[Amended 1-20-1992 by L.L. No. 1-1992; 5-16-1994 by L.L. No.
2-1994; 12-20-2010 by L.L. No. 2-2011]
A. No purchase order shall be required for purchases on behalf of the Village of Groton which do not exceed $1,000. For purchases in excess of $1,000 and not exceeding $2,500, a purchase order must be completed and signed by either the department head for which such order is being executed, the Village Clerk, Village Treasurer or Village Mayor. No purchase orders are required for items outlined in §
5-1D.
[Amended 5-17-2021 by L.L. No. 2-2021]
B. Methods
of purchasing; documentation.
(1) Competitive bidding initial determination.
(a) Every purchase to be made that is anticipated to exceed $20,000 must
initially be reviewed to determine whether it is a purchase contract
or a public works contract. Once that determination is made, a good-faith
effort will be made to determine whether it is known or can reasonably
be expected that the aggregate amount to be spent on the item of supply
or service is not subject to competitive bidding, taking into account
past purchases and the aggregate amount to be spent in a year.
(b) The decision that a purchase is not subject to competitive bidding
will be documented, in writing, by the individual making the purchase.
This documentation may include written or verbal quotes from vendors,
a memo from the purchaser indicating how the source makes the item
or service exempt, a memo from the purchaser detailing the circumstances
which lead to an emergency purchase, documentation that the item will
be purchased through state or county bid or any other written documentation
that is appropriate.
(2) Once an initial determination is made as to whether or not a purchase
is subject to competitive bidding, the following method of purchase
will be used:
(a) Purchase contracts.
Estimated Amount of Purchase Contract
|
Method
|
---|
$2,501 to $7,999
|
Verbal quotations
|
$8,000 to $19,999
|
Written/FAX quotations or written request for proposals
|
Over $20,000
|
Competitive bid
|
(b) Public works contracts.
[Amended 1-19-2015 by Ord. No. 1-2015]
Estimated Amount of Public Works Contract
|
Method
|
---|
$2,501 to $12,499
|
Verbal quotations
|
$12,500 to $34,999
|
Written/fax/e-mail proposals or written requests for proposals
|
Over $35,000
|
Competitive bid
|
(c) A good-faith effort shall be made to obtain at least two 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 failure to obtain the proposals be
a bar to procurement.
(3) Documentation is required for each action taken in connection with
a procurement.
(4) Documentation and an explanation are required whenever a contract
is awarded to other than the lowest responsible offeror. This documentation
will include an explanation of how the award will achieve savings
or how the offeror was not responsible. A determination that the offeror
is not responsible shall be made by the purchaser and may not be challenged
under any circumstances.
(5) Pursuant to General Municipal Law § 104-b, Subdivision
2f, this purchasing policy may contain circumstances when or types
of procurement for which, in the sole discretion of the governing
body, the solicitation of alternative proposals or quotations will
not be in the best interests of the Village. In the following circumstances,
it may not be in the best interests of the Village of Groton to solicit
quotations or document the basis for not accepting the lowest bid:
(a) Professional services or services requiring special or technical
skill, training or expertise. The individual or company must be chosen
on accountability, reliability, responsibility, skill, education and
training, judgment, integrity and moral worth. These qualifications
are not necessarily found in the individual or company that offers
the lowest price and the nature of these services are such that they
do not readily lend themselves to competitive procurement procedures.
Such services include but are not limited to services of an attorney,
services of a physician, technical services of an engineer, securing
insurance coverage or services of an insurance broker, services of
a certified public accountant, investment management services, actuarial
services, services of a fiscal advisor, computer software or programming
services for customized programs, services of a consultant for the
writing of grant applications and/or administration of grant funds,
etc.
(b) Emergency purchases pursuant to § 103, Subdivision 4, of
the General Municipal Law. Due to the nature of this exception, these
goods or services must be purchased immediately, and a delay in order
to seek alternate proposals may threaten the life, health, safety
or welfare of the residents. This section does not preclude alternate
proposals if time permits.
(c) Purchases of surplus and secondhand goods from any source. This exception
is due to the difficulty of comparing prices of used goods where a
lower price may indicate an older product.
(d) Goods or services of $2,500 or less.
(e) Provided
that any officer, board or agency of the Village authorized to make
purchases of materials, equipment or supplies, or to contract for
services, may make such purchases, or may contract for services, other
than services subject to Article 8 or 9 of the Labor Law, when available,
through Tompkins County or through any county within the state subject
to the rules established pursuant to Subdivision 2 of § 408-a
of the County Law; provided that the Village shall accept sole responsibility
for any payment due the vendor or contractor. All purchases and all
contracts for such services shall be subject to audit and inspection
by the Village. Prior to making such purchases or contracts the officer,
board or agency shall consider whether such contracts will result
in cost savings after all factors, including charges for service,
material, and delivery, have been considered. No officer, board or
agency of the Village shall make any purchase or contract for any
such services through the Tompkins County or through any county within
the state when bids and offers have been received for such purchase
or such services by such officer, board or agency, unless such purchase
may be made or the contract for such services may be entered into
upon the same terms, conditions and specifications at a lower price
through the County.
[Added 5-17-2021 by L.L. No. 2-2021]
(6) Minority- and women-owned business enterprise (M/WBE) participation
in procurement and contracting.
[Added 1-19-2015 by Ord. No. 1-2015]
(a) In an effort to affirmatively increase procurement and contracting
opportunities for minority- and women-owned businesses, the Village
will attempt to solicit at least one minority and/or women business
enterprises and encourage section 3 business participation as part
of its procurement process, when appropriate. The above purchase/contracting
thresholds will apply.
(b) For purposes of the above, the M/WBE must be certified by Empire
State Development (ESD) through the Division of Minority and Women
Business Development (DMWBD). The Village will keep documentation
of the M/WBE and/or Section 3 solicitation in its records and any
response(s) thereto.
(c) Because the state does not have a Section 3 business database available,
the Village will encourage Section 3 businesses to participate in
bidding, where appropriate. It will be incumbent on the business to
self-certify its status as a Section 3 business and the Village may
rely upon such self-certification in maintaining its records.
(7) This section of the Code shall be reviewed annually by Village Board
members and department heads.
C. Required
approvals.
(1) Goods and services that require verbal quotations, as stated in Subsection
B above, must have the prior approval of either the commissioner, committee chairman or the Village Clerk/Treasurer.
(2) Goods and services that require written/FAX/e-mail quotation or written requests for proposals, as stated in Subsection
B above, must have prior approval of the Board of Trustees or the Board of Commissioners that oversees a particular department.
D. An original purchase order with two copies will be generated for purchases over $1,000 with the exception of utility bills. Cable/internet/phone services, uniform services, services obtained via state, county or "piggyback" bids, anything where a contract has been generated or any other items listed in §
5-1D.
[Amended 5-17-2021 by L.L. No. 2-2021]
(1) The original copy goes to the vendor.
(2) A copy goes to the Village Clerk.
(3) A copy is retained by the originator of the purchase order.
E. A
job order or brief description of what the purchased item(s) is (are)
being used for must be included on the purchase order copies that
are delivered to the Village Clerk and retained by the originator
of the purchase order.
F. The
Village Clerk will attach copies of purchase orders to the invoice,
once received. This will enable the Village Board of Trustees to audit
compliance with this policy.
G. In
the interest of obtaining items and/or materials in the most expeditious
manner, where appropriate, purchase orders may be delivered to the
vendor by FAX, email or online account. The Village will not be liable
to any party due to errors or delays in receipt in the electronic
transmission of forms, orders, offers to sell or provide services,
etc.
[Amended 5-17-2021 by L.L. No. 2-2021]
H. The
Village Clerk/Treasurer shall be designated to ensure that the provisions
of this purchasing policy are complied with. Further, the Village
Clerk/Treasurer shall maintain a file of documentation on quotations
and proposals for goods and services when required.
I. No
board member, officers or employees of the village or their families
shall be interested financially in any contract entered into by the
Board of Trustees. This shall also preclude acceptance of any gratuities,
financial or otherwise, by any of the above persons from any supplier
of materials or services to the village.