[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Council of
the Town of East Greenwich 7-11-2005 by Ord. No. 758. Amendments noted where
applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Competitive bidding — See Charter § C-28.
Prohibited contracts and expenditures — See Charter § C-29.
STATE LAW REFERENCES
Award of municipal contracts — See
R.I.G.L. § 45-55-1 et seq.
A.
The primary purpose of this policy is to prescribe
the manner in which materials, supplies, equipment and contracted
services are obtained. In providing a framework for purchasing activities,
the policy also makes clear the Town's position that all qualified
vendors have an opportunity to do business with the Town.
B.
The policy is intended to provide sufficient flexibility
to allow for small individual purchases and purchases of an emergency
nature. There shall be no deviation from the policy except in an emergency.
The department head, in writing, must explain any deviation to the
Town Manager.
The Town Manager or his or her designee shall
serve as the Purchasing Agent.
The Purchasing Agent shall have the following
powers and duties:
A.
To purchase materials, supplies and equipment, and
the procurement of contracted services requisitioned by any agency
of the Town, subject to the provisions of federal, state and local
regulations;
B.
To maintain high standards of quality in materials,
supplies, equipment and services for the lowest reasonable cost;
C.
To take advantage of bulk, seasonal or cooperative
purchasing, where possible;
D.
To dispose of obsolete or unusable personal property
of the Town; and
E.
To coordinate and assist departments and agencies
of the Town and School Department in purchasing and contract matters,
and otherwise observe practices in the best interests of the Town
and the School Department.
A.
In order to achieve the goals of the purchasing policy,
the following set of procedures is established. The guidelines recognize
the need for convenience and flexibility in making routine and small
individual purchases. This is balanced with the principles of effective
budget management at the department level, and the interests of the
Town in making purchases with consistently high standards of quality
at reasonable prices.
B.
The following items shall be exempt from the purchasing
procedures contained in this policy:
(1)
Utility bills.
(2)
Expense reimbursement, under $100.
(3)
Office equipment maintenance and repairs.
(4)
Vehicle and equipment maintenance and repairs (except
major repairs exceeding $2,000, which shall require a purchase order).
(5)
Equipment lease payments under an approved original
lease agreement.
(6)
Identical recurring purchases such as uniform rental,
cleaning services, etc. (except that the original contract must be
authorized prior to any payments).
(7)
Service or maintenance contract payments (except that
the original contract or agreement must be authorized prior to any
payments).
A.
Purchase orders must be requested and approved by
the Purchasing Agent and the Town Manager prior to placement of an
order. All laws of the State of Rhode Island shall be adhered to at
all times regarding purchasing.
B.
Purchase orders shall be required for individual purchases
of more than $1,000. The distribution of copies of the approved completed
purchase order is as follows:
D.
The Purchasing Agent may request further information
about the purchase. The Purchasing Agent shall approve the purchase
requisition prior to the Town Manager indicating that all the requirements
of this policy have been met.
E.
Approved purchase orders shall be mailed or delivered
directly to the vendor. Direct mail purchase orders must be accompanied
by vendor order forms where necessary.
F.
Purchase orders that are not approved by the Purchasing
Agent and Town Manager shall be returned to the department placing
the order accompanied by a memorandum explaining why the purchase
order was not approved.
Competitive purchases are required in accord
with R.I.G.L. § 45-55-9 and as amended.
A.
Written quotations from at least three qualified vendors
are required for individual purchases of $1,500 to the limit established
by R.I.G.L. §§ 45-55-1 through 45-55-17. Copies of
written quotations must be submitted to the Finance Department along
with the purchase order requisition as proof for this level of competitive
purchasing.[1]
B.
Exceptions. Quotations may not be required if the
department placing the order can demonstrate that competitive purchasing
requirements have already been satisfied through other means (i.e.,
state contract, federal contract, other municipality, regional cooperative
purchase). The department requesting an exception on a particular
purchase must file a request with the Purchasing Agent, with a copy
to the Town Manager, stating the reasons for the exception. The request
for an exception must be approved prior to making the purchase.
A.
Under certain circumstances, such as, but not limited
to, a declared emergency, the interests of the Town are best served
by quick action. To that end, observance of these purchasing policies
may be temporarily suspended as a means of satisfying an immediate
need.
B.
In the event of an emergency, the department head
shall have the authority to make such immediate purchases as deemed
necessary, provided that all reasonable efforts to contact the Purchasing
Agent or Town Manager have failed. Once the emergency has been resolved,
the department head shall submit a detailed report of all emergency
expenditures, the circumstances, and justification for all purchases
to the Town Manager.
A.
Following the development of specifications or the
scope of work, as appropriate, the timetable for the competitive selection
process will be set up by the department head and Purchasing Agent.
The Purchasing Agent will review bid documents prior to advertisement.
B.
A notice will be placed in the legal classified section
of a newspaper of general circulation and posted in at least two public
places with the following information:
(1)
Brief description of the item or service desired.
(2)
Identify a contact for questions or copies of specifications,
scope of work, request for proposals (RFP) or request for qualifications
(RFQ).
(3)
The mailing address for response to the notice (Town
of East Greenwich, Town Manager's Office, P.O. Box 111, East Greenwich,
RI 02818).
(4)
Other applicable information about the form in which
submissions should be made (i.e., how packages are to be labeled,
specific items to be included).
(5)
The deadline for receipt of responses to the notice.
(6)
Information about the opening of responses (i.e.,
date, time and place).
(7)
Statement reserving the exclusive right to accept
or reject any or all responses to the notice.
C.
Notices shall appear in a newspaper of general circulation
and be posted in at least two public places not less than seven days
prior to the last date for receipt of responses. Notices of RFP or
RFQ for professional services or other significant items or projects
shall be advertised at least seven days, but usually not more than
30 days, prior to the last date for receipt of responses. In all cases,
notice to potential vendors shall be made early enough to provide
reasonable opportunity to participate and prepare responsible proposals.
If property is to be disposed of, the Town Manager
must give prior approval to the disposal with the award of the bid
by Town Council. The method of disposal will be determined by the
Purchasing Agent and may include sealed bid, auction, trade in, or
any other method deemed appropriate.
A.
Sealed bid. Notice shall be placed in a newspaper
of general circulation with the following information:
B.
Auction. In situations where a large number of items
are to be disposed of, an auction may be held in which prospective
bidders view and make bids at a specific time and place. Notice of
auction shall be posted in at least two public places and advertised
in a newspaper of general circulation not less than seven days prior
to the date of the auction, which notice shall include:
The award of a contract or purchase, or sale
of Town property, shall follow the competitive selection process.
Consistent with the other provisions of these guidelines, the criteria
for award shall be flexible enough to allow consideration of all factors
involved, yet still provide a clear sense of public policy intent.
After bids or proposals have been received through
the competitive selection process, the bids or proposals shall be
reviewed for completeness. The bids or proposals shall be reviewed
to determine how well they meet the specifications or scope of work,
the input from references, or other aspects indicating the overall
ability of the prospective vendor to provide the goods or service
desired. In all cases, the goal of the award shall be to select the
vendor offering the best overall value to the Town; the "lowest/best"
bidder. Price, quality, service and experience, either demonstrated
through other clients or with the Town of East Greenwich, shall be
included in the determination of award.
Bids for property being sold by the Town shall
be awarded to the bidder making the highest responsible bid. In making
this determination, bidders may be requested to supply proof of their
ability to meet their bid before the final award is made.
A.
Specifications for any purchases under the advertised
competitive selection process shall be reviewed by the Purchasing
Agent prior to the purchasing process. Specifications shall adequately
define the operating characteristics, performance requirements, or
scope of work to be performed. They shall not be so specific as to
unnecessarily restrict competition but shall be complete enough to
represent superior value for the Town.
B.
Any specifications maintained by individual departments
or agencies for particular items or services shall be reviewed periodically
and revised if necessary. All specifications for products or services
shall be placed on file in the respective departments.
This policy shall be effective immediately upon
its adoption by the Town Council.
