(A) (1) The purchasing agency for the city shall be and is hereby established as the city’s Board of Public Works and Safety with all of the powers and duties authorized under I.C. 5-22. The purchasing agency shall designate in writing the purchasing agent.
(2) The purchasing agency may also designate in writing additional purchasing agents as necessary.
(B) The purchasing agency shall have all the powers and duties authorized under I.C. 5-22, as may be supplemented from time to time by ordinances adopted by the Council and policies adopted by the purchasing agency.
(C) The purchasing agency shall act as the purchasing agency for every agency, board, office, branch, bureau, commission, council, department or other establishment of the city.
(D) The purchasing agency may designate in writing any employee of the city as a purchasing agent.
(E) The purchasing agent may purchase supplies with an estimated cost of less that $25,000 on the open market without inviting or receiving quotes or bids, and it is hereby determined that each agency and/or department may purchase services in whatever manner the purchaser determines to be reasonable.
(F) Supplies manufactured in the United States shall be specified for all purchases and shall be purchased unless the city determines that:
(1) The supplies are not manufactured in the United States in reasonably available quantities;
(2) The price of the supplies manufacturer in the United States exceeds by an unreasonable amount the price of available and comparable supplies manufactured elsewhere;
(3) The quality of the supplies manufactured in the United States is substantially less than the quality of comparably priced available supplies manufactured elsewhere; or
(4) The purchase of supplies manufactured in the United States is not in the public interest.
(G) Pursuant to I.C. 5-22-8-2, the following is the City of Martinsville, Indiana's small purchase policy. With the exception of the items listed as exempt from the public purchasing laws under I.C. 5-22-1 and I.C. 36-12-3-16, purchases costing less than $5,000 are governed by this policy. For the purpose of this policy, "purchasing agent" means an individual authorized by the Common Council to act as an agent for the city in carrying out the administrative duties associated with making small purchases.
(1) The purchasing agent shall compare prices from as many responsible suppliers of the supplies or services required as is practical. Responsible supplier means a supplier who has submitted a bid or quote conforming in all material respects to the requisite specifications and who is also capable of performing the contract requirements fully with the integrity and reliability that will assure good faith performance. In the event there are many available suppliers, the prices of no less than three suppliers will be compared. The purchasing agent shall purchase from the supplier where total costs are lowest, taking into consideration any applicable preferences, when quality and timeliness of delivery are comparable. Comparison pricing can be obtained via telephone, letter, email, fax or website.
(2) (a) For purchases of supplies, the following purchasing preferences may apply to responsible suppliers who offer a responsive quote:
1. Under I.C. 5-22-15-16, a price preference of 10% is available to suppliers offering supplies that contain recycled materials or post-consumer materials.
2. For purchases resulting in a contract, a price preference of 5% is available to suppliers that qualify as a "local Indiana business", as defined in I.C. 5-22-15-20-9.
3. A price preference of 15% is available to suppliers that qualify as an "Indiana small business", pursuant to I.C. 5-22-15-2.
(b) In assessing whether a bid or quote is responsive, the purchasing agent may evaluate whether the supplies and delivery schedule offered conform in all material respects to the specifications required by the library and whether the supplier has complied with all applicable statutes, ordinances, resolutions or rules pertaining to the award of a public contract.
(c) A supplier who wants to claim a preference provided by this policy must indicate in the quote which preference is claimed and the supplier must certify that it qualifies for the stated preference. In order to be considered for the Indiana small business preference, suppliers must provide the purchasing agent with information regarding the number of employees employed by the supplier and the average sales and receipts for the prior year. The purchasing agent will use the "U.S. Small Business Administration Table of Small Business Size Standards..." in assessing whether a particular supplier qualifies as a small business.
(d) Suppliers are only eligible to claim one type of preference. The purchasing agent shall follow the procedures outlined in I.C. 5-22-15-10 in assessing purchasing preferences.
(3) As required by I.C. 5-22-15-21, supplies manufactured in the United States shall be specified and purchased by the city unless the purchasing agent determines that any of the following apply:
(a) The supplies are not manufactured in the United States in reasonably available quantities.
(b) The price of the supplies manufactured in the United States exceeds by an unreasonable amount the price of available and comparable supplies manufactured outside the United States.
(c) The quality of the supplies is substantially less than the quality of the comparably priced available supplies manufactured outside the United States.
(d) The purchase of supplies manufactured in the United States is not in the public interest.
(4) Purchases will not be artificially divided so as to constitute a "small purchase".
(5) Nothing in this policy shall be interpreted as precluding the purchasing agent from making a special purchase under I.C. 5-22-10.
(6) Inventory and storage of supplies are the sole responsibility of the purchasing agent's department. The purchasing agent shall keep a record of all supplies and submit an annual inventory list to the Clerk Treasurer's office.
(7) For purchases above $5,000 (capital assets), the procedures outlined in I.C. 5-22-8-3 will be followed.
(Ord. 98-1427, passed 7-6-1998; Res. 2019-581, passed 8-9-2019)