[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the
Town of Owego 1-21-1992. Amendments noted where applicable.]
The objectives of the bidding policy and procedure
of the Town of Owego are to assure the prudent and economical use
of public moneys in the best interests of the taxpayers of the Town
of Owego, to facilitate the acquisition of goods and services of maximum
quality at the lowest possible cost under the circumstances and to
guard against favoritism, improvidence, extravagance, fraud and corruption.
All procurements of goods and services by employees
and officials of the Town of Owego shall be made in compliance with
the following conditions:
A.
Determining the necessity for competitive bidding.
Prior to the procurement of any goods or services by any employee
or official on behalf of the Town of Owego, a determination shall
be made whether such procurement is subject to competitive bidding.
The procedure for making the determination shall be as follows:
(1)
It shall be determined whether the proposed procurement
is a contract for public work or a purchase contract.
(2)
It shall be ascertained whether the proposed procurement
is exempt from competitive bidding for one of the following reasons:
(a)
The cost falls below monetary thresholds as
set forth in General Municipal Law § 103, Subdivision 1.
(b)
It is a case of a public emergency as defined
by General Municipal Law § 103, Subdivision 4.
(c)
The contract is for professional services or
involves professional skill and knowledge.
(d)
The contract is for a true lease of equipment.
(e)
The contract is for standardized equipment,
materials or supplies previously awarded by the Town Board to a supplier
pursuant to General Municipal Law § 103, Subdivision 5.
(f)
The contract is for goods or services for which
there is only one source available at the time the contract is entered
into.
(g)
The procurement is to be made under county or
state contract.
(h)
The procurement is to be made pursuant to Correction
Law § 186 or State Finance Law § 175-b.
(i)
The contract is for surplus or secondhand supplies,
materials or equipment to be purchased from the State of New York,
any other political subdivision or public benefit corporation.
(j)
The contract falls within some other exemption
from the competitive bidding requirement recognized by the laws of
the State of New York.
(3)
In the event that there exists uncertainty as to the
character or exemption status of the proposed procurement, advice
and counsel of the Town Attorney and/or the Town Board shall be sought.
B.
Procedure to be used when competitive bidding is not
required.
[Amended 4-17-2001 by L.L. No. 4-2001]
(1)
Each department within the Town shall maintain a procurement
log which shall set forth the information and documentation required
pursuant to this policy document. It shall be the responsibility of
each department head to keep the procurement log up-to-date. The procurement
log shall be available for inspection upon demand by any member of
the Town Board or the Budget Officer.
(2)
In the event that a procurement is determined to be
exempt from competitive bidding and its cost exceeds $5,000, the following
procedure shall be followed:
(a)
At least two proposals or quotations for goods
or services shall be secured by use of written requests for proposals,
written quotations, or any other method of procurement which furthers
the purposes of General Municipal Law § 104-b.
[Amended 6-17-2008]
(b)
Upon award of a contract, the following shall
be entered into the procurement log: the date of procurement; the
goods or services procured and the cost thereof; the basis for the
determination that the procurement is exempt from competitive bidding;
and all alternative quotations or proposals secured, together with
the name of the source of each quotation or proposal.
(c)
In the event that a contract is awarded to other
than the lowest dollar offerer, it shall be set forth in the procurement
log the justification and reasons such an award furthers the purposes
of the Town of Owego's bidding policy.
(3)
The procedures set forth in Subsection B(2)(a) and (b) need not be followed when the procurement is:
(a)
For less than $5,000;
(b)
For a standard replacement part;
(c)
For standardized equipment, materials or supplies
for which the contract has been awarded to a particular vendor by
the Town Board pursuant to General Municipal Law § 103,
Subdivision 5; or
(d)
Made pursuant to any one of the following:
(4)
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 shall
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.
A.
It shall be within the sole discretion of the Town Board to grant by resolution an exemption from the requirement that alternative proposals or quotations be obtained pursuant to § 22-2B(2).
B.
In exercising its discretion, the Town Board shall
consider whether such exemption is in the best interest of the Town
of Owego.
C.
An exemption may be granted under any of the following
circumstances:
(1)
When a public emergency exists as defined by General
Municipal Law § 103, Subdivision 4.
(2)
When the contract is for professional services or
involves professional skills and knowledge.
(3)
When the contract is for goods or services for which
there is only one source available at the time the contract is entered
into.
(4)
When the contract is for goods or services for which
a desired warranty or service contract is available from only one
source at the time the contract is entered into.
(5)
Under such other and further circumstances determined
to be sufficient justification by the Town Board.
The Town Board shall review the policies and
procedures set forth herein on an annual basis.
The unintentional failure to comply with the
provisions of this bidding policy and procedure shall not be grounds
to void action taken or give rise to a cause of action against the
Town of Owego or any officer or employee thereof.
