[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Village
of Scarsdale 11-14-2023 by L.L. No. 12-2023. Amendments noted
where applicable.]
A.
New York State General Municipal Law § 103(1) permits the
Village of Scarsdale to enact a local law authorizing the award of
certain purchase contracts (including eligible contracts for services)
subject to competitive bidding under General Municipal Law § 103
on the basis of "best value" as defined in § 163 of the
New York State Finance Law.
B.
The Village Board hereby finds that purchase contracts (including
eligible contracts for services) required to be procured pursuant
to New York State General Municipal Law § 103, should be
procured in a manner that assures the prudent and economical use of
public monies, is in the best interests of the taxpayers, facilitates
the acquisition of goods and services of highest quality at the lowest
possible costs under the circumstances, and guards against favoritism,
extravagance, fraud, and corruption.
C.
Further, although the lowest responsible bidder has historically
been the accepted method of awarding public contracts, the lowest
responsible bidder may not always be the most cost-effective option
over time. As such, even if the initial expenditure is higher, once
consideration is given to the total value of the life of a procurement,
best value may result in greater cost effectiveness and long-term
investment of public funds. Best value procurement also encourages
competition, which in turn often results in better pricing, quality,
and customer services. Fostering healthy competition ensures that
bidders will continue to strive for excellence in identifying and
meeting the Village's needs. Best value procurement will provide
the Village with the flexibility in obtaining important goods and
services at favorable prices, and will reduce the time to procure
such goods and services.
For the purposes of this chapter, the following definitions
shall apply:
The basis for awarding contracts for services to the offerer
which optimizes quality, cost and efficiency, among responsive and
responsible offerers. Such basis shall reflect, wherever possible,
objective and quantifiable analysis. Such basis may also identify
a quantitative factor for offerers that are small businesses, certified
minority- or women- owned business enterprises as defined in subdivisions
1, 7, 15 and 21 of § 310 of the New York State Executive
Law or service-disabled veteran-owned business enterprises as defined
in subdivision 1 of § 40 of the New York State Veterans'
Services Law to be used in evaluation of offers for awarding of contracts
for services.
A.
A purchase contract shall be awarded on the basis of lowest responsible
bidder unless the applicable Village department head prepares a written
specification, prior to publication of the request for proposals,
providing reasons why it is in the best interests of the Village of
Scarsdale and its taxpayers to make an award on the basis of best
value. The use of best value shall be authorized by the Village Board
of Trustees in each instance.
B.
Goods and services procured and awarded on the basis of best value
are those that the Village Board of Trustees determines will be of
the highest quality while being the most efficient. Factors to be
considered in the award of a purchase contract on the basis of best
value include, but are not limited to:
(1)
The need for the costlier option as compared with all lower bids,
supported by specific facts;
(2)
Cost of the option chosen as compared with all lower bids;
(3)
The reputation of the bidder chosen for providing quality goods or
services;
(4)
The performance, durability, reliability, product performance criteria,
quality of craftsmanship and estimated life of the goods;
(5)
The estimated cost and extent of maintenance of the goods, including
availability of replacement parts or maintenance contractors;
(6)
The organization, staffing and financial capabilities of the bidder;
and
(7)
The past performance record of the bidder and the bidder's experience
with similar contracts.
C.
An award based upon best value shall be accompanied by a statement
explaining how the award is expected to result in savings for the
Village over time, and whenever possible, include the objective and
quantifiable analysis of clearly described and documented criteria,
which includes the above-mentioned factors, as they apply to the rating
of bids or offers.
A.
This chapter shall apply only to purchase contracts, which includes
contracts for service work, notwithstanding, best value shall not
be utilized to award any purchase contracts necessary for the completion
of a public works contract pursuant to Article 8 of the Labor Law.
B.
If the dollar thresholds of General Municipal Law § 103
are amended by the New York State Legislature, the dollar thresholds
herein shall be deemed simultaneously amended to match such amended
amounts.
The Village's procurement policy shall be updated in accordance
with this chapter.
