(a) Preparation. The Central Services Officer shall prepare rules and regulations governing the operations of the County procurement system. The rules and regulations shall be referred to as the "Purchasing Regulations" and shall represent a complete statement of all rules and regulations under the County's purchasing system.
(b) Adoption by County Council. The Purchasing Regulations shall be submitted, with the approval of the County Executive and the Chief Administrative Officer, for approval and adoption by ordinance of the County Council. After adoption of the Purchasing Regulations by the County Council, the Central Services Officer shall issue the Purchasing Regulations to using agencies and shall secure compliance with the Purchasing Regulations by the using agencies.
(c) Amendments.
(1) Amendments to the Purchasing Regulations governing emergency purchases, emergency contracts, and those involving goods or services of an unusual or noncompetitive nature and that are not inconsistent with the basic purchasing policy of the County as contained in the Charter and the ordinance enacted by the County Council may be made by the Central Services Officer with the written approval of the County Executive or the Chief Administrative Officer. The amendments shall be effective until the next annual legislative session of the County Council when they shall be cumulatively submitted to the County Council for approval by ordinance.
(2) Amendments to the Purchasing Regulations not governing emergency purchases, emergency contracts, and those not involving goods or services of an unusual or noncompetitive nature and that are not inconsistent with the basic purchasing policy of the County as contained in the Charter and the ordinances enacted by the County Council may be made by the Central Services Officer with the written approval of the County Executive or Chief Administrative Officer. The amendments shall be effective on approval of the County Attorney.
(d) Contents. The rules and regulations shall include provisions to govern:
(1) the handling of bids and proposals, including their advertising, custody and safeguarding, opening and tabulation, and rejection;
(2) procedures for determining the lowest responsive and responsible bidder or the best offer; procedures for resolving protests and disputes; and procedures governing the use of contract clauses;
(3) procedures for securing from bidders or offerors and prospective bidders or offerors the data necessary to determine whether they are responsible bidders or offerors;
(4) the conditions under which informalities and defects in bids may be waived or cured and the conditions under which mistakes in bids may be corrected or the withdrawal of bids permitted;
(5) the conditions and criteria under which competitive sealed bidding may be determined impractical, or otherwise not advantageous, for purposes of using the competitive sealed proposal / competitive negotiation method;
(6) procedures for reporting receipt of goods and services;
(7) procedures for submission, examination, and approval of invoices for goods and services delivered or rendered to using agencies;
(8) procedures to be observed by using agencies and the Purchasing Agent in the development of a program for bulk purchases, including requiring using agencies to file with the Purchasing Agent detailed estimates of future needs for such periods as the Purchasing Agent may prescribe;
(9) procedures facilitating reduction, to the maximum extent possible, in the number of purchase transactions by combining into bulk orders and contracts the requirements of using agencies for common-use goods and services purchased repeatedly;
(10) procedures involving the development and use of those types of contracts and purchase orders that will reduce to the minimum the accompanying paper work and that, in other respects, will be most advantageous to the County;
(11) the terms and conditions under which using agencies may submit requisitions to the Purchasing Agent for goods or services available under contracts made by the Purchasing Agent;
(12) procedures to be observed by using agencies and the Purchasing Agent in obtaining full and open competition wherever possible, on all purchases and sales;
(13) procedures under which, by express authorization in writing of the Purchasing Agent, a using agency may be exempted from the rules and regulations for specified goods or services;
(14) procedures to be observed by using agencies and by warehouse personnel in accounting for the receipt and disbursement of goods, including:
(i) the classification of inventory items and their positive identification by means of standard nomenclature or code or part numbers;
(ii) provision of adequate storage facilities and supervision;
(iii) maintenance of an accurate perpetual inventory record, showing receipts, allotments, disbursements and available balances in stores, supported by periodic physical inventory counting or stock-taking;
(iv) following an established cost system and accounting procedure to interpret the physical or unit quantity records into financial terms, including periodic reconciliation of inventory with books and records maintained by the Controller; and
(v) analysis of inactive goods to determine their disposition and to avoid the accumulation of surplus, old, and obsolete goods;
(15) procedures for procurement of revenue-producing services;
(16) procedures for use of e-commerce, online sales, and other procurement tools and methods;
(17) procedures for small procurements; and
(18) any other matters necessary to give effect to the rules and regulations and the provisions of Article IX of the Charter.
(1985 Code, Art. 10, § 2-101) (Bill No. 59-85; Bill No. 13-89; Bill No. 58-08; Bill No. 8-17)