[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Village of New York Mills 9-9-1997; amended in its entirety at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I). Subsequent amendments noted where applicable.]
A. 
Every purchase to be made must be initially 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. The following items are not subject to competitive bidding pursuant to § 103 of the General Municipal Law: purchase contracts under $10,000 and public works contracts under $20,000; emergency purchases; certain municipal hospital purchases; goods purchased from agencies for the blind or severely handicapped; goods purchased from correctional institutions; purchases under state and county contracts; and surplus and secondhand purchases from another governmental entity.
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 decision was arrived at, a copy of the contract indicating the source which makes the item or service exempt, a memo from the purchaser detailing the circumstances which led to an emergency purchase or any other written documentation that is appropriate.
All goods and services will be secured by use of written requests for proposals, written quotations, verbal quotations or any other method that assures that goods will be purchased at the lowest price and that favoritism will be avoided, except in the following circumstances: purchase contracts over $10,000 and public works contracts over $20,000; goods purchased from agencies for the blind or severely handicapped pursuant to § 175-b of the State Finance Law; goods purchased from correctional institutions pursuant to § 186 of the Correction Law; purchases under state contracts pursuant to § 104 of the General Municipal Law; purchases under county contracts pursuant to § 103, Subdivision 3, of the General Municipal Law; or purchases pursuant to § 30-6 of this chapter.
A. 
The following method of purchase will be used when required by this policy in order to achieve the highest savings:
Verbal Quotes
Written Quotes
0
3
More
Than 3
3
More
Than 3
RFP
Other
Purchase contracts below $10,000
Under $100
X
$100 - $500
X
$500 - $1,000
X
$1,000 - $5,000
X
$5,000 - $9,999
X
Contracts for public work
  below $20,000
Under $1,000
X
$1,000 - $5,000
X
$5,000 - $10,000
X
$10,000 - $19,999
X
Emergencies
(a)
Insurance
(a)
Professional services
X
True leases
  (other than school districts)
X
(a)
Secondhand equipment
  from other governments
(a)
Certain food and milk purchases
  (school districts)
(a)
Certain municipal hospital
  purchases
(a)
Sole source (for example,
  patented or monopoly item)
(a)
NOTES:
(a) Although General Municipal Law § 104-b exempts these purchases from the requirement of written or verbal quotations or proposals, each political subdivision should include in their policies a provision to ensure that use of the exception is documented and in the case of state or county contracts that procurements from these sources are in the best interest of the unit. This could be accomplished by comparisons of prices to catalogs or other market price comparisons.
B. 
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 failure to obtain the proposals be a bar to the procurement.
Documentation is required of each action taken in connection with each procurement.
Documentation and an explanation is 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.
Pursuant to General Municipal Law § 104-b, Subdivision 2f, the procurement policy may contain circumstances when or types of procurements for which, in the sole discretion of the governing body, the solicitation of alternative proposals or quotations will not be in the best interest of the municipality. In the following circumstances, it may not be in the best interests of the Village of New York Mills 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.
(1) 
The individual or company must be chosen based 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.
(2) 
In determining whether a service fits into this category, the Board of Trustees shall take into consideration the following guidelines: whether the services are subject to state licensing or testing requirements; whether substantial formal education or training is a necessary prerequisite to the performances of the services; and whether the services require a personal relationship between the individual and municipal officials. Professional or technical services shall include, but not be limited to, the following: services of an attorney; services of a physician; technical services of an engineer engaged to prepare plans, maps and estimates; securing insurance coverage and/or services of an insurance broker; services of a certified public accountant; investment management services; printing services involving extensive writing, editing or artwork; management of municipally owned property; and computer software or programming services for customized programs or services involved in substantial modification and customizing of prepackaged software.
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 subsection does not preclude alternate proposals if time permits.
C. 
Purchases of surplus and secondhand goods from any source. If alternate proposals are required, the Village of New York Mills is precluded from purchasing surplus and secondhand goods at auctions or through specific advertised sources where the best prices are usually obtained. It is also difficult to try to compare prices of used goods, and a lower price may indicate an older product.
D. 
Goods or services under $250. The time and documentation required to purchase through this policy may be more costly than the item itself and would therefore not be in the best interests of the taxpayer. In addition, it is not likely that such de minimis contracts would be awarded based on favoritism.
This policy will be reviewed annually by the Village Board of Trustees.
[Added 2-22-2022 by L.L. No. 1-2022]
A. 
Section 3 business participation in procurement and contracting: For federally funded projects or activities subject to Section 3 of 24 CFR Part 135 of the Housing and Urban Development Act of 1968, as amended, the Village will, to the greatest extent feasible, facilitate participation of Section 3 residents and Section 3 businesses in the procurement of goods and services pursuant to its Section 3 Participation Plan. Solicitation may be undertaken via advertisements in local publications encouraging Section 3 participation, or direct outreach by letter or email to identified Section 3 businesses or individuals included on the Department of Housing and Urban Development's Section 3 Businesses Registry. The Village's established purchase/contracting thresholds will apply. The Village will keep documentation of Section 3 solicitation in its records and any response(s) thereto.
B. 
Minority-Owned And Women-Owned Business Enterprise (M/WBE) business participation in procurement and contracting: In an effort to affirmatively increase procurement and contracting opportunities for minority- and women-owned business enterprises, the Village of New York Mills, when required by funding participants, will solicit MBEs and/or WBEs as part of its procurement process, when appropriate. Solicitation may be undertaken via advertisements in minority publications or direct outreach by letter or email to identified state-certified M/WBEs, or by working with a clearinghouse such as the Syracuse Minority Business Development Center. The Village's established purchase/contracting thresholds will apply. 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 M/WBE solicitation in its records and any responses thereto.