Town of Liberty, NY Article II Purchase Order

§ 34-9 Authorized employees.

The department head or a person in the department designated by the department head and approved by the Town Board will be the only employee(s) allowed to order merchandise for the department. An updated list of authorized persons must be submitted and approved by the Town Board annually at its reorganizational meeting.

§ 34-10 Purchase order required.

A purchase order must be issued for every purchase of $1,000 or more for any one department.

§ 34-11 Blanket purchase orders.

A. If materials or supplies will be purchased on a regular basis during a month, a blanket purchase order may be used. The blanket purchase order will be issued for a set period of time (normally one month) for the estimated amount of materials needed. It must include the estimated amount of materials, unit price based on current bid prices and estimated total dollars to be incurred.

B. Each month the blanket purchase order will be closed, and if required, a new purchase order for the next month can be issued.

C. If the amount of the blanket purchase order is used up before the end of the month, a new purchase order has to be issued for any additional purchases.

D. The department head has the option of issuing purchase orders for each purchase or using a blanket purchase order.

E. Purchase orders must be signed (no stamped signatures) by the department head only authorizing the purchase and must be signed (no stamped signatures) by the Supervisor, the Director of Finance or the Budget/Accounting Coordinator approving that there are funds available for the purchase.

F. All purchase orders for every department of the Town must be approved by the Finance Department.

G. For the issuance of a purchase order, the department head or person so designated will send a written document to the Finance Office giving the following information:

(1) Name and ID number of the vendor. (Vendor ID listings are available from the Finance Office.)

(2) Merchandise being ordered or a written list of the merchandise being ordered.

(3) Cost of each item being ordered (not including freight).

(4) Fund being charged for the purchase.

(5) If purchasing under a state, county or Town bid, it must be noted on the purchase order.

(6) If written or verbal proposals are required, it must be included on the purchase order. If only one price is received, a reason as to why must be included on the purchase order.

(7) If this information is not supplied to the Finance Department, the purchase order will be returned to the department.

H. If possible, no purchase order will be estimated. If a price cannot be obtained from a vendor, the merchandise shall be purchased from a different vendor. If the merchandise is an item that can only be purchased from one vendor and this item has been purchased previously by the Town, then the department head will check previous vouchers for prices and will issue the purchase order for those prices. If the item can only be purchased from one vendor, then the purchase order can be estimated.

I. After the issuance of the purchase order, the department head, or person so designated, should give the purchase order number to the vendor.

J. The Finance Office, after signature, will give to the department head, or person so designated, the yellow and pink copies of the issued purchase order. The yellow copy will be attached to the voucher that will liquidate that purchase order in total.

K. If partial payment is being made on purchases that have a purchase order drawn on them, do not attach the yellow copy of the purchase order to the voucher until the purchase order is complete.

L. Other than for emergencies, purchase orders will be issued daily from the Finance Office from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. for merchandise needed.

M. Items exempt from purchase orders are:

(1) Health insurance claims.

(2) Telephone bills.

(3) Electric bills.

(4) Postage.

(5) Contracts approved by the Town Board.

§ 34-12 Voucher procedure.

A. All requests for payment must be submitted on a standard voucher form, which includes the following information:

(1) Claimant's name.

(2) Claimant's address (street, city, state, zip).

(3) Claimant's vendor number.

(4) Purchase order number, if applicable.

(5) Date of invoice.

(6) Invoice number.

(7) Invoice amount.

(8) Fund app number (expense code).

(9) Original signature (no stamped signatures) of the department head.

B. The following must be included on all invoices:

(1) Signature of the person receiving goods.

(2) Date goods received.

(3) Where goods or services are to be used. If it is for repair to a vehicle or equipment, it should identify the item being repaired.

C. All vouchers must be done on a standard computerized form, which will be supplied by the D.P. Department. The original invoice must be attached; in the same order they are listed on the front of the voucher. When a voucher is completed, two copies will be printed by the department requesting payment and sent to the Town Clerk's office.

D. The first copy will have original copies of invoices attached and date and signed by the authorized individual approving payment.

E. The second copy of the voucher should not be signed and will be mailed with the check. Attach any material that is to be returned to the vendor with this copy.

F. A brief description of the material purchased or service rendered should be included in the description, if not included on the vendor's invoice.

G. In order for a voucher to be processed, all written and verbal quotes required by the Procurement Policy must be documented and attached to the voucher. If not complete, payment will not be made until documented.

H. All vouchers must have original invoices or a signed certification on the bottom of the voucher. If the original invoice is not available, payment will only be made if documentation is attached stating the original invoice has been misplaced and verification that payment has not been made.

I. Each department will submit one voucher per vendor twice a month to the Town Clerk's office.

J. Vouchers are to be submitted by 10:00 a.m. according to the following schedule:

	First Monday	Utility vouchers *(will be paid weekly)
	Second Monday	All vouchers/utility vouchers
	Third Monday	Utility vouchers *(Monthly audit)
	Fourth Monday	All vouchers/utility vouchers

K. Vouchers that are not filled out properly will be returned to the originating department for correction.

L. New vendor numbers can be obtained from the Finance Office.

M. If original vendor invoices are not attached to the voucher, the vendor must sign a certification. This certification form will be available from the D.P. Department.