Definitions. The words defined in this section shall have the meanings set forth below whenever they appear in this chapter:
ARCHITECT-ENGINEER AND LAND SURVEYING SERVICESThose professional services within the practice of architecture, professional engineering, structural engineering or land surveying, as defined by the State of Maine Professional Services Selection Act.
BID SECURITYA guarantee that the bidder will enter into a contract if it is offered within the specified period of time; failure to do so will result in forfeiture of bid security. Companies providing bid security bonds must be registered on the federal registry to do business in the State of Maine and must have an A1-A rating.
BRAND NAME OR EQUAL SPECIFICATIONA specification limited to one or more items by manufacturers' names or catalog numbers to describe the standard of quality, performance and other salient characteristics needed to meet City requirements, and which provides for the submission of equivalent products.
BUSINESSAny corporation, partnership, individual, sole proprietorship, joint venture, or any other private legal entity.
CHANGE ORDERA purchaser's written authorization to the contractor to modify or change an existing purchase order or contract; these changes generally must be within the scope of the contract.
CITY AGENCYA City officer, employee, department, bureau, office of, or agency whose purchasing authority is subject to this chapter.
COMMITTEEA standing or ad-hoc committee established by the City of Augusta City Council with specific using agency jurisdiction and responsibilities.
CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATIONAny information which is available to an employee only because of the employee's status as an employee of the City and which is not a matter of public knowledge or available to the public on request.
CONSTRUCTIONThe process of building, altering, repairing, improving, or demolishing any structure or building or other improvements of any kind to any real property.
CONSTRUCTION MANAGEMENT AT RISKThe contractor provides services to the owner, including design services, scheduling, cost control, value engineering and construction coordination. After providing preconstruction services, the contractor takes on the financial obligation to complete the project under a specified cost agreement.
[Added 10-16-2014 by Ord. No. 14-177]
All types of City agreements, regardless of what they may be called, for the procurement of goods, services or construction; for example, payment vouchers, purchase orders, maintenance contracts, service contracts, systems contracts, oral agreements, etc.
CONTRACT RENEWALA continuation for an additional period under the original terms and conditions, where the renewal clause is included in the bid document. If the bid document does not include the terms and conditions of a renewal, any continuation of the contract is considered a new contract, which must be rebid.
CONTRACTORAny person or entity who or which is a party or beneficiary of a contract with the City or through a using agency thereof.
DESIGN/BUILD SERVICESA combination of professional and general services as defined under this chapter, to be performed by one contractor under competitive proposal process with the approval of the Purchasing Officer.
EMERGENCY PROCUREMENTAn emergency situation shall be defined as an imminent disruption of essential operations or conditions adversely affecting the safety, health or security of persons or property, where it is unfeasible to remedy such disruption or conditions through the use of normal competitive bidding procedures. An emergency situation does not include states of emergency or disaster declared under Chapter
35, Emergency Management, of the City Code.
Individuals, including elected and appointed officials, providing services for the City and drawing a salary from the City.
GOODSAll tangible maintenance, repairs, and operation supplies, physical computer software and equipment necessary to sustain day-to-day City operations.
INVITATION TO BIDAll documents, whether attached or incorporated by reference, utilized for soliciting sealed bids.
LOCAL VENDORA vendor whose principal place of business is located in the City.
PERSONAny individual or group of individuals, business, union, firm, corporation, trustee, partnership association, joint venture, committee, or other entity.
PROCUREMENTThe buying, purchasing, renting, leasing, or otherwise acquiring of any goods, services, or construction; includes all functions that pertain to the obtaining of any goods or services, or construction, including descriptions of requirements, selection and solicitation of sources, preparation, and award of contracts, and all phases of contract administration.
PROFESSIONAL SERVICESThe service of a person(s) possessing a high degree of professional skill where the judgment, artistic or subjective talent, ability, experiences, qualifications and fitness of the provider(s) plays an important part in the selection and primary reason for the service provided, and as further defined in §
83-16 of this chapter.
The State of Maine, any county, city, town and any other subdivision of the state, or public agency of any such subdivision, public authority, education, health or other institution, any agency of the United States and, to the extent provided by law, any other entity which expends public funds for the procurement of goods, services, and construction.
PURCHASE ORDERA contract for the purchase of goods, services, or construction.
PURCHASE REQUISITIONAn internal document by which a department sends, to the Finance Director, details of goods, materials or services to meet its needs for a specific job.
PURCHASING CARDA payment method whereby requisitioners are empowered to deal directly with suppliers for low-dollar, high-frequency type purchases by using a card issued by a bank or major credit card provider. The cards reduce paperwork and enable purchasing and accounts payable personnel to focus on more value-added activities.
REQUEST FOR PROPOSALSAll documents, whether attached or incorporated by reference, utilized for soliciting proposals.
RESPONSIBLE BIDDER OR OFFERORA person (firm) who has the capability in all respects to perform fully the contract requirements, and the experience, personnel, integrity, reliability, facilities capacity, equipment, acceptable past performance and credit which will assure good faith performance.
RESPONSIVE BIDDERA person who has submitted a bid which conforms in all material respects to the requirements set forth in the invitation to bid.
SERVICESThe furnishing of labor, time, or effort by a contractor, not involving the delivery of a specific end product other than reports which are merely incidental to the required performance. This definition shall not apply to employment agreements, collective bargaining agreements or to the definition of "professional services" as provided in this section and items paid by direct payment forms, payment vouchers and grant payment forms.
SPECIFICATIONAny description of the physical or functional characteristics or the nature of a supply, service, or construction item. It may include a description of any requirement for inspecting, testing or preparing a supply, service or construction item for delivery.
STRING PURCHASINGFor purposes of this chapter, splitting or stringing purchases is the practice of issuing multiple purchase orders, procurement card transactions, or requisitions for purchasing like items or services, with the willful intent to circumvent the purchasing policy. Splitting or stringing purchases will be dealt with as an impropriety and may result in withdrawal of delegated purchase authority. In addition, the person(s) responsible may be subject to disciplinary action.
SUPPLIESAll consumables or property, including but not limited to equipment, materials, printing and leases for real property, excluding land or a permanent interest in land.
UNAUTHORIZED PURCHASESAn unauthorized purchase occurs when a person who has not been given such authority charges the materials, services, or any expense to the City of Augusta. This includes ordering materials without an approved purchase order. The individual making an unauthorized purchase may incur a personal obligation to the vendor or the City for the expense incurred even though the materials or services are used for City business. Except as herein provided, it shall be unlawful for any City officer or officers to order to purchase any supplies, services and construction within the purview of this chapter other than through the Purchasing Officer, and any purchase ordered or contract made contrary to the provisions hereof shall not be approved by the City officials, and the City of Augusta shall not be bound thereby.
USED EQUIPMENTEquipment that:
(1) Has been in service for at least 1/2 its commercially reasonable life, or if its life is less than 24 months, is at least one year old; or
Is a floor or demonstration model that is offered at a price at least 25% below current market price; or
Is otherwise determined by the Audit Bureau on a case-by-case basis to be a bona fide used item.