[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council
of the Borough of North Arlington 12-16-1975 by Ord. No. 1067 (Ch.
48 of the 1984 Code). Amendments noted where applicable.]
This chapter shall be known and may be cited
as the "Purchasing Ordinance of the Borough of North Arlington."
For the purposes of this chapter, the following
terms, phrases, words and their derivations shall have the meanings
given herein:
The Borough of North Arlington.
The Purchasing Agent of the Borough of North Arlington.
The Committee of Specifications of the Borough of North Arlington.
Includes all telephone, gas, water, electric light and power
service, repair or maintenance of equipment, machinery and other Borough-owned
personal property. The term shall not include professional and other
contractual services which are by their nature unique and not subject
to competition.
The Chair of the Using Agency Committee.
The Mayor and Council of the Borough of North Arlington.
Includes all supplies, materials and equipment.
Any department, agency, commission, bureau or other unit
in the Borough government using supplies or procuring contractual
services as provided for in this chapter.
There is hereby established in the Borough of
North Arlington the Purchasing Department and, in said Department,
the office of Borough Purchasing Agent.
The Borough Purchasing Agent shall be the head
and have general supervision of the Purchasing Department. The Agent
shall perform all duties required of a department head by law and
shall have the powers and duties prescribed by this chapter.
A.
The Agent shall:
(1)
Be appointed according to the laws of the State of
New Jersey.
(2)
Have experience as a buyer or in responsible purchasing
work involving the procurement of a variety of supplies, materials
and equipment; have graduated from a four-year college with specialization
in business and public administration or an equivalent combination
of experience and training.
(3)
Be bonded in the amount of $5,000.
B.
The Agent shall have the power and it shall be his/her
duty to purchase or contract for all supplies and contractual services
needed by any using agency of the Borough, in accordance with the
purchasing procedure as prescribed by this chapter and such rules
and regulations as the Agent shall adopt for the internal management
and operation of the Purchasing Department.
(1)
The authority of the Agent, at this time, shall not
include construction of buildings, street improvements, parks and
other related projects.
(2)
Except as herein provided, it shall be unlawful for
any Borough officer, officers or employees to order or purchase any
supplies or make any contract within the purview of this chapter other
than through the Purchasing Department, and any purchase ordered or
contract made contrary to the provisions hereof shall not be approved
by the Borough Purchasing Agent, and the Borough shall not be bound
thereby.
C.
In addition to the purchasing authority conferred in Subsection B above and in addition to any other powers and duties conferred by this chapter, the Agent shall:
(1)
Act to procure for the Borough the highest quality
in supplies and contractual services at the least expense to the Borough.
(2)
Discourage uniform bidding and endeavor to obtain
full and open competition insofar as possible on all purchases and
sales.
(3)
Establish and amend, when necessary, all rules and
regulations authorized by this chapter and any others necessary to
its operation.
(4)
Keep informed of current developments in the field
of purchasing, prices, market conditions and new products and secure
for the Borough the benefits of research done in the field of purchasing
by other governmental jurisdictions, national technical societies,
trade businesses and organizations.
(5)
Prescribe and maintain such forms as he/she shall
find reasonably necessary to the operation of this chapter.
(6)
Prepare, adopt and maintain a vendor's catalog file.
Said catalogs shall be filed according to materials and shall contain
descriptions of vendor's commodities.
(7)
Exploit the possibilities of buying in bulk so as
to take full advantage of discounts.
(8)
Act so as to procure for the Borough all federal tax
exemptions to which it is entitled.
(9)
Have the authority to declare vendors, who default
on their quotations, irresponsible bidders and to disqualify them
from receiving any business from the municipality for a stated period
of time, as recommended by the Purchasing Agent and approved by the
Mayor and Council.
(10)
Prepare and adopt a standard purchasing nomenclature
for using agencies and suppliers.
A.
All using agencies, either by or with the authorization
of the head of the department under which the using agency operates,
shall file with the Agent detailed requisitions or estimates of their
requirements in supplies and contractual services in such manner,
at such times and for such future periods as the Agent shall prescribe.
B.
The Agent shall examine each requisition or estimate
and shall have the authority to revise it as to quantity, quality
or estimated cost; but revision as to quality shall be in accordance
with the standards and specifications established pursuant to this
chapter.
A.
Any purchase order or contract within the purview
of this chapter in which any officer or employee of the Borough is
financially interested, directly or indirectly, shall be void, except
that before the execution of a purchase order or contract the Council
shall have the authority to waive by resolution compliance with this
section when it finds such action to be in the best interests of the
Borough.
B.
The Agent and every officer and employee of the Borough
are expressly prohibited from accepting, directly or indirectly, from
any person, company, firm or corporation to which any purchase order
or contract is or might be awarded, any rebate, gift, money or anything
of value whatsoever, except where given for the use and benefit of
the Borough.
All purchases of and contracts for supplies
and contractual services and all sales of obsolete equipment shall,
except as specifically provided herein, be based wherever possible
on competitive bids.
All supplies and contractual services, except
as otherwise provided herein, when the estimated cost thereof shall
exceed $2,500, shall be purchased by formal, written contract from
the lowest responsible bidder, after due notice inviting proposals
as required by the Revised Statutes of New Jersey.
A.
When deemed necessary by the Agent, bid deposits shall
be prescribed in the public notices inviting bids. Unsuccessful bidders
shall be entitled to the return of surety where the Agent has required
such. A successful bidder shall forfeit any surety required by the
Agent upon failure on his/her part to enter a contract within 10 days
after the award.
C.
The Agent or the Mayor and Council shall have the
authority to reject all bids, parts of all bids, or all bids for any
one or more supplies or contractual services included in the proposed
contract, when the public interest will be served thereby.
D.
Award of contract.
(1)
The Agent shall not award the bid of a contractor
or supplier who is in default on the payment of taxes, licenses or
other moneys due the Borough.
(2)
Contracts shall be awarded to the lowest responsible
bidder. In determining the lowest responsible bidder, in addition
to the price, the Agent shall consider:
(a)
The ability, capability and skill of the bidder
to perform the contract or provide the service required.
(b)
Whether the bidder can perform the contract
or provide the service promptly, or within the time specified, without
delay or interference.
(c)
The character, integrity, reputation, judgment,
experience and efficiency of the bidder.
(d)
The quality of performance of previous contracts
or services.
(e)
The previous and existing compliance by the
bidder with laws and ordinances relating to the contract or service.
(f)
The sufficiency of the financial resources and
ability of the bidder to perform the contract or provide the service.
(g)
The quality, availability and adaptability of
the supplies or contractual services to the particular use required.
(h)
The ability of the bidder to provide future
maintenance and service for the use of the subject of the contract.
(3)
When the award is not given to the lowest bidder,
a full and complete statement of the reasons for placing the order
elsewhere shall be prepared by the Agent and filed with the other
papers relating to the transaction.
(5)
The Agent shall comply with the local public contracts
law of the State of New Jersey in requiring performance bonds before
entering into a contract.
All purchases of supplies and contractual services of less than the estimated value of $2,500 shall be made in the open market without newspaper advertisement and without observing the procedure prescribed by § 62-8 for the award of formal contracts.
A.
All requisitions having an estimated dollar value
up to $200 shall be approved by a department head.
B.
All requisitions having an estimated dollar value
in excess of $200 but not more than $500 shall be approved by the
Councilmanic Chair of the using agency.
C.
Requisitions having an estimated value in excess of
$500 shall be approved by a majority of the Mayor and Council.
(1)
All open market purchases shall, whenever possible, be based on at least three competitive bids and shall be awarded to the lowest responsible bidder in accordance with the standards set forth in § 62-8 above.
(3)
The Agent shall keep a record of all open market orders
and bids submitted in competition thereon.
Emergency purchases shall be made as follows:
A.
By the Agent.
(1)
In case of an apparent emergency which requires immediate
purchase of supplies or contractual services, the Agent shall secure
by open market procedure as herein set forth, at the lowest obtainable
price, any supplies or contractual services, the amount of the expenditure
not to exceed $500.
(2)
A full report of the circumstances of an emergency
purchase shall be filed by the Agent with the Mayor and Council and
shall be entered in the minutes of the Council.
B.
By the department head. In case of actual emergency
and with the consent of the Agent, the head of any using agency may
purchase directly any supplies whose immediate procurement is essential
to prevent delays in the work of the using agency which may vitally
affect the life, health or convenience of citizens.
(1)
The head of such using agency shall send to the Agent a requisition and a copy of the delivery record, together with a full report of the circumstances of the emergency. The report shall be filed with the Mayor and Council as provided in Subsection A(2) above.
(2)
The Agent shall prescribe by rules and regulations
the procedure under which emergency purchases by heads of using agencies
may be made.
A.
The head of the using agency shall inspect, or supervise
the inspection of, all deliveries of supplies or contractual services
to determine their conformance with the specifications set forth in
the order or contract.
B.
The Agent shall have the authority to require chemical and physical tests of samples submitted with bids and samples of deliveries which are necessary to determine their quality and conformance with the specifications. In the performance of such tests, the Agent shall have the authority to make use of laboratory facilities of any outside laboratory. The cost of such tests shall be charged to the using agency in the same manner as described in § 62-9 regarding the approval of requisitions.
A.
All using agencies shall submit to the Agent, at such
times and in such form as he/she shall prescribe, reports showing
stocks of all supplies which are no longer used or which have become
obsolete, worn out or scrapped.
B.
The Agent shall submit to all departments, prior to
the sale of surplus materials as described below, a list of items
no longer required to determine if they can use any of the equipment,
parts and supplies listed.
(1)
The Agent shall have the authority to transfer surplus
stock to other using agencies.
(2)
The Agent shall have the authority to sell all supplies
which have become unsuitable for public use, or to exchange the same
for or trade in the same on new supplies. Sales under this section
shall be made to the highest responsible bidder. A record of each
sale shall be made and placed on file.
The Agent shall have the authority to join with
other units of government in cooperative purchasing plans as stated
in the Revised Statutes of the State of New Jersey when the best interests
of the Borough could be served thereby.
