The Board of Trustees views purchasing as serving the educational program by providing necessary supplies, equipment and related services.
It is the goal of the Board to purchase competitively, without prejudice or favoritism, and to seek the maximum educational value for every dollar expended. Competitive bids or quotations shall be solicited in connection with purchases pursuant to law. The General Municipal Law requires that purchase contracts for materials, equipment and supplies involving an estimated annual expenditure exceeding $20,000, and public work contracts involving an expenditure of more than $35,000 will be awarded only after responsible bids have been received in response to a public advertisement soliciting formal bids. Purchases of the same commodity cannot be artificially divided for the purpose of avoiding the threshold. Similar procurements to be made in a fiscal year will be grouped together for the purpose of determining whether a particular item must be bid.
The district’s purchasing activity will strive to meet the following objectives:
o To effectively supply all employees with needed materials, supplies and contracted services;
o To obtain materials, supplies and contracted services at the lowest prices possible consistent with the quality and standards needed as determined by the Purchasing Agent in conformance with state law and regulation and in cooperation with the requisitioning authority. The educational and physical welfare of the students is the foremost consideration in making any purchase;
o To ensure that all purchases fall within the framework of budgetary limitations and that they are consistent with the educational goals and programs of the district;
o To maintain an appropriate and comprehensive accounting and reporting system to record and document all purchasing transactions; and
o To ensure, through the use of proper internal controls, that loss and/or diversion of district property is prevented.
Opportunities shall be provided to all responsible suppliers to do business with the school district. Suppliers whose place of business is situated within the district may be given preferential consideration only when bids or quotations on an item or service are identical as to price, quality and other factors. Purchases will be made through available cooperative BOCES bids, state contracts of the Office of General Services or county contracts whenever such purchases are in the best interests of the district.
In order to ensure that the district avails itself of advantageous purchasing opportunities, the Board authorizes the Purchasing Agent to represent the district in applying for federal programs designed to discount prices for goods and services. As with all purchasing activity, appropriate documentation of the application and purchase through any federal program will be maintained by the Main Office.
Competitive Bidding
Purchase contracts and public works contracts subject to competitive bidding will be awarded to the lowest responsible bidder; however, the Board authorizes that purchase contracts may be awarded on the basis of best value, as defined in State Finance Law §163. The Board retains the right to reject all bids.
In addition, the Board authorizes the receipt of sealed bids for purchase contracts in electronic format, pursuant to the provisions of General Municipal Law §103(1) which addresses proper documentation, authentication, security, and confidentiality of electronic bids.
The district shall comply with the requirements of General Municipal Law §103-g, which prohibits, with few exceptions, competitive bidding contracts with entities that invest significantly in the Iranian energy sector, as outlined in the accompanying regulation.
Competitive bidding, even if the dollar value of the purchase meets the threshold established above, is not required in the following circumstances:
o Emergencies where time is a crucial factor;
o Procurements for which there is no possibility of competition (sole source items); or
o Professional services that require special skill or training
Purchasing when Competitive Bidding is Not Required
Goods and services which are not required by law to be procured by the district through competitive bidding will be procured in a manner so as to ensure the prudent and economical use of public monies, in the best interests of the taxpayers, to facilitate the acquisitions of goods and services of maximum quality at the lowest possible cost under the circumstances, and to guard against favoritism, improvidence, extravagance, fraud and corruption.
Alternative proposals or quotations will be secured by requests for proposals, written or verbal quotations or any other appropriate method of procurement, except as permitted by state law for procurements:
o Under a county contract
o Under a state contract
o Under a federal contract
o Under a contract of another political subdivision
o Of articles manufactured in state correctional institutions or
o From agencies for the blind and severely disabled.
The district will provide justification and documentation of any contract awarded to an offeror other than the lowest responsible dollar offeror, setting forth the reasons why such award is in the best interests of the district and otherwise furthers the purposes of section 104-b of the General Municipal Law.
General Purchasing Provisions
The Superintendent of Schools, as Purchasing Agent, shall be responsible for the establishment and implementation of the procedures and standard forms for use in all purchasing and related activities in the district. Such procedures shall comply with all applicable laws and regulations of the state and the Commissioner of Education.
No Board member, officer or employee of the school district shall have an interest in any contract entered into by the Board or the district, as provided in Article 18 of the General Municipal Law unless disclosed to the Board of Trustees prior to entering into that contract.
The unintentional failure to fully comply with the provisions of section 104-b of the General Municipal Law or the district’s policies regarding procurement will not be grounds to void action taken nor give rise to a cause of action against the district or any officer or employee of the district.
Ref: Comprehensive Iran Sanctions, Accountability, and Divestment Act of 2010 (Public Law 111-95)
Education Law §§305(14); 409-I; 1604(29-a); 1709(4-a)(9)(14)(22); 2503(7-a); 2554(7-a)
General Municipal Law §§102; 103; 103-g; 104; 104-b; 109-a; 800 et seq.
State Finance Law §§97-g(3), (4), (5); 163; 163-b; 165-a
County Law §408-a(2)