From: C.D. Crepps To: Department Contacts Cc: Finance Office Subject: normal requisition process This reminder message is specifically for staff that may assist in the department’s purchasing processes. Please forward to other appropriate staff that may need to receive this message, such as those that EITHER (1) place orders for goods or services, (2) enter requisitions, OR (3) consult with others who do perform either of the first two tasks, AND may not have received this message directly from me. I will be periodically broadcasting information to all of you via email, yet please do not hesitate to contact me by phone or email if you should have any questions or concerns for me about what is communicated. While I am sensitive to the fact that this email message is lengthy, please understand that the topic is not simple. I’ve used headings to group my thoughts. A. NORMAL PROCEDURE FOR REQUISITIONS As a matter of procedure, please continue to follow these guidelines throughout the year: 1) obtain at least two comparable quotes (or indicate “sole-source”) for any order of at least $500.00; 2) request a purchase order WHEN placing an order with a vendor (or by the next business day after placing the order, when possible, or AT LEAST within 5 business days after placing the order) by entering a purchase requisition into the Edmunds MCSJ financial software system; the amount of the purchase requisition is applied against your budget immediately; 3) please attach the quote, estimate, signed contract, bill, invoice, statement, and other similar documents to the purchase requisition within the Edmunds MCSJ financial software system; and 4) notify Mary Kennedy by email of any additional attachments made to the purchase requisition after a purchase requisition reaches the 3rd approver level. Normally, Edmunds MCSJ will notify a supervisor of purchase requisitions awaiting proper authorization. These reminders are sent at 9a and 4p. Afterwards, the purchase requisition will normally be approved by Administration and become a purchase order. The payment will subsequently be issued. Though the reminding times are set the same for everyone, if enough people prefer different reminding times, I will consider changing the reminding times from 9a and 4p to other times that may suit more people. The idea is to catch folks either at or soon after 9a before they begin to work on other important matters of the day or at or soon after 4p after they finish work on other important matters of the day. Yet, if you believe another time would suit your needs better, we are happy to take your suggestions. Please refer to the County’s Financial Policies and the County Manager’s memorandum dated March 17, 2014 for more information on purchase orders. B. QUOTES FOR ORDERS OF $500.00 OR MORE For any items for which you expect to spend $500.00 or more between July 1 and June 30 of the same fiscal year, obtain comparable quotes. This threshold applies to office supplies as a whole and to cleaning supplies as a whole. Likewise, if you anticipate paying a single vendor $500.00 or more between July 1 and June 30 of the same fiscal year, obtain comparable quotes. Enter information from the other quote(s) onto the requisition. If you are not familiar with this step, there are instruction manuals, lessons, and videos on the Edmunds MCSJ support website for this topic and many other topics. C. FORMAL PROPOSALS FOR ORDERS OF $90,000.00 OR MORE If you anticipate paying a single vendor $90,000.00 or more between July 1 and June 30 of the same fiscal year, you must consider soliciting formal bids or proposals every year and you must enter into a contractual agreement. This is a State-mandated threshold for goods and materials. The County applies the same threshold to services. For these larger amounts, we are looking for "testers" to help us to use the 'Contract P.O.' screens on the financial system with a few contracts. D. CONCLUSION As time permits, I'm encouraging/reminding folks to enter requisitions when placing orders, which means you'll need to obtain a document (estimate, quote) in support of the expenditure at that time. I say "reminding" because I've hinted at this change in the past. I'm now really encouraging folks to make this leap that will both enhance the accuracy and timeliness of expenditure information contained within the system and provide greater compliance with State requirements for encumbrance systems. Keep track of the requisition number assigned by the system and add the packing slip, invoice, and any other payable support later. Attachments may be added to the purchase requisition at any time. Any file added to the requisition on the system is automatically added to the related purchase order, too, by the system. (The system does have some nice features!) CONTACT ME I am available for one on one discussion and will gladly assist you in any way necessary. We appreciate your time and cooperation with streamlining orders and payments for those orders.