Explanation
Background: This ordinance authorizes the City Clerk to modify an existing professional services contract with Heart & Hunter Inc, dba Hunter Marketing, to provide additional marketing services related to pay transparency legislation passed by City Council in November 2025.
Ordinance 3430-2025 was passed on December 15, 2025 by City Council and authorized a contract with Hunter Marketing for $40,000.00 for communications services regarding salary transparency legislation. Ordinance 0886-2026, passed on March 30, 2026, extended the term of this contract.
This ordinance will modify the existing contract by an additional $20,000.00 in communications services, bringing the total cost of all services for this contract to $60,000.00.
Original contract amount $40,000.00 Ord. 3430-2025
Modification No. 1 amount $ 0.00 Ord. 0886-2026
Modification No. 2 amount $20,000.00
Total contract amount $40,000.00
Fiscal Impact: The funds for this expenditure are available within the Neighborhood Initiatives subfund.
Emergency Designation: Hunter Marketing requires additional funds to proceed with the second phase of this project, which this contract modification authorizes.
Title
To authorize the City Clerk to modify an existing contract with Heart & Hunter Inc, dba Hunter Marketing, to provide additional communications services; to authorize a transfer per the accounting codes attached to the ordinance; to authorize an expenditure of $20,000.00 from the Neighborhood Initiatives subfund; and to declare an emergency. ($20,000.00)
Body
WHEREAS, Columbus City Council authorized Ordinance 3430-2025 on December 15, 2025 to authorize a professional services contract between the City Clerk and Heart & Hunter Inc, dba Hunter Marketing, to execute marketing and communications services related to the implementation of pay transparency legislation; and
WHEREAS, additional services are required to provide sufficient clarity and education to the community on soon-to-be-implemented legislation; and
WHEREAS, an emergency exists in that it is immediately necessary to authorize the City Clerk to modify an existing contract with Heart & Hunter Inc, dba Hunter Marketing, in order to activate additional communications services for marketing projects that are currently active regarding pay transparency legislation set to take effect January 1, 2027, all for the immediate preservation of the public health, peace, property, safety and welfare; NOW, THEREFORE,
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF COLUMBUS:
SECTION 1. That the City Clerk is hereby authorized to modify an existing contract with Heart & Hunter Inc, dba Hunter Marketing, for communications services in an amount of up to $20,000.00
SECTION 2. That a transfer between object classes within the Neighborhood Initiatives subfund is hereby authorized per the accounting codes in the attachment to this ordinance.
SECTION 3. That the expenditure of $20,000.00 or so much thereof as may be needed pursuant to the action authorized in SECTION 1 of this ordinance, is hereby authorized in the Neighborhood Initiatives subfund, fund 1000, subfund 100018 per the accounting codes in the attachment to this ordinance.
SECTION 4. That the City Auditor is authorized to make any accounting changes to revise the funding source for all contracts or contract modifications associated with this ordinance.
SECTION 5. That the funds necessary to carry out the purpose of this ordinance are hereby deemed appropriated, and the City Auditor shall establish such account codes as necessary.
SECTION 5. That for the reasons stated in the preamble hereto, which is hereby made a part hereof, this ordinance is hereby declared to be an emergency measure and shall take effect and be in force from and after its passage and approval by the Mayor or ten days after passage if the Mayor neither approves nor vetoes the same.