[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the Town of Hurley 7-25-1994. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Investment policy — See Ch. 21.
Every prospective purchase of goods or services shall be evaluated to determine the applicability of General Municipal Law § 103. Every town officer, board, department head or other personnel with the requisite purchasing authority (hereafter "purchaser") shall estimate the cumulative amount of the items of supply or equipment needed in a given fiscal year. That estimate shall include the canvass of other town departments and past history to determine the likely yearly value of the commodity to be acquired. The information gathered and conclusions reached shall be documented and kept with the file or other documentation supporting the purchase activity.
All purchases of supplies or equipment which will exceed $10,000 in the fiscal year or public work contracts over $20,000 shall be formally bid pursuant to General Municipal Law § 103.
A. 
All estimated purchases of:
(1) 
Less that $10,000 but greater than $3,000 require written/fax quotes from three vendors.
(2) 
Less than $3,000 but greater than $1,000 require an oral request for the goods and oral/fax quotes from two vendors.
(3) 
Less than $1,000 but greater than $250 are left to the discretion of the purchaser.
B. 
All estimated public works contracts of:
(1) 
Less than $20,000 but greater than $10,000 require a written request for proposal (RFP) and fax/proposals from three contractors.
(2) 
Less than $10,000 but greater than $3,000 require a written RFP and fax/proposals from two contractors.
(3) 
Less than $3,000 but greater than $500 are left to the discretion of the purchaser.
C. 
Any written RFP shall describe the goods, quantity and the particulars of delivery. The purchaser shall compile a list of all vendors from whom written/fax/oral quotes have been requested and the written/fax/oral quotes offered.
D. 
All information gathered in complying with the procedures of this section shall be preserved and filed with the documentation supporting the subsequent purchase or public works contract.
The lowest responsible proposal or quote shall be awarded the purchase or public works contract, unless the purchaser prepares a written justification providing reasons why it is in the best interest of the town and its taxpayers to make an award to other than the low bid. If a bidder is not deemed responsible, facts supporting that judgment shall also be documented and filed with the record supporting the procurement.
A good faith effort shall be made to obtain the required number of proposals or quotations. If the purchaser is unable to obtain the required number of proposals or quotations, the purchaser will document the attempt made at obtaining the proposals. In no event shall the inability to obtain the proposals or quotes be a bar to the procurement.
Except when directed by the Town Board, no solicitation of written proposals or quotation shall be required under the following circumstances:
A. 
Acquisition of professional services.
B. 
Emergencies.
C. 
Sole source situations.
D. 
Goods purchased from agencies for the blind or severely handicapped.
E. 
Goods purchased from correctional facilities.
F. 
Goods purchased from another governmental agency.
G. 
Good purchased at auction.
H. 
Goods purchased for less than $250.
I. 
Public works contracts for less than $500.
This policy shall be reviewed annually by the Town Board at its organizational meeting or as soon thereafter as is reasonably practicable.
[Added 10-25-2022 by L.L. No. 5-2022]
A. 
Energy use. Priority shall be given to products and services which consume the least amount of energy in their manufacture, use and disposal. Where possible, ENERGY STAR® qualification and/or an equivalent elevated measure of efficiency shall be a minimum requirement in any energy-consuming equipment, device, vehicle or appliance purchase.
B. 
Sustainability of materials. Priority shall be given to products and services which incorporate products which are made from sustainable materials, and/or contain a significant level of recycled or reprocessed material and which are manufactured locally, and/or which are packaged to reduce transportation costs.
C. 
Forest conservation. To the greatest extent practicable, the Town shall not procure wood products such as lumber and paper that originate from forests harvested in an environmentally unsustainable manner. When practicable, the Town shall give preference to wood and wood products that are certified to be sustainably harvested by a comprehensive, performance-based certification system.
D. 
Packaging. Priority shall be given to products which are minimally packaged using recycled, recyclable or biodegradable packaging materials.
E. 
Environmental impacts. Priority shall be given to products which reduce impacts on the environment during manufacture, use or disposal.
F. 
Health impacts. Priority shall be given to products and services which reduce or eliminate health risks to employees and/or citizens in their manufacture, use or disposal. In particular, products that contain chlorine, PVC, and/or emit unhealthy levels of chemical emissions during use should be avoided.
G. 
Bid documents and requests for proposals shall be drafted to encourage environmentally preferable purchases and service by incorporating bidding specifications that procure goods and services with a reduced environmental impact where appropriate.
H. 
Local sourcing. Preference shall be given to local vendors, products, and services which meet the guidelines in this section where feasible. Because the purchase of a local product typically correlates with lower lifetime emissions related to that product, locally sourced purchases shall also be understood to be environmentally preferable.
I. 
Nothing in this policy shall be construed as requiring the procurement of products or services that do not perform adequately for the intended use or are not available at a reasonable price in a reasonable period of time.