Basics of Procurement at BHA
A procurement may be cancelled before bids or proposals are due for any of the following reasons: A procurement may be cancelled and all bids or proposals that have already been received may be rejected for any of the following reasons: Petty Cash Purchases Small Purchases of up to $3,000 (or $2,000 if subject to Davis Bacon Wage Rates) Small Purchases of up to $150,000 Small Works Roster Competitive Proposals using Request for Proposals or Request for Qualifications Cooperative Purchasing and Intergovernmental Agreements Non-Competitive Procurement Procurement by non-competitive proposals (sole source) may be used only when the award of a contract is not feasible using the small purchase procedures, sealed bids, competitive proposals, or cooperative purchasing and if one of the following applies: Situation #1 - Sole Source: Situation #2 - Emergency: As a government agency, the Bremerton Housing Authority is required to comply with federal and state regulations related to procurement and purchasing - primarily the requirements of HUD. If there are other federal or state requirements that apply that are more stringent than HUD's, BHA is required to comply with the most stringent requirements. The Procurement Policy is a written document that complies with federal and state regulation and provides guidance for the procurement process at BHA. The specific purposes of the Procurement Policy include, but are not limited to, the following:
READ THE SOLICITATION FROM START TO FINISH!!!!!!!
FOLLOW THE DIRECTIONS PROVIDED IN THE SOLICITATION!!!!!!!
A small purchase under $75.00 which can be satisfied by local sources may be processed through the use of Board of Commissioners approved petty cash account.
For small purchases of up to $3,000, BHA will require only one quote as long as the quote is considered reasonable. To the greatest extent feasible, and to promote competition, small purchases will be distributed among qualified sources. Quotes are obtained orally (either in person or by phone), by fax, in writing, or by email. Award is made to the qualified vendor that provides the best value to BHA.
2 CFR 200.88 specifies that procurements costing $150,000 or less (the Simplified Acquisition Threshold) qualify as "small purchases" that are not subject to formal advertising as part of the selection process. While these procurements may be conducted under less formal selection procedures, obtaining and comparing competitive prices from more than one vendor represents good public policy and is required for the purchase of all good, supplies, equipment and materials costing $3,000 or more ($2,000 if subject to Davis Bacon Wage Rates). The less formal selection procedure is known as the information solicitation and has the following guidelines:
RCW 39.04.155 allows BHA to create and maintain a Small Works Roster to award contracts for construction, building, renovation, remodeling, alteration, repair or improvement of real property for public works projects up to $300,000 (or $150,000 if federal funds are used). BHA reserves the right to utilize Small Works Rosters maintained by other agencies in lieu of maintaining a BHA Small Works Roster through the use of cooperative intergovernmental agreements.
Sealed Bidding/Invitation to Bid (ITB)
Sealed bidding is used for all contracts that exceed the small purchase threshold that meet the criteria listed below. BHA publicly solicits bids and awards a firm fixed-price contract to the responsible bidder whose bid, conforming with all of the material terms and conditions of the Invitation to Bid, is the lowest in price. Sealed bidding is the preferred method for procuring construction, supply, and non-complex service contracts that are expected to exceed $150,000 using federal funds or more than $300,000 for public works contracts using state or local funds.
Conditions for using Sealed Bidding:
The competitive proposal method is preferred when procuring for professional services that exceed the small purchase threshold. The competitive proposal method permits:
Consistent with the requirements of 2 CFR 200.318(e) and RCW 39.34.080, BHA may enter into agreements with other governmental agencies and regional or national intergovernmental purchasing networks or associations to purchase or use common supplies, equipment, or services. The decision to use an interagency agreement instead of conducting a direct procurement is based on economy and efficiency. BHA may use federal and state excess and surplus property instead of purchasing new equipment and property if feasible and if it will result in a reduction of project costs. The goods and services obtained under a cooperative purchasing agreement must have been procured in accordance with 2 CFR 200.318.
Occasions may arise when competition among potential vendors is not possible for a particular procurement. These situations may occur:
An emergency exists that seriously threatens the public health, welfare, or safety, or endangers property, or otherwise causes serious injury to BHA, as may arise by reason of a flood, earthquake, epidemic, fire, riot, equipment failure, or similar event, and the needs "will not permit a delay resulting from competitive solicitation." In such cases, there must be an immediate and serious need for supplies, services, or construction such that the need cannot be met through any of the other procurement methods, and the emergency procurement shall be limited to those supplies, services or construction necessary simply to meet the emergency.
Situation #3 - HUD authorizes use of non-competitive proposals.
Situation #4 - After solicitation of a number of sources, competition is determined to be inadequate.