{"id":227800,"date":"2026-06-08T06:52:00","date_gmt":"2026-06-08T10:52:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/testing.news-you-need.com\/index.php\/2026\/06\/08\/cybersecurity-subcontractor-has-no-dhs-or-ice-contracts-city-staff-tells-council-ahead-of-monday-vote-pasadena-now\/"},"modified":"2026-06-08T08:20:11","modified_gmt":"2026-06-08T12:20:11","slug":"cybersecurity-subcontractor-has-no-dhs-or-ice-contracts-city-staff-tells-council-ahead-of-monday-vote-pasadena-now","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/testing.news-you-need.com\/index.php\/2026\/06\/08\/cybersecurity-subcontractor-has-no-dhs-or-ice-contracts-city-staff-tells-council-ahead-of-monday-vote-pasadena-now\/","title":{"rendered":"Cybersecurity Subcontractor Has No DHS or ICE Contracts, City Staff Tells Council Ahead of Monday Vote \u2013 Pasadena Now"},"content":{"rendered":"

Cybersecurity Subcontractor Has No DHS or ICE Contracts, City Staff Tells Council Ahead of Monday Vote \u2013 Pasadena Now<\/a><\/p>\n

https:\/\/pasadenanow.com\/main\/cybersecurity-subcontractor-has-no-dhs-or-ice-contracts-city-staff-tells-council-ahead-of-monday-vote<\/a><\/p>\n

Publish Date: 2026-06-08 06:52:00<\/a><\/p>\n

Source Domain: pasadenanow.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Author: <\/a><\/p>\n

Using an unordered list, summarize the following article with between 4 and 8 key points. <\/p>\n

The Pasadena City Council on Monday will reconsider a $968,124 cybersecurity contract with Carahsoft Technology Corporation that earlier was tabled at the May 4 meeting over concerns about the company\u2019s federal contracts with the Department of Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
\nThe June 8 staff memo notes that the contract returns under a Council direction adopted April 6, instructing staff to collect vendor DHS and ICE contracting information over a 12-month period without impact on contractor selection during that time, to allow for a fully informed evaluation of further actions.
\nThe contract, for managed cybersecurity monitoring services over five years, returns under Item 20 with a supplemental memo from Acting Chief Information Officer Serjik Arzoumanians that presents clarifications about the roles of the two companies: the entity actually performing the work, subcontractor Quzara LLC, holds no contracts with DHS or ICE; Carahsoft serves as a reseller and as a distribution and procurement partner without access to City information delivered through the service.
\nAccording to the June 8 Department of Information Technology memo, Carahsoft holds approximately 32,000 active federal contracts, including 224 with DHS and four with ICE; staff characterized the ICE-related work as \u201can extremely small fraction of the company\u2019s overall federal contract portfolio.\u201d The memo identifies Quzara\u2019s 24 active federal contracts as 22 with the Department of Treasury, one with the General Services Administration, and one with the International Boundary and Water Commission: U.S.-Mexico, with none at DHS or ICE.
\nAfter the May 4 hold, the item was referred to the Economic Development and Technology Committee, which reviewed the staff recommendation at its May 19 meeting. The Committee agreed the item should return to Council with five clarifications \u2014 covering the roles of Carahsoft and Quzara, Carahsoft\u2019s DHS and ICE contract counts, Quzara\u2019s contracts with DHS and ICE, data protection requirements, and broader ethical procurement considerations. Following staff agreement to provide those clarifications, the memo states, the Committee \u201cwas comfortable moving the contract forward for Council approval.\u201d The Committee also discussed the difficulty of drawing bright lines in vendor ethical evaluation because most large technology companies offer a wide variety of solutions across industries, and noted the need for a more structured policy framework before potentially incorporating such considerations into procurement scoring.
\nThe contract and the Quzara services agreement incorporate the City\u2019s standard data protection clause: \u201cVendor has no rights to use Organizational Data for any purpose other than to deliver the services contracted, unless otherwise authorized in writing by the City.\u201d The Quzara agreement adds language stating, \u201cThe City retains all rights, title and interest in data and information input, uploaded, transmitted, or otherwise provided by or on behalf of the City into the vendor provided solution,\u201d and that all such data shall remain the sole and exclusive property of the City.
\nThe only opposition voice documented in the agenda packet is a public commenter who identified themself as Yadi, in written correspondence submitted to the May 4 meeting. \u201cI ask the City Council to award the contract to an alternate vendor who does not have ties or contracts with DHS or ICE, and in alignment with the City\u2019s commitment to protect residents regardless of immigration status,\u201d Yadi wrote. The comment closed: \u201cSay no, reject the Carahsoft contract and go with another competent vendor.\u201d The packet contains no responsive statement from Carahsoft or Quzara.
\nThe contract is not the City\u2019s first arrangement with Carahsoft. The May 4 agenda report notes that there is currently one open purchase order with Carahsoft Technology Corporation to provide employment verification for Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act program participants for the Career Services Division of the City Manager\u2019s Department.
\nThe proposal under consideration Monday was selected through a competitive Request for Proposals issued November 6, through the City\u2019s OpenGov procurement platform. A total of 77 firms downloaded the Request for Proposals and 15 proposals were submitted by the December 5 deadline, of which 14 were responsive and considered for evaluation. A cross-departmental Department of Information Technology and Water and Power team scored proposals against criteria weighted 30% Implementation Approach, Operations, & Co-Management; 25% Detection and Response Capabilities; 20% Experience, Organizational Qualifications and Compliance Alignment; 20% Cost; and 5% Small or Micro-Business. Carahsoft, headquartered in Reston, Virginia, finished first at 83.49 of 100; Bulletproof Solutions, Inc., of Waltham, Massachusetts, finished second at 83.01.
\nThe contract would fund Managed Detection and Response services, providing around-the-clock monitoring of critical systems supporting every department and expert response support during potential cybersecurity incidents, with implementation expected within three to five months. The amount comprises $21,060 in base implementation costs, $842,064 for five years of ongoing Managed Detection and Response services, and $105,000 in 12% contingency. In September 2024, the Department of Information Technology submitted a $225,000 competitive State of California cybersecurity grant proposal; the agenda report identifies $163,000 in State grant funding for the first year of expenses. Pasadena was one of only 13 cities, out of 113 entities and more than 400 applicants, to receive the state award announced in December 2024, according to the staff report.
\nThe staff recommendation asks Council to do three things: find the contract exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act under the \u201ccommon sense\u201d provision; authorize the City Manager to execute the contract; and authorize the City Manager to approve no-cost amendments, including durational extensions \u2014 a provision that would allow the agreement to extend beyond the five-year term without further Council action.
\nThe agenda report was prepared by IT Security Officer Michael Royer and approved by Interim City Manager Matthew E. Hawkesworth. The Council will consider the item Monday as Item 20.<\/p>\n

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