Agenda Item 6910
January 5, 1998
SUBJECT: Consideration of Proposed Amendment to Board Policy C-10, Purchasing
PROPOSED ACTION
That the Board of Trustees approved the proposed policy, after any desired amendments.
RELATED BOARD POLICY OR PLANNING PRIORITY(Directive/Goal/Action Plan)
This item is consistent with Board Policy, B-1, Board Policy Principles and Planning Directive 11. Develop internal capacity and utilize budgetary and cost analysis to identify areas of operating efficiency including course scheduling, equitable expenditure distribution, program and unit expenditure analysis.
RATIONALE
The proposed amendments clarify the conditions under which Board approval is required for purchasing or contracting actions, and replace implementational language related to HUB purchases by an expanded statement promoting systematic action by the College to expand opportunities for HUBs and to require non-discrimination from College vendors and contractors.
BUDGETARY CONSIDERATION:
None.
RESOURCE PERSONNEL
Carol Nasworthy, Chair, Board of Trustees
Hunter Ellinger, Board Member
Ana "Cha" Guzman, Vice-President
Richard Fonte, President
ATTACHMENTS
Proposed Policy [draft 12/15/197]
November 30, 1997 Memo from John Worley
Proposed Policy Presented at the November 17, 1997 Board Meeting
College Policies
Proposed replacement of Policy C-10 (draft -- 12/15/97)
C-10. PURCHASING
A. General Objectives
[1] To support the instructional mission of the College by procuring in a timely manner the specific equipment and materials that the staff and faculty need.
[2] To secure work and materials at the best value for the College.
[3] To provide opportunities for individual vendors, contractors, historically underutilized businesses, and small/local businesses to compete for College purchases/contracts in a fair and competitive environment, and to create an open process for procurement through competition.
B. Board Approval: The requirement for specific Board approval of vendor and price for purchasing, consulting, or contracting expenditures or commitments for related groups of items depends on the cost and on the extent of prior Board review:
[1] Expenditures costing less than $50,000 never require such approval.
[2] Expenditures costing over $100,000 always require such approval.
[3] Expenditures costing between $50,000 and $100,000 require such approval unless either:
[a] the Board has previously approved, after a public review period of a month or more, a budget or other written plan listing the items and their approximate cost, or
[b] the expenditure is primarily to repair or replace an existing capability which has been unexpectedly lost, or
[c] the expenditure is necessary to meet an emergency and is reported to the Board at its next meeting.
For items which require Board approval below $500,000 which are not design-build contracts, the administration shall provide a summary and evaluative judgments of vendor responses with a recommendation of a single vendor. Such items should be submitted to the Board early enough that it does not have to make its final decision at its first consideration of the item if it has unresolved questions or decides not to accept administration’s recommendation at the first meeting the item is on the agenda. In cases where the administration’s recommendation is not accepted, consideration of alternatives shall occur at a subsequent meeting.
For items in excess of $500,000 and for all design-build contracts, a limited number of well-qualified vendors shall make presentations to the Board. The administration shall provide the Board with appropriate evaluative criteria or questions for use by the Board in the review process. The administration shall provide a summary of the proposals and provide evaluative judgment concerning strengths and weaknesses of these well-qualified vendors.
C. Reports: The administration shall provide quarterly reports and annual summaries on purchasing activities. Such reports shall include:
[1] purchase orders and contracts awarded to HUBs;
[2] purchase orders and contracts awarded to local vendors;
[3] state contract and state catalog purchases made;
[4] all contracts over $10,000; and
[5] an explanation of consulting fees in excess of $5,000 to a single vendor in a fiscal year.
D. Historically Underutilized Businesses (HUBs) In all purchasing and contracting decisions, employees shall make diligent efforts to include HUB vendors and shall, where practicable, avoid practices that tend to exclude HUB vendors. ACC shall develop, maintain, and enhance the participation of minority-owned and women-owned firms in all phases of its procurement processes, supporting their efforts to compete for College business.
The College shall encourage all vendors, suppliers, contractors, and professionals with whom it does business to support the common goal of equal opportunity and economic participation for all citizens. In expenditure of College funds, neither the College nor its contractors and suppliers shall discriminate on the basis of sex, race, color, creed, religion, national origin, age, or sexual orientation, or on the basis of disabilities which do not significantly effect the quality of work.
College Policies
Proposed replacement of Policy C-10 (draft -- 11/6/97) as presented at the November 17, 1997 Board Meeting.
C-10. PURCHASING
A. General Objectives
[1] To support the instructional mission of the College by procuring in a timely manner the specific equipment and materials that the staff and faculty need.
[2] To secure work and materials at the best value for the College.
[3] To provide opportunities for individual vendors, contractors, historically underutilized businesses, and small/local businesses to compete for College purchases/contracts in a fair and competitive environment, and to create an open process for procurement through competition.
B. Board Approval: The requirement for specific Board approval of vendor and price for purchasing, consulting, or contracting expenditures or commitments for related groups of items depends on the cost and on the extent of prior Board review:
[1] Expenditures costing less than $25,000 ($50,000*) never require such approval.
[2] Expenditures costing over $100,000 always require such approval.
[3] Expenditures costing between $25,000 ($50,000*) and $100,000 require such approval unless either:
[a] the Board has previously approved, after a public review period of a month or more, a budget or other written plan listing the items and their approximate cost, or
[b] the expenditure is primarily to repair or replace an existing capability which has been unexpectedly lost, or
[c] the expenditure is necessary to meet an emergency and is reported to the Board at its next meeting.
|
OPTION A |
OPTION B |
|
For items which require Board approval, the administration shall provide a summary of vendor responses with a single recommendation which the Board shall either approve or reject or, for projects in excess of $500,000(**), a short list of preferred well-qualified vendors with an analysis of their responses. |
For items which require Board approval, the administration shall provide a summary of vendor responses, a single recommendation, and an analysis of the reasons for that recommendation. The Board shall either approve or reject the recommendation. |
*Option—Recommendation of President
**Option—President Recommends $1,000,000, except all design build contracts
C. Reports: The administration shall provide quarterly reports and annual summaries on purchasing activities. Such reports shall include:
[1] purchase orders and contracts awarded to HUBs;
[2] purchase orders and contracts awarded to local vendors;
[3] state contract and state catalog purchases made;
[4] all contracts over $10,000; and
[5] an explanation of consulting fees in excess of $5,000 to a single vendor in a fiscal year.
D. Historically Underutilized Businesses (HUBs) In all purchasing and contracting decisions, employees shall make diligent efforts to include HUB vendors and shall, where practicable, avoid practices that tend to exclude HUB vendors. ACC shall develop, maintain, and enhance the participation of minority-owned and women-owned firms in all phases of its procurement processes, supporting their efforts to compete for College business.
The College shall encourage all vendors, suppliers, contractors, and professionals with whom it does business to support the common goal of equal opportunity and economic participation for all citizens. In expenditure of College funds, neither the College nor its contractors and suppliers shall discriminate on the basis of sex, race, color, creed, religion, national origin, age, or sexual orientation, or on the basis of disabilities which do not significantly effect the quality of work.
*Option—Recommendation of President
**Option—President Recommends $1,000,000, except all design build contracts
College Policies
C-10. PURCHASING
A. General Objectives
[1] To support the instructional mission of the College by procuring in a timely manner the specific equipment and materials that the staff and faculty need.
[2] To secure work and materials at the best value for the College.
[3] To provide opportunities for individual vendors, contractors, historically underutilized businesses, and small/local businesses to compete for College purchases/contracts in a fair and competitive environment, and to create an open process for procurement through competition.
B. Board Approval: Purchasing, consulting, or contracting expenditures or commitments for related groups of items require specific Board approval of the proposed vendor and price if required by law or if the cost is greater than $100,000. Other such expenditures require such approval unless one or more of the following exceptions applies:
[a] the cost is less than $25,000.
[b] the expenditure is primarily to repair or replace an existing capability which has been unexpectedly lost.
[c] the expenditure is necessary to meet an emergency and is reported to the Board at its next meeting.
[d] the Board has previously approved a budget or other written plan explaining the need and approximate cost for each of the particular items, following a public comment period which lasted at least one month after the plan had been made publicly available and had been sent to each trustee and department head.
Items for which Board approval is required by law but is not otherwise required by this policy qualify to be placed on the Board consent agenda as routine approvals.
C. Reports: The Purchasing Department shall provide monthly reports with cumulative totals on a quarterly basis and annual summaries on purchasing activities. Such reports shall include:
[1] purchase orders and contracts awarded to HUBs;
[2] purchase orders and contracts awarded to local vendors;
[3] state contract and state catalog purchases made;
[4] all contracts over $10,000; and
[5] an explanation of consulting fees in excess of $5,000 to a single vendor in a fiscal year.
D. Historically Underutilized Businesses (HUBs)
In all purchasing and contracting decisions, employees shall make reasonable efforts to include HUB vendors and shall, where practicable, avoid practices that tend to exclude HUB vendors. The College will maintain a HUB vendor list to be utilized by College Personnel when making purchasing decisions and the list will be updated at least annually. The President shall establish goals for utilization of HUBs for purchasing and contracting, to the extent that is legally permissible. A disparity study done in pursuit of this policy may rely, to the extent allowed by law; on studies previously done by other state and local governmental bodies. Upon the establishment of goals for utilization of HUBs, employees shall consider those goals in purchasing and contracting decisions to the extent allowed by law. The College shall follow the MBE/WBE definitions of the City of Austin or the Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority.