26 May 19: The final three sentences of the staff report on proposed changes to the city’s procurement code, on how contracts are awarded, lays it all out for city councilors. “The City presumes that the public has a right to know how the public’s money is being spent,” it says. “However, the public’s money is not being spent before the Council accepts or rejects recommendations for an award. Thus, the policy question is whether the public benefit of accessing proposals sooner outweighs the potential detriments to the City of less competitive offers, increased cost to the City, and the administrative cost in defending potential protests.”