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HomeMy WebLinkAboutWashington Collectors Tri-Cities - Collection Agency Contract CITY OF PASCO COLLECTION AGENCY CONTRACT THIS CONTRACT is made and entered into by and between the City of Pasco, a municipal corporation of the State of Washington, hereinafter referred to as "City", and Washington Collectors Tri-Cities,Inc.,a collection agency duly licensed under and pursuant to the laws of the State of Washington,hereinafter referred to as"Agent." RECITALS: WHEREAS, City desires Agent to undertake the collection of delinquent accounts from time to time in the manner and under the terms and conditions hereinafter set forth; and WHEREAS,the parties contemplate a future course of dealing as City and Agent,and desire to set forth and define herein the mutual rights, obligations, and liabilities of the parties hereto in such course of dealings; NOW,THEREFOR,in consideration of the promises and of the mutual agreements of the parties hereto,it is hereby agreed as follows: 1. AGENT APPOINTED: City hereby appoints Agent as its agent to collect and receive for the City all sums of money due and payable to the City of Pasco for debts which the City lists with the Agent. 2. COMPLIANCE WITH LAW: Agent shall comply with the collection laws of the State of Washington and Public Law 95-109 (Fair Debt Collection Practices Act) and all Federal regulations and laws governing collections, including those mandated under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). New legislation affecting City or Agent with respect to terms and conditions of this contract shall be made a part of this contract by notice of either party to the other and in all cases compliance with the statute on its effective date shall be implemented until such time as an addendum to the contract can be written. 3. DEFINITIONS: A. "City" means the City of Pasco and all of its departments and divisions, including, but not limited to the Finance Division (for ambulance; utility, cemetery and other City billings)and the Municipal Court. B. "Collections" means monies collected from Debtor by Agent after date on which Agent acknowledges receipt of the account. Remittance statements for collections will show amounts for principal,contingent fees and interest separately. C. "Court"means the City of Pasco Municipal Court. D. "Debt"means unpaid amounts owed to the City including,but not limited to, utility billings,ambulance billings,cemetery or other miscellaneous billings referred by the Finance Division,plus unpaid infractions, criminal fines, civil judgments, and other costs, assessments and forfeitures that have been imposed by the Court. E. "Direct Payments"means the City receives money due from debtor. F. "Debtor" means any individual, partnership, corporation or other entity which owes money to City. G. Contingent Fees" means money due Agent from the City in payment for collection services rendered, pursuant to RCW 19.16.500. 4. TERM: This Contract shall continue in effect for a period beginning January 1,2013 and ending December 31, 2017, unless earlier terminated as provided for in Section 10 of this contract. 5. COMPROMISE SETTLEMENT/CANCELLATIONS: Agent shall not accept any compromise settlement of principal amounts due the City without prior approval of the City. City shall not accept any compromise settlement of contingent fees and/or interest due the Agent without prior consultation with the Agent. After a case has been listed with Agent for in excess of 30 days,City will limit requests for account cancellations to special circumstances(such as error or failure of reasonable notice)and after prior consultation with the Agent. 6. RELATIONSHIP OF PARTIES: Agent is an independent contractor and nothing contained in this contract shall be construed as constituting Agent as servant, agent or employee of City. Agent is solely responsible for the employment, acts and omissions, control and direction of its employees. 7. INDEMNIFICATION: Agent shall indemnify and save City harmless from any and all claims, demands, or causes of action asserted against City, arising out of or in any way connected with the collection activities of Agent on accounts referred to Agent by City, except due to the sole negligence of the City. 8. DESCRIPTION OF SERVICES: Agent's services are to be provided under the following conditions: A. All costs associated with pre-collection and collection, including postage, supplies and staff, will be provided by Agent. B. Pre-collection services and monies collected during pre-collection are not subject to contingent fees. No monies will be collected by Agent during pre-collection. All payments during pre-collection shall be forwarded to the City. Collection Agency Contract Page 2 C. Monies collected during regular collection will be subject to contingent fees and reported as applicable to the City Finance Division and remitted on a semi-monthly (by the 15th and 31st of each month respectively)basis or reported as applicable to the Court and remitted on a monthly basis. In both cases, remittance statements will show principal amounts and contingent fees separately. Interest postings will be remitted monthly on a separate statement. D. In all cases where the Revised Code of Washington (RCW 19.16.500) allows contingent fees,such contingent fees will be added to the account balance pursuant to statute, at a rate of 40%, after pre-collection. Interest collected shall be split equally between the City and Agent. E. Direct contact with Debtors will be by trained collection staff. F. Agent will advance legal costs and have an attorney on retainer. G. Agent will provide progress reports and a variety of specialized reports monthly. Semi-annual and annual recaps of performance,for all types of accounts,will also be provided. H. The License Restoration Program and its process will be at the discretion of Agent, subject to the Court's approval of the Agent's policies and procedures. City shall not waive or reduce Agent's processing fees without consultation with the Agent. I. The City will not accept payment on any account which has been listed with Agent, but will refer the debtor to the Agent for payment. Furthermore,City agrees that any holds(i.e.,water lien or other);will not be released until all principal,contingent fees and interest are satisfied. J. In cases where payment is made by personal check,posting to release the hold will be made when the check clears. 9. KEY CONTACT PERSONS: The authorized contact personnel for the City are: • Finance Division o Dunyele Mason, Financial Services Manager; o Karen Southwick,Accounting Lead; o Sarita Cooper, Customer Service/Utility Billing Manager; o Tami Hewett,Accounts Receivable Clerk; • Municipal Court o Dot French,Municipal Court Administrator; o Daisha Hopp,Administrative Assistant. The key contact personnel for Agent are: • Marcie Grace; • Araceli Lamb. 10. EARLY TERMINATION: Either party may at any time cause this contract to terminate, without cause, upon giving ninety (90) days written notice to the other party. The contract shall terminate at the end of the ninety days. Collection Agency Contract Page 3 11. ASSURANCE OF NON-DISCRINIINATION: Agent hereby confirms, agrees to, and assures compliance with non-discriminatory practices consistent with Titles VI and VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act as amended in 1972; Executive Order 11246 as amended by Executive Order 11375; Sections 503 and 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1975 and the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967; the 1974 Vietnam Era Veteran Readjustment Assistance Act; and the Washington State Laws Against Discrimination, Chapter 490 RCW. Approved and executed on the /7 ,day of t.,.__e_riZhes, ,2012. WASHINGTON COLLECTORS TRI-CITIES, INC. LYi/G ARACELI LAMB Vice-President Approved a executed on the ,��-day of Janv� ,2013. F CITY OF ASCO GARY CRUTC 1 1I' ' City Manager ATTEST APPROVED AS TO FORM: &1\ _s( )._. / / i 40 OC\ a ‘.. . ■-.L....—,-1-----'10o,--- Debbie Clark, City Clerk -, Lee Kerr, City Attorney N Collection Agency Contract Page 4 I