Truth-in-Estimating: Confidence Rating Score Now Required for Proposed Projects

Cost overruns and unresearched budgets estimated lead Commissioner Adams and Mayor Potter to take a hard look at how the City's business was being done. Cost estimates were routinely submitted to council with little or no information about the confidence the project managers held in the estimate.

"It's important to be up front about whether estimates are ballpark figures or based on something more concrete," said City Commissioner Sam Adams, "With project design, we know when a project is 50% complete, 75%, 95% complete, etc. We need to improve the way we estimate project cost from idea to the last day of construction."

To achieve more confidence in estimates Commissioner Adams, with support from the Mayor, developed a confidence in Cost Estimate Matrix which gives everyone the same language to communicate about budget estimates. As a result of their analysis and support from the community, all bureaus will apply the confidence rating to projects estimated to "exceed $500,000, thereby providing a formal method of informing the City Council of the level of confidence bureaus have in their project estimates."

Reinforcing Sam's accountability for his departments and requiring his bureaus to justify their cost estimates, he crafted a tool for the Council to accurately evaluate the City's contract expenditures and restore the public trust.

Related Documents

• Resolution Confidence in Costs
• Confidence Definitions

Media Mentions

• City Council Moves to Build Assurances on Project Estimates, Oreginian, March 8, 2006

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