(A) The Board of Commissioners hereby adopt the requirements for county contracts as set forth in I.C. 36-2-2.8 and adopts the manner of review of said county contracts, and approval of the same as set forth in I.C. 36-2-2.9.
(B) (1) As used in the state statutes and in this section, CONTRACT means a contract for the purchase of:
(a) Real property;
(b) Tangible or intangible personal property; and
(c) Services (as defined in I.C. 5-22-2-30).
(2) The term does not include a CONTRACT concerning the issuance of:
(a) A bond to finance the construction of a public facility; or
(b) A bond or other type of security for the payment of a lease obligation.
(C) A COUNTY OFFICER means the following:
(1) Assessor;
(2) Auditor;
(3) Coroner;
(4) Recorder;
(5) Sheriff;
(6) Surveyor;
(7) Treasurer;
(8) Clerk of the Circuit Court; or
(9) County fiscal body.
(D) A contract entered into by the county must meet the following requirements:
(1) The contract must be executed in the name of the county; and
(2) Any property purchases for public use shall be:
(a) Titled to; or
(b) Documented as owned by the county.
(E) Contractual language to be used in all contracts entered into by the county shall include:
(1) Provisions for indemnification;
(2) Dispute resolution provisions;
(3) Venue requirements;
(4) Termination provisions; and
(5) Notification provisions.
(F) If a county officer has a proposed contract for any of the following, the county officer must have the County Executive execute the contract after submission of the contract for review in accordance with this section:
(1) That the county officer believes is necessary for the county officer to carry out a constitutional or statutory duty of office; and
(2) For which funds have been appropriated by the county fiscal body to pay for the contract.
(G) The County Executive may void a contract that a county officer executes without first complying with this section.
(H) To initiate a contract review, the county officer must submit the contract to the County Commissioners and to the County Auditor requesting a review of the proposed contract which includes a copy of the proposed contract. The contract must comply with the requirement for using standard terms required by this section. The County Auditor shall date stamp the request and immediately forward copies of the request and contract to the County Executive as well as the County Attorney.
(I) Not later than 20 days after the request is filed with the County Auditor:
(1) The County Executive and County Attorney shall review the proposed contract;
(2) The County Executive shall notify the county officer of the results of the review;
(3) If the County Attorney advises the County Executive that the contract does not comply with state law or any applicable public purchasing or bidding laws, the County Executive may disapprove the contract and the contract may not be executed; and
(4) The County Attorney shall notify the County Executive of the results of the review.
(J) If a contract is not disapproved under division (I) above and the County Executive finds the contract complies with I.C. 36-2-2.8 and is otherwise acceptable, the County Executive may approve and authorize execution of the contract by the County Executive.
(K) If the County Executive finds the contract does not comply with I.C. 36-2-2.8, this section, or is otherwise not acceptable for reasons other than those determined above, the County Executive must provide the county officer with a written statement. The County Executive must provide a written statement as part of the notification of the review results that:
(1) Explains why the contract is not acceptable; and
(2) Provides recommendations, if any, for making the contract acceptable to the County Executive.
(L) The County Executive has a responsibility of notifying the county officer of the results of the review conducted by the County Attorney and the County Executive.
(M) A contract approved by the County Executive shall be uploaded by the County Auditor to the state transparency website.
(Ord. 2024-17, passed 7-15-2024)