Purchasing
General
- All purchases need a Purchase Order (PO). A PO should be obtained before making the purchase (goods) or allowing work to begin (service).
- If a vendor accepts credit cards and does not charge an extra fee, purchases below $10k can be made with a p-card without a PO. Chase (among others) has a p-card that can be used for Engineering purchases up to $10k. Contact Chase or Steve to get the card info.
- Always make sure sales tax is not charged!
Requesting a PO
- Send PO requests to Chase (services) or Jennifer (goods). When in doubt, send to both of us.
- PO requests must include:
- a quote/estimate/proposal (email quote is acceptable)
- Vendor contact email address (PO will be sent here)
- Project or account number to charge
- Bidding info if above $10k (i.e. RFP#, 3 quotes, NCS form)
- POS contract and COI if services above $10k
- Most low dollar ($10k or less) POs can be issued within a day or two. POs that include contracts may take an additional day or two.
- Vendor selection for purchases above $10k
- Informal selection: project manager sends out requests to vendors
- Formal bidding: RFB or RFP is advertised
- Non-Competitive Selection: was not bid and needs a NCS form approved by Finance/Common Council before proceeding
- Cooperative Purchasing: piggyback on other bids (e.g. State of WI, UW, etc)
- Don’t forget the requirements for informal solicitations. Three total bids; one has to be registered local vendor and one has to be listed on the Equitable Purchasing Directories. If this cannot be achieved, a good faith effort must be made (say so via email).
- PO requests must include:
Class 1 Notices
- Required for all public construction between $5k and $25k per state statute. If it is something that would’ve required PW bidding (if it were above $25k), then it will require a Class 1 Notice. If in doubt, ask Chase.
- Send notices to class1notice@cityofmadison.com
- Notice includes: contract title, dollar amount, city agency, contact name & phone
- Class 1 Notices must be posted for a week before we can issue a PO/contract.