[HISTORY: Adopted by the Council of the City
of New Rochelle 2-18-1992 by Res. No. 47; amended in its entirety 2-13-2018 by Ord. No. 2018-40. Subsequent amendments noted where applicable.]
A.
Section
104-b of the General Municipal Law requires the governing body of
every municipality to adopt a procurement policy for all goods and
services which are not required by law to be publicly bid.
B.
Every
purchase to be made must be initially reviewed to determine whether
it is a purchase contract or a public works contract. Once that determination
is made, a good faith effort will be made to determine whether it
is known or can reasonably be expected that the aggregate amount to
be spent on the item of supply or service is not subject to competitive
bidding, taking into account past purchases and the aggregate amount
to be spent in a year. Such determination must be documented. The
following items are not subject to competitive bidding pursuant to § 103
of the General Municipal Law:
(1)
Purchase contracts under $20,000 and public works contracts under
$35,000.
(2)
Emergency purchases.
(3)
Perishable items of food.
(4)
Goods purchased from agencies for the blind or severely handicapped.
(5)
Goods purchased from correctional institutions.
(6)
Purchases under state, county, or any political subdivision contracts.
(7)
Surplus and secondhand purchases from another governmental entity.
(8)
Purchases under certain Federal General Services contracts as defined
in GML §§ 103-1-b and 104-2.
(9)
Purchases under certain Cooperative or buying group contracts as
defined in GML § 103-16.
(10)
Lease agreements that are not, in substance, a purchase.
A.
The
following method of purchase will be used when required by this policy
in order to achieve the highest savings or best value with adequate
documentation for each action:
[Amended 9-19-2023 by Ord. No. 2023-148]
(1)
Goods and non-professional services.
|
Estimated Amount of Purchase Contract
|
Method
|
|---|---|
|
$0 to $4,999
|
Purchases do not require quotes and should be made using a Claim
Voucher.
|
|
$5,000 to $19,999
|
Three written quotes or proposals; purchase order required.
|
|
$20,000 +
|
Sealed competitive bid for one purchase OR multiple purchases
of a particular item within a year. Purchase Order is required.
|
(2)
Public works contracts.
|
Estimated Amount of Purchase Contract
|
Method
|
|---|---|
|
$0 to $9,999
|
Purchases do not require quotes and should be made using a Claim
Voucher.
|
|
$10,000 to $34,999
|
Three written quotes or proposals. Purchase Order is required.
|
|
$35,000 +
|
Sealed competitive bid each Public Works project. Purchase Order
is required.
|
B.
A
good faith effort shall be made to obtain the not less than three
proposals or quotations as required. If the purchaser is unable to
obtain the required number of proposals or quotations, the purchase
will document the attempt made at obtaining the proposals. In no event
shall the failure to obtain the required quotes or proposals be a
bar to the procurement.
[Amended 9-19-2023 by Ord. No. 2023-148]
Documentation and an explanation are required whenever a contract
is awarded to other than the lowest responsible offeror. This documentation
must include an explanation of how the award will achieve savings
or how the offeror was not responsible.
Pursuant to General Municipal Law § 104-b2f, the procurement
policy may anticipate circumstances when or types of procurements
for which, in the sole discretion of the governing body, the solicitation
of alternative proposals or quotations will not be in the best interest
of the municipality. The determination that such circumstances exist
shall, in each case, only be made by either the City Manager or by
resolution of the City Council of the City of New Rochelle. In the
following circumstances it may not be in the best interests of the
City of New Rochelle to solicit quotations. Written documentation
of such determination and approval must be maintained for each procurement:
A.
Emergency purchases pursuant to § 103, Subdivision 4, of
the General Municipal Law. Due to the nature of this exception, these
goods or services must be purchased immediately, and a delay in order
to seek alternate proposals may threaten the life, health, safety
or welfare of the residents. This subsection does not preclude alternate
proposals if time permits. Emergency procurements require approval
of the City Manager or their designee through either the Department
Head or City Manager or their designee, when circumstances allow.
[Amended 9-19-2023 by Ord. No. 2023-148]
B.
Purchases of surplus and secondhand goods from any source. If alternate proposals are required, the City is precluded from purchasing surplus and secondhand goods at auctions or through specific advertised sources where the best prices are usually obtained. It is also difficult to try to compare prices of used goods, and a lower price may indicate an older product. Therefore, as set forth in this § 62-6, such purchases may be authorized.
C.
Sole Source procurement may be entered into without a competitive
process, based on written documentation that only one known source
exists or that there are no other reasonable alternative sources that
can fulfill the requirements and where competition is not feasible.
Standardization of a particular type of material or equipment
must be approved by a City Council resolution setting forth all of
the reasons for a need for standardization as defined in General Municipal
Law § 103. The adoption of a resolution by City Council
requires a vote of at least 3/5 of all members of the City Council.
Such resolution shall state reasons of efficiency or economy.
As defined in GML § 104-b, professional services are
not subject to competitive bidding. The City Manager or Commissioner
of Finance may determine in the best interest of the City that the
issuance of a formal Request for Proposal for professional services
is required in certain circumstances.
The City Manager, the Commissioner of Finance or the Purchasing
Manager are authorized to make purchases of goods and services on
behalf of the City. The names of the individuals holding these positions
will be set forth in the annual Omnibus legislation.
