A.
The Town Manager is designated to act as purchasing agent (PA) for
all departments of the Town, except the School Department, and for
selling unused, worn out, surplus or obsolete equipment and materials.
B.
Whenever it is deemed necessary or desirable that supplies, materials,
equipment or contractual services be purchased or secured, requests
are to be submitted to the purchasing agent specifying the nature
of the purchase desired, the quantity required, and the performance
requirements to be met. Upon receipt of any such a request, the purchasing
agent shall inquire of potential suppliers as to the cost of such
purchase in the form of informal offers to supply the items required.
C.
If the probable cost thereof, as shown by informal offers, will be
$25,000 or more, the PA shall undertake formal bidding as hereinafter
provided. If the probable cost will be less than $25,000, the PA may
award to the supplier offering the lowest responsible bid among the
informal bidders; provided, however, that if the cost will be $10,000
or more, at least three informal bids, or a statement of why three
bids are not available, must be secured in writing.
A.
Whenever formal bidding is necessary by reason of the probable amount
involved, the purchasing agent is to prepare or cause to be prepared
specifications for the article or services required and advertise
the requirements of the Town at least once in a newspaper of general
circulation in the Town, inviting the tender of bids in writing for
providing such requirements. Said bids must be publicly opened and
read by the purchasing agent at a time and place specified in the
public notice. An investigation as to the responsibility of the bidders
is to be made if the purchasing agent deems it necessary.
B.
The Town Manager is to report the bid results to the Council.
Vendors will be selected on a competitive basis. Bids, quotations
and proposals will be solicited by newspaper advertising, direct mail
requests to prospective suppliers, and by telephone. Purchasing orders
and contracts will be awarded to the lowest responsible vendor. All
bids, etc., may be rejected if it is in the public interest to do
so. In determining "lowest responsible vendor," in addition to price
the following will be considered:
A.
Ability, capacity and skill of the vendor to perform the contract
or provide the material or service required;
B.
Whether the vendor can perform the contract or provide the material
or service promptly, or within the time specified, without delay or
interference;
C.
The character, integrity, reputation, judgment, experience and efficiency
of the vendor;
D.
The quality of performance of previous contracts, orders or services;
E.
The previous and existing compliance by the vendor with laws and
ordinances relating to the contract, order or service;
F.
The sufficiency of the financial resources and ability of the vendor
to perform the contract, or fill the order, or provide the service;
G.
The quality, availability and adaptability of the supplies or contractual
service to the particular use required;
H.
The ability of the vendor to provide future maintenance and service
for the use of the subject of the contract; and
I.
The number and scope of conditions attached to the bid.
A.
Purchases of less than $10,000 will be made in the open market without
necessary IFB or RFQ procedures. Every effort will be made, however,
to obtain the lowest and best price.
B.
Purchases and supplies and services between $10,000 and $25,000 will
require a request for quotation. RFQs are similar to IFBs, except
that legal advertising is not required and detailed specifications
may not be appropriate. At least two written responses from RFQs,
to be submitted to the purchasing agent, or a statement of why two
are not available, will be required.
C.
Except as otherwise provided in this section, when the estimated
cost of a procurement exceeds $25,000, an invitation for bids will
be published in a newspaper in general circulation within the community
at least seven days before the bid opening. The IFB will include a
general description of the items to be purchased, the bid deposit
and performance bond required, and is to state where bid proposal
forms and specifications may be secured and the time and place for
opening bids. The purchasing agent may also solicit bids from responsible
prospective suppliers by sending them a copy of such notice.
The IFB method of advertising, and to a lesser extent the RFQ
method, involves the inflexible process of sealed bids, public opening,
and award to the lowest responsible bidder. On the other hand, after
receipt of quotations, negotiation usually involves the process of
bargaining with suppliers, providing the "best deal" to the Town.
Like procurement by formal advertising, Town procurement by negotiation
requires the observation of impartiality toward all offers. While
negotiation procedures are more flexible than advertised procedures,
such flexibility demands a greater degree of care to ensure that all
competitive offers are treated equally.
A.
It is recognized that the purposes of a formalized purchasing procedure
could be subverted by lost opportunity and time if required on incidental
purchases. Therefore, the purchasing agent expressly delegates a limited
purchase allowance to the following persons and grants a per-purchase
allowance as indicated.
(1) Department heads have the limit of $5,000, as well as those
listed underneath "department heads."
(2) The limit of $5,000 applies to all those listed in the table.
|
Authorized Persons
|
Purchase Allowance
| ||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Department heads
|
$5,000
| ||
|
Assessor
|
$5,000
| ||
|
Code Enforcement Officer
|
$5,000
| ||
|
Commissioner of Public Works
|
$5,000
| ||
|
Fire Chief
|
$5,000
| ||
|
Police Chief
|
$5,000
| ||
|
Recreation Director
|
$5,000
| ||
|
Superintendent of Sewer Services
|
$5,000
| ||
|
Town Clerk
|
$5,000
| ||
|
Town Manager
|
$5,000
| ||
|
Town Planner
|
$5,000
| ||
B.
This allowance is intended to speed the purchase of incidental items
and does not relieve the department head of encumbrance accountability.
Unless otherwise specifically stated by a resolution or ordinance
of Council, all purchasing contracts made by or on behalf of the Town
must be executed by the purchasing agent.
In the event of disaster or other emergency, if purchases of
supplies, materials, equipment or contractual services must be made
immediately without an opportunity for the procedures herein or Council
approval, the Town Manager is authorized to make necessary purchases
to protect the public health and safety and without complying with
the procedures outlined in this chapter. In the event of such emergency
purchases, the Town Manager shall report the details of the purchase
to Council as soon as possible thereafter.
A.
All municipally owned property, real or personal, must be disposed
of either by:
B.
Monies received from the disposal of property.
[Added 11-10-2014 by Ord.
No. 14-07; amended 10-14-2020 by Ord. No. 20-07]
(1)
Real property obtained through tax foreclosure. Unless otherwise requested by the Town Manager and so directed by the Council, monies received from the disposal of real property obtained through tax foreclosure, pursuant to Subsection A(2) and (3), must be credited to the housing reserve fund, net of taxes owed on the property, fines and fees associated with the foreclosure and sale of the property, and any and all municipal fines and fees associated with the property.
(2)
Personal property. Unless otherwise requested by the Town Manager and so directed by the Council, monies received from the disposal of personal property pursuant to Subsection A(2) and (3) above must be credited to the vehicle or equipment reserve fund revenue account designated as the current vehicle or equipment fund used by the department for which it was purchased.
(3)
Other property. Unless otherwise requested by the Town Manager
and so directed by the Council, all other monies received from the
disposal of property, real or personal, must be credited to the undesignated
reserve fund, net of any fines, fees, or taxes associated with the
property or its disposal.
C.
This chapter does not apply to disposal of:
D.
The above procedure must be followed at all times unless prior approval
is obtained from the Town Council.
