be included in future Recommended Budget requests.
DISCUSSION:
On April 14, 2020, the Board approved Agreement A-20-139 with E.J. Ward for the Fuel View software and related hardware, fuel management and asset monitoring, effective April 14, 2020 with a three-year base term and two optional one-year extensions, and a maximum compensation of $1,102,000.
The Agreement was not extended beyond the three-year base term and instead, software licensing and services were transitioned to Dell Financing Agreement No. A-09-324, which was approved by the Board on July 7, 2009. This allowed the County to modernize outdated fuel terminals at a lower cost than a full system replacement.
Since April 2023, the County has been receiving continuous hardware maintenance, fuel system support, parts and GPS services under Purchasing Agreements P-23-200, P-24-399 and P-25-184. The current Purchasing Agreement (P-25-184) is effective June 1, 2025, through May 31, 2028, with total maximum compensation of $650,000.
GSD-Fleet maintains a critical need for uninterrupted access to Fuel View cloud-hosted SaaS for more comprehensive Fleet management and data collection of all County-owned fuel sites, fuel consumption, vehicle mileage and location. GSD-Fleet also requires access to E.J. Ward’s various fuel-site system interfacing parts involving new vehicle setup. In addition, GSD-Fleet relies on E.J. Ward’s expertise for any fuel-site related repair services not otherwise covered under E.J. Ward’s hardware warranty. To improve oversight and administrative efficiency, GSD-Fleet now proposes consolidating these hardware and SaaS components into a single agreement, which is now before your Board for consideration.
Pursuant to Chapter 4 of County’s Purchasing Manual, the County can join with other public entities in the collective preparation of solicitations and request for quotations or proposals, and in making an award to a responsive, responsible bidder if the source selection method follows the requirements of the Purchasing Manual. Sourcewell, a State of Minnesota local government agency and purchasing organization for public sector entities, issued Request for Proposal (RFP) No. 081524 titled, ‘Aboveground Fuel and Fluid Storage with Related Hardware, Software, and Services’. Multiple vendors, including E.J. Ward, were awarded cooperative contracts. GSD-Fleet has determined that, based on the products and solutions offered, E.J. Ward’s SaaS hosting services, support services, and fuel-site-related parts and services comprehensively meets their requirements. GSD’s Purchasing Division has reviewed Sourcewell procurement process and has determined it to be consistent with the County’s procurement requirements.
The recommended Agreement deviates from the County’s standard “Rights upon Termination” provision. While the standard term allows the County to unilaterally demand a refund of non-compliant funds based on its sole judgement, the negotiated terms require both parties to mutually agree on the repayment amount. Additionally, the Contractor is granted 60 days following a resolution to issue the refund, whereas the standard term requires a prompt refund upon demand.
The recommended Agreement also includes a negotiated version of E.J. Ward’s ‘Limitation of Liability and Indemnity Monitoring User Activity’ policy (Exhibit A). This update removes broad disclaimers for accidental or fraudulent breaches, ensuring E.J. Ward remains accountable for unauthorized access and data loss.
Approval of the recommended Agreement with E.J. Ward will allow GSD-Fleet to continue receiving access to Fuel View SaaS, support services, and the ability to purchase related fuel-site parts and repair services.
REFERENCE MATERIAL:
BAI #25, April 14, 2020
BAI #48, July 7, 2009
ATTACHMENTS INCLUDED AND/OR ON FILE:
On file with Clerk - Agreement with E.J. Ward
CAO ANALYST:
Amy Ryals