[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Meeting of the Town of Easton 3-25-1980 as Title IIIB of the 1980 Code of Ordinances; amended 7-20-2005; 4-25-2011. Subsequent amendments noted where applicable.]
The Board of Selectmen shall be the general purchasing authority of the Town. All supplies, materials, equipment, other commodities and work or services required by any department, office, agency, board or commission of the Town, including the Board of Education, shall be purchased by the purchasing authority on requisition, in such form as the Selectmen may prescribe, signed by the head of the department, office or agency or chair of the board or commission. No contract or requisition for any purchase shall be valid until it has been also signed by the First Selectman and the Treasurer or by an officer or officers of the Town designated for such purpose by the purchasing authority to act in place of either or both such officers and unless there are sufficient unencumbered funds to make payment. A copy of each requisition and supporting contract or other supporting information shall be submitted to the First Selectman and the Treasurer. The First Selectman shall administer purchasing and bidding for the purchasing authority unless the Board of Selectmen prescribes otherwise. The Superintendent of the Schools shall administer purchasing and bidding for the Board of Education for the purchasing authority unless the Board of Selectmen prescribes otherwise.
A. 
Purchases of $2,500 or less shall be made pursuant to policies and procedures established by the purchasing authority.
B. 
Before any purchase is made involving an expected expenditure of more than $2,500 but less than $7,500, the requisitioner shall procure proposals from at least three sources which are reasonably expected to be competitive, and such proposals may be provided by any vendor who shall conform to the regulations which may be imposed by the purchasing authority when the proposals are requested. The requirements of this subsection may be waived with the written approval of the First Selectman, or with respect to purchases for the Board of Education with the written approval of the Superintendent of the Schools, in any case in which compliance with this subsection shall be deemed to be impractical or not in the best interests of the Town. Each waiver of this subsection shall contain a statement of the reasons for such waiver and shall be kept on file in the office of the purchasing authority with the requisition where it shall be open to public inspection.
C. 
If any purchase involves an expected expenditure of $7,500 or more, the purchasing authority shall invite sealed bids or proposals giving at least 10 days' notice by at least one publication in a newspaper having a substantial circulation in the Town and such other notice, if any, as the purchasing authority deems appropriate. The purchasing authority shall make the purchase from the lowest responsible bidder meeting the specifications, or if there are two or more such responsible bidders who submit bids which are equal and lowest, to one of the lowest responsible bidders, or shall reject all bids or proposals. If the purchasing authority rejects a bidder as not responsible, the purchasing authority shall state its reasons for such determination which shall be kept on file in the office of the purchasing authority where it shall be open for public inspection. Any advertisement for bids shall contain a statement reserving the right to reject all bids. The requirements of this subsection may be waived to the extent permitted by Connecticut Statutes with the written approval of the Board of Selectmen in any case in which compliance with this subsection shall be deemed to be impractical or not in the best interests of the Town. Each waiver of this subsection shall contain a statement of the reasons for such waiver and shall be kept on file in the office of the purchasing authority where it shall be open to public inspection.
No purchase shall be made nor shall any services be obtained from any Town officer or from any partnership, corporation or other legal entity of which a Town officer is a partner, officer, director or holder of an interest of more than 5% unless such relationship and the fact that such purchase is contemplated shall be made known in writing to the Board of Selectmen, which writing shall be posted on a public bulletin board in the Town Hall for at least five days before the purchase is made or the services obtained. The provisions of this section shall not apply to any contract awarded to a lowest responsible bidder after public advertisement as provided in § 160-2C.
No requisition or contract for any purchase shall be valid unless it bears the endorsement of the Town Treasurer. The Town Treasurer shall endorse a requisition or contract only after he or she has examined the same and found that it conforms to the requirements of this chapter and that there is or will be a sufficient unencumbered balance of an applicable appropriation to pay the same. The Town Treasurer shall record the amount of the requisition or of any approved contract as an encumbrance against the appropriation from which it is to be paid, and if by making any requisition for purchase or by execution of any contract the budget allowance of the office, department, commission or board requesting the same shall be exceeded, the Treasurer or the purchasing authority shall bring the request to the attention of the office, department, commission, or board, which shall request action by the Board of Finance and secure its approval before the purchase or execution of the contract is made.
No voucher, claim or charge against the Town shall be paid until it has been approved by the purchasing authority and the Town Treasurer for correctness and legality. Appropriate checks shall be drawn by the Town Treasurer for approved claims or charges and the same shall be signed by the Treasurer and one Selectman unless the Board of Selectmen shall prescribe otherwise. If more than one Selectman signs, signature by one of the Selectmen may be by facsimile, but signature by the other Selectman shall not be by facsimile. Payroll checks may bear up to two facsimile signatures but shall always have at least one nonfacsimile signature.
This chapter shall apply whenever a Town check is to be issued and thus covers purchases even if made under grants, from special funds, or any other source.
In circumstances where compliance with this chapter for continuing purchases would be impractical or not in the best interests of the Town, the Board of Selectmen may waive, by written approval, compliance with this chapter for up to a maximum period of one year. Such waivers may be renewed for additional one-year periods. Each waiver shall contain a statement of the reasons for such waiver and shall be kept on file in the office of the purchasing authority where it shall be open to public inspection.
In an emergency, the First Selectman or his or her designee may waive compliance with this chapter, provided that the waiver and the nature of the emergency shall be brought to the Board of Selectmen for ratification as soon as reasonably practical.
For purposes of § 160-3, "Town officer" shall be defined as in Chapter 52, Ethics, Code of, and shall also include the spouse, children, parents, and siblings of the Town officer.
A. 
The following purchases shall not be subject to the requirements of this chapter:
(1) 
Services by Town employees, whether full-time, part-time, or temporary;
(2) 
Purchases where there is reasonably only a single source to purchase from, such as service contracts for a specific piece of equipment properly purchased under this chapter;
(3) 
Purchases where, as a practical matter, purchasing should be from a single source, as, for example, utilities or publication in newspapers; and
(4) 
Requests for proposals for a purchase which is of a unique nature, such as for a computer system or program or insurance.
B. 
A record of any purchase claimed to fall within the exceptions of this section shall be kept on file in the office of the purchasing authority where it shall be open for public inspection. No specifications for any purchase by bid shall be written in such manner that only a single supplier can meet the specifications.
C. 
The Board of Selectmen may, from time to time, in policies and procedures adopted pursuant to this chapter, specify purchases or classes of purchases which shall not be subject to the provisions of this chapter. If there is any question that any purchase may be exempt pursuant to this section, it should be submitted to the Board of Selectmen for confirmation that it is exempt.
For services of a recurring nature but without a definite scope of work, such as plumbing or electrical repairs, bids may be solicited on an annual basis for unit rates for labor and the basis for pricing of materials. Orders for services covered by the bid may then be placed with the low bidder based on those rates without further bidding.