Guide to County Purchasing: General Procurement Provisions

The National Association of State Purchasing Officials and the National Institute of Governmental Purchasing define the essential elements of procurement as follows: (County context provided)

• Purchasing structure, policy, and authority: (Rules and procedures are adopted by the purchasing agent and approved by commissioners court.)
• Competitive processes: (Purchasing Act gives specific instructions that must be followed.)
• Planning, budgeting, and scheduling: (All partners, (purchasing agent, department, county attorney, county budget officer, and county auditor, should work together throughout the budget process and throughout the year to ensure that timelines, budgets, etc. are met.)
• Specifications: (Jointly developed between the user department and purchasing.)
• Provisions for and restrictions on processes that limit competition: (The Purchasing Act specifically defines how and what can be exempted from competition.)
• Bid evaluation and contract award: (All procurement documents should be controlled and maintained by the purchasing office.)
• Quality assurance: (Program officials must administer the contract and must provide documentation to purchasing agent when contractual terms and conditions are not adhered to by the contractor. Purchasing agent should be liaison with contractor on county's behalf when corrective actions or termination must be taken. Any contract modification must be approved by either the purchasing agent or commissioners court.)
• Safeguards: (Centralized procurement function provides some of these safeguards, which are internal controls to prevent misuse of taxpayer's dollars.)
• Materials management: (Accurate accounting of all county assets must be a priority of the county and can have an impact on the financial standing of the county.)
• Cooperative purchasing: (Will become a more efficient process with changes in technology and legislative changes.)
• Professional development: (Trained professional procurement personnel facilitate and help to ensure the effectiveness of the procurement process.)
• Clear written procedures available to the public: (A brochure should be written specifically for the public with information on how to do business with the county.)
• Environmental concerns: (Recycling efforts, environmentally safe products, etc.)