SAN DIEGO -- The City Council Monday authorized $250,000 to continue paying a consultant to help San Diego implement a voter-approved program that could lead to the outsourcing of some city jobs.

Mayor Jerry Sanders had originally sought $900,000 for the consultant. The City Council voted 6-2 in favor of the smaller expenditure.

Councilwomen Donna Frye and Toni Atkins cast the dissenting votes.

Sanders requested the allocation more than a year after his office retained Grant Thornton LLP to oversee the city's managed competition program. The firm has already been paid $249,137.

The mayor is required to get the City Council's authorization for any contract that exceeds $250,000.

Because Grant Thornton quoted the city $658,515 for its work when it was hired in April 2007, the City Attorney's office has opined that the agreement may have violated the city charter.

Michael Calabrese, chief deputy city attorney, called the contract "legally defective."

Calabrese testified that the mayor's office needed to go to the City Council first because the quote for the job exceeded his spending limit.

"There is a fatal legal defect in this procurement process," he said.

Council President Scott Peters disagreed. "I think we have to keep in mind that they have spent up to their authority, but they have not spent over it," Peters said. The city's managed competition program was authorized by 60 percent of voters in November 2006 with the passage of Proposition C.

Managed competition permits private companies to bid on contracts now held by municipal workers. If a private business offers to provide the service for less money than the city, it can be outsourced.

Among the city services being considered for outsourcing are waste collection, street sweeping and road maintenance.

Before the vote, Sanders said the consultant was needed to help the city implement the voter-approved outsourcing program. "It's absolutely critical that we have the external support that we need to help us prepare the statements of work so that we can create a level playing field for employees and outside competitors alike," he said.

A number of speakers disagreed, arguing that city staff can handle the work of implementing managed competition. "We don't need outside consultants writing the statement of work," said Murtaza Baxamusa, policy director for the Center on Policy Initiatives. "We have the capacity, expertise in-house."

Frye chastised the mayor's office for creating an open-ended contract. She sought a new contract with Grant Thornton that would include "proper oversight," with clear work benchmarks and timetables.

Ultimately, the City Council indicated that no more money would be spent on Grant Thornton unless the contract was revised.