Town approves first reading of changes to procurement rules

Faxed-in price quotes are out.

So are computer bulletin boards that vendors can post bids on.

The world of municipal-government purchasing at Longboat Key Town Hall, in fact, is changing so fast with the times that the word "purchasing" will soon be persona non grata.

Town commissioners last week got the ball rolling on an overhaul of the town’s rules, regulations and protocols regarding how it buys products and services for official use.

Some of the changes are deeply granular; others are broader.

But at the very core is a different way of thinking. So much so that a "purchasing manager" will become a "procurement manager."

From there, changes to Chapter 38 of the town code are designed to synch up with modern developments, changes in state law and other points.

“The reason is the term procurement has a much broader use in this particular situation,” Director of Special Services Carolyn Brown said. 

Such changes haven’t been made in Longboat Key since the latter part of the Obama administration’s second term (2015).

Regardless, though, the town manager remains the procurement agent for Longboat Key.

Definitions have also been added to clarify sections including public notice, signature and the procurement manual. The role of the town’s Support Services Department was also defined as it did not exist during the last revision of the chapter. 

When the town is seeking quotes for a bid, town staff is only required to obtain three rather than the six previously required. The range for written quotes has also been extended to include anything between $3,000 to $34,999.99. 

The town can take advantage of any state bid contract, or any local public entity bid contract if the contract has been competitively bid with a current award period and the successful contractor is willing to extend the same prices, terms and conditions as the original contract. 

The town can take advantage of any state bid contract, or any local public entity bid contract if the contract has been competitively bid with a current award period and the successful contractor is willing to extend the same prices, terms and conditions as the original contract. 

Keeping up to date with current practices, the proposed changes also included the removal of the ability to fax a quote, which has been deemed an outdated method. Town staff also updated the call for bids to an electronic notification system, which was previously stated to use the now outdated bulletin board. 

Additional minor changes were proposed to clean up the chapter and ensure it met state statutes. The minor changes were not discussed during the commission meeting. 

The second reading and adoption of the changes has been forwarded to the Nov. 7 meeting.