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Town of Hempstead, NY
Nassau County
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Table of Contents
Table of Contents
[HISTORY: Comes from L.L. No. 7-1982, adopted 1-19-1982, effective 1-25-1982;[1] amended in its entirety 9-4-2018 by L.L. No. 72-2018, effective 9-14-2018]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Town Comptroller — See Ch. 19.
Other governmental departments — See Division 3 of Part I.
[1]
Editor's Note: This local law also superseded former Ch. 62, Department of Purchasing, adopted 3-13-1973 by L.L. No. 24-1973.
There shall be in the Town of Hempstead a Department of Purchasing. The executive head of such Department shall be the Commissioner of such Department, who shall be appointed by the Town Board for a term fixed by law at such salary as may, from time to time, be fixed by said Town Board. The Commissioner of Purchasing shall be vested with the authority, direction and control over the Department and may appoint a Deputy Commissioner to serve at his pleasure who shall have the rights, powers, duties, obligations and responsibilities of the Commissioner and the authority to act in his place and stead. The Commissioner shall have the power to appoint and remove all other subordinate officers and all other employees and to assign them to their respective duties. The Commissioner shall be in the unclassified service of the civil service. The Deputy Commissioner shall be deemed to occupy a confidential position to the Commissioner, and the position of such Deputy Commissioner shall be in the exempt class of the civil service.
A. 
There shall be within the Department of Purchasing the following Divisions:
(1) 
Administrative Division.
(2) 
Planning Division.
B. 
Duties of Divisions.
(1) 
Administrative Division. To have general supervision of intradepartmental matters, including supervision of personnel and maintenance of personnel records, maintenance of accounting and departmental records, including budget control and statistical analysis of overall direction and coordination of divisional activities. Accounting and departmental records shall be maintained as required by the Town Comptroller.
(2) 
Planning Division. To develop a comprehensive program for the purchase of supplies, materials and equipment needed by all the various departments of the Town of Hempstead, inclusive of any other board, commission or agency functioning, directly or indirectly, under the control and jurisdiction of the Town of Hempstead.
The Department of Purchasing shall have the following powers and duties:
A. 
The Commissioner, subject to the provisions of § 41-a of the Town Law, shall make all purchases and contracts for supplies, materials and equipment of every kind and nature for the Town and any Town department, board or agency for which the Town may, in any event, be liable and for any special improvement district within such Town, except for a district having a separate Board of Commissioners. Before making any purchase, the Commissioner of Purchasing shall comply with such rules and regulations in relation thereto which have been or may be established by resolution of the Town Board and any and all other provisions of law as may be applicable thereto.
B. 
The Commissioner shall make all purchases and contracts for supplies, materials and equipment involving an expenditure in excess of $3,000 for the Town of Hempstead or any department of said Town, board or agency for which it may, in any event, be liable, including any special improvement district within such Town, provided that said district does not have a separate Board of Commissioners, in accordance with the applicable provisions of §§ 103 and 104 of the General Municipal Law.
C. 
The Commissioner shall institute a system or procedure for a purchase requisition form, in duplicate, executed by a department head, setting forth the description of supplies, materials and equipment required and the estimated prices for such items and the place of delivery. The Commissioner shall prepare a request-for-quotation form, setting forth thereon the necessary information for the item or items described, stated on the purchase requisition form, and shall forward such request for quotation to prospective vendors, advising such vendors that such quotation shall be submitted to the Commissioner upon a day certain and that any quotation not submitted on or before said date shall be disregarded by said Commissioner. Upon the receipt of a quotation submitted by a prospective vendor, the Commissioner shall make a record of said quotation and shall forward the original and copy thereof to the Town Comptroller for purposes of ascertaining if there are funds available for such purchase. If there are available funds, the Comptroller shall so endorse and return same to the Commissioner, who shall award the item in question to the responsible vendor submitting the lowest quotation..
D. 
The Commissioner shall establish a procedure authorizing the vendor who has been awarded a contract as to time and place of delivery and all other pertinent data relating thereto. The Commissioner shall establish a procedure, after delivery has been made and checked as to proper items purchased, for claim forms so that payment may be made to the vendor. The vendor shall keep records showing the delivery and completion of all contract awards.
E. 
The Commissioner is hereby designated as the officer to receive bids on contracts for public works for the town and any department, board or agency thereof and any special improvement district thereof, except a district having a separate Board of Commissioners, and to transmit such bids to the Town officer, board or agency having jurisdiction thereof for award, subject to the approval of the Town Board. The Commissioner shall maintain, update and improve the procedures currently in effect as to purchases, bidding, contracts, awards, verifying deliveries, quantity and quality controls and all pertinent methods of control to ensure proper functioning of the Department with all possible safeguards and guidelines.
F. 
The Commissioner shall develop and administer effective policies and programs to expedite the purchase of supplies, materials and equipment.
G. 
The Commissioner shall develop programs, personnel and facilities in conformity with and in coordination with all other purchasing agencies on all levels having an interest in this field, inclusive of but not limited to state and county agencies.
H. 
The Commissioner shall participate in state and local conferences concerning methods of purchasing and improvements thereof.
A. 
The Purchasing Department, presently existing by resolution, is hereby instituted in its entirety to a Department of Purchasing, including all property, equipment and budgetary appropriations. Employees of such Department shall be continued as employees in the Department of Purchasing with the same qualifications, pensions and retirement rights and privileges as they had immediately prior to such transfer.
B. 
The Commissioner, only when specifically authorized to do so by the Town Board, may, from time to time, employ such additional persons, including special, technical, fiscal and legal consultants, as may be necessary in the discharge of his duties.
[Amended 11-13-2018 by L.L. No. 87-2018; effective 12-10-2018]
A. 
Notwithstanding any provision of§ 62-3C hereof to the contrary, in the case of all purchases to be made and all contracts to be awarded pursuant to § 62-3B and E hereof, except contracts awarded pursuant to § 103 of the General Municipal Law, the Commissioner may grant a local preference or a local veteran-owned small business preference and effect such purchase from, or award such contract from, or award such contract to, a responsible bidder other than the lowest responsible bidder, provided that:
(1) 
Such other bidder maintains a place of business in or sells supplies, materials or equipment manufactured in the County of Nassau and submits a bid not exceeding 5% more than the otherwise lowest responsible bidder, and provided that the bid submitted by such other bidder is the lowest bid among those received from all bidders qualifying for this local preference; or
(2) 
Such other bidder is a local veteran-owned small business, as defined herein, that maintains a place of business in or sells supplies, materials or equipment manufactured in the County of Nassau and submits a bid not exceeding 7.5% more than the otherwise lowest responsible bidder, and provided that the bid submitted by such other bidder is the lowest bid among those received from all bidders qualifying for this local veteran-owned small business preference, and does not exceed the bid of the otherwise lowest responsible bidder who qualifies for the local preference contained in Subsection A(1) above by more than 2.5%.
B. 
For purposes of this section, a "local veteran-owned small business" shall include any entity that maintains:
(1) 
A current certification as a service-disabled veteran-owned business enterprise issued by the New York State Office of General Services Division of Service-Disabled Veterans' Business Development, and maintains its place of business in or sells supplies, materials or equipment manufactured in the County of Nassau; or
(2) 
A current verification as a service-disabled veteran-owned small business or a veteran-owned small business issued by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), and maintains its place of business in or sells supplies, materials or equipment manufactured in the County of Nassau.
C. 
No entity deemed eligible to utilize the local or local veteran-owned small business preferences contained in this section may utilize more than one preference for any purchase or contract with the Town of Hempstead.
A. 
Definitions. As used in this section, the following 'terms shall have the meanings indicated:
AMERICAN ALLIED NATION
(1) 
Any nation that is a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.
(2) 
Any country that is a signatory to the Southeast Asian Treaty Organization.
(3) 
Any country, other than Venezuela, that is a signatory to the RIO Treaty of 1947.
(4) 
Ireland.
(5) 
Israel.
(6) 
Japan.
(7) 
The Republic of Korea.
BOYCOTT OF AMERICAN-ALLIED NATION
Engaging in refusals to deal with, terminating activities with, or other actions that are intended to limit commercial relations with an American-allied nation or individuals or companies doing business in an American-allied nation or in American-allied-nation controlled territories, when such actions are taken:
(1) 
In a manner that discriminates on the basis of nationality, national origin, religion or other unreasonable basis that is not founded on a valid business reason.
(2) 
In compliance or adherence to calls for a boycott of an American-allied nation other than those boycotts to which 50 U.S.C. § 2407(c) applies.
COMPANY
Any sole proprietorship, organization, association, corporation, partnership, joint venture, limited partnership, limited liability partnership, limited liability company or other entity or business association, including all wholly owned subsidiaries, majority-owned subsidiaries, parent companies or affiliates of such entities or business associations that exists for the purposes of making profit.
B. 
The Town shall not enter into a contract with an individual or company if the contract is related to construction or the provision of services, supplies or information technology unless the contract includes a written certification that such individual or company is not currently engaged in or agrees for the duration of the contract not to engage in a boycott of an American-allied nation.
C. 
The Town Board shall give the vendor 30 days' notice of the intent to rescind the contract. If the Town Board determines by a preponderance of the evidence that the party to a contract has signed the certification but has engaged in a boycott as defined in Subsection A of this section of the Town Code, the contract may be rescinded by resolution and the Town may seek reliance damages based on the signed certification not being honored.
A. 
Award on best value. The Town Board may award purchase contracts on the basis of "best value," as defined pursuant to New York State Finance Law § 163. and any amendments thereto. Such awarded contracts shall be in accordance with the Town Procurement Policy. Goods and services procured and awarded on the basis of best value are those that the Town Board determines optimize quality, cost and efficiency among responsive and responsible bidders or offerors. Where possible, the determination shall be based on an objective and quantifiable analysis of factors including, but not limited to, any or all of the following: cost of maintenance; proximity to the end user, if distance or response time is a significant term; durability; availability of replacement parts or maintenance contractors; longer product life; product performance criteria; and quality of craftsmanship. All awards based on best value shall require Town Board approval.
B. 
Documentation of basis for determination. Whenever any contract is awarded on the basis of best value instead of lowest responsible bidder, the basis for determining best value shall be thoroughly and accurately documented.
C. 
Types of contracts covered. This section shall apply only to purchase contracts (including contracts for service work, but excluding any purchase contracts necessary for the completion of a public works contract pursuant to Article 8 of the Labor Law) and shall not be applicable to contracts for public work.
If any clause, sentence, paragraph. subdivision, section or part of this chapter is adjudged invalid by a court of competent jurisdiction, the judgment shall not affect, impair or invalidate the remainder of this chapter but shall be confined in its operation to the clause, sentence, paragraph, section or part of this chapter that shall be directly involved in the controversy in which such judgment shall have been rendered.