Elk Grove to double legal contract ahead of police union negotiations

The Elk Grove City Council will consider doubling the value of a contract with an outside law firm as the city prepares for its next round of labor negotiations with the Elk Grove Police Officers Association and the Police Management Association.

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The proposal, which is on the consent calendar, is scheduled for consideration Wednesday, Sept. 23, would increase the city's contract with Sloan, Sakai, Yeung & Wong LLP by $70,000, bringing the total authorized amount to $140,000. The firm provides specialized labor and employment legal services, including representation during collective bargaining.

The city initially hired Sloan Sakai in March 2023 under a contract not to exceed $50,000 to assist with negotiations with the Elk Grove Police Officers Association, or EGPOA, and other labor matters. Following the 2023 police negotiations, the city increased the contract by $20,000 to $70,000.

The additional capacity was subsequently used for negotiations with the Elk Grove Police Management Association in 2024. About $19,000 remains under the existing $70,000 authorization.

City officials are recommending adding another $70,000 because the agreements with both police bargaining units expire June 30, 2027, with negotiations on successor agreements expected to begin early next year.

The amendment would also approve higher hourly rates charged by the firm. Lead counsel Charles Sakai's rate would increase from $415 to $465 an hour. Partner rates would change from the current $325 to $495 range to $395 to $525 an hour and rates for other attorneys, paralegals, analysts and consultants would also generally increase.

City staff said retaining the firm would provide continuity because its attorneys are already familiar with Elk Grove's bargaining history, labor relations and existing agreements. The additional money could also be used for legal review of the police labor agreements, city personnel rules and other employment matters associated with negotiations.

The council is also being asked to waive the city's normal competitive request-for-proposals process. The practice of waiving competitive bidding has become a near-constant practice under city manager Jason Behrmann.

Staff argues that seeking competing proposals would not be in the city's best interest because of Sloan Sakai's public-sector labor expertise and previous work for Elk Grove. The council could instead require a competitive solicitation, although Mayor Bobbie Singh-Allen and her four city councilmen never intervene in such matters and provide no oversight on the city manager practices.

The expense is included in the city's fiscal year 2026-27 operating budget.

The upcoming negotiations involve the city's most financially significant municipal service. Elk Grove's 2026-27 budget calls for approximately $72 million in Police Department operating costs, including about $68.7 million from the General Fund which represents roughly 64% of the city's $107.5 million in General Fund expenditures, making policing by far the largest General Fund expenditure.

The negotiations also come against the backdrop of a close political relationship between Elk Grove's elected officials and its police union. EGPOA endorsements have long been sought in City Council races. Mayor Bobbie Singh-Allen, Councilmember Darren Suen and Councilmember Kevin Spease were endorsed by the association in their 2020 campaigns, and Singh-Allen continues to list EGPOA among her organizational endorsements. The association has also publicly supported other current council members in their political careers, giving the union a notable role in Elk Grove municipal politics.

That relationship will be part of the environment surrounding negotiations over the next police labor agreement, which will determine compensation and other employment conditions for officers whose department consumes a majority of General Fund spending.

The council has also generally given the Police Department broad latitude over its public-safety operations and technology. Most recently, the city has continued its use of automated license plate readers despite sustained public criticism and privacy concerns over access to and sharing of the information collected by the cameras.

In April, Mayor Singh-Allen and the council authorized another amendment to the city's contract with Flock Group, adding $194,100 and bringing the Flock contract to a maximum of about $1.63 million through April 2028.

Opposition has continued since then. At a March council meeting, residents called for the Flock contracts to be terminated and raised concerns about data sharing, unauthorized access and the need for an independent audit.

Police officials have defended the system and say Elk Grove controls access to its ALPR information, does not share the data with federal immigration enforcement agencies and has safeguards intended to prevent misuse.

The council's consideration of the legal-services amendment comes months before formal bargaining is expected to begin, giving the city time to prepare for negotiations with one of its most politically influential employee groups and over a department that accounts for nearly two-thirds of General Fund spending.