(A) Principal public purchasing official. The Purchasing Agent shall serve as the principal public purchasing official for the county, and shall be responsible for the procurement of goods, supplies, equipment, services, construction, and professional services, in accordance with this subchapter, as well as the management and disposal of surplus property.
(B) Duties. In accordance with this subchapter, and subject to the supervision of the County Board, the Financial and Administrative Committee, and the County Administrator, the Purchasing Agent shall:
(1) Procure or supervise the procurement of all goods, supplies, equipment, services, construction, and professional services needed by the county, with the exception of policies as determined by Illinois Department of Transportation for the Lake County Division of Transportation. In doing so, the Purchasing Agent shall:
(a) Work cooperatively with departments and county agencies in determining what to purchase;
(b) Receive suggested specifications for goods, supplies, equipment, services, construction, and professional services. The Purchasing Agent shall finalize, revise, issue, maintain, and monitor the use of specifications required by the county, except that specifications for any public works project involving professional engineering shall be prepared by a professional engineer. Specifications for construction and maintenance of highways, bridges, and culverts shall be prepared by the Lake County Director of Transportation/County Engineer. All specifications, including those prepared for the county by architects, engineers, designers, and draftsmen, shall be drafted so as to promote overall economy for the purposes intended and to encourage competition in satisfying the county’s needs;
(c) Obtain expert advice and assistance from personnel of user departments in the development of specifications and may delegate in writing to a user department to prepare and utilize its own specifications; and
(d) Have discretion to select the appropriate method of construction contracting management for a particular project. In determining which method to use, the Purchasing Agent shall consider compliance with applicable county and state laws, the county’s requirements, its resources, and the potential contractor’s capabilities. For construction projects, the Purchasing Agent shall include in the contract file a memorandum that sets forth the considerations that led to the selection of the particular construction management method that the County employed.
(2) Execute contracts and purchase orders based upon open competition for all goods, services, construction, and professional services needed by the county; and
(3) Establish a contract administration system to monitor compliance and payments with specifications developed in cooperation with the agencies using the goods, services, construction, and professional services; and
(4) Exercise general supervision over inventories of goods belonging to the county:
(a) Establishing a surplus policy for the county to manage, sell, trade, transfer, or otherwise dispose of surplus county property; and
(b) Allocating net proceeds from the sale, lease, or disposal of surplus goods back to the appropriate fund.
(C) Purchasing regulations and operational procedures. Consistent with this subchapter, and with the approval of the Financial and Administrative Committee of the County Board, the Purchasing Agent may adopt purchasing regulations and operational procedures relating to the execution of his or her duties and may also suggest amendments to the Lake County Purchasing Ordinance (codified as §§ 33.001 through 33.137), as necessary.
(D) Purchasing determinations. The Purchasing Agent shall work cooperatively with departments in making determinations relative to the purchase of goods, services, construction, and professional services.
(E) Authorization fo the use of electronic transmissions. The use of electronic media for all procurement procedures, including acceptance of electronic signatures, is authorized consistent with Illinois law for use of such media. The Purchasing Agent shall determine which solicitations are suitable for electronic transmissions.
(1977 Code, § 1:4-1) (Ord., § 2-101, passed 12-8-2009; Ord. passed 2-12-2013; Ord. 21-0923, passed 10-12-2021)