(a) The City Manager for the City shall make all purchases of supplies, materials, equipment and services as authorized by Council in the manner prescribed by this article and subject to the limitations imposed by the City Charter and general law.
(b) All purchases of supplies, materials, equipment and services shall be pursuant to a written requisition from the head of the office, department or agency whose appropriation will be charged therewith, and such supplies, materials, equipment and services shall conform with specifications approved, established and enforced by the City Manager.
(c) No purchase order shall be issued or contract executed nor shall any other agreement purporting to obligate the City be entered into without a written approval signed by the City Manager and/or Finance Director, that there is sufficient unencumbered appropriation and allotment balance to cover the obligation.
(d) Pursuant to the City Charter, before the City Manager shall make any purchase of, or contract for supplies, materials or equipment, he shall give ample opportunity for competitive bidding under the general rules and regulations herein prescribed and with such further regulations and exceptions as Council may hereafter prescribe; nothing herein contained shall be construed as excepting individual contracts, purchases or sales from the requirement of competitive bidding, as required by the Charter. All such purchases, or the contracts for such purchases, shall be awarded to the lowest and best responsible bidder; providing, however, that any or all bids may be rejected in the manner and form prescribed in this article.
(e) Split bidding is prohibited. The practice of "split bidding" is hereby defined to be the device of submitting multiple requisitions for the same supplies, materials, equipment or services where the sum of the cost of the several requisitions is equal to fifteen thousand dollars ($15,000) or more, and splitting the department's requirements into several requisitions would thereby avoid the necessity for the City to require competitive sealed bids. The practice of "split bidding" is hereby declared to be improper, illegal and against the public interest, and head of the office, department or agency shall state on each requisition that such requisition represents the entire quantity presently known to be required and that the requisition is not a part of a device or scheme to avoid the purchasing procedure of the City.
(f) The City may withhold payment on any vendor or contractor who is in default on the payment of any taxes, licenses, fees or other moneys of whatever nature that may be due the City by such vendor or contractor.
(g) Pursuant to the provision of the City Charter, any capital improvements or repairs costing fifteen thousand dollars ($15,000) or more, or any series of capital improvements or repairs constituting essentially a single project and costing in the aggregate more than fifteen thousand dollars ($15,000) shall be executed by contract except where such improvement is authorized by Council to be executed directly by the City Manager in conformity with detailed plans, specifications and estimates. All such contracts shall be awarded to the lowest responsible bidder after such public notice and competitive bidding as prescribed herein, and after a public opening of bids, as likewise provided herein. Alterations in any contract may be made when authorized by Council upon the written recommendation of the City Manager.
(h) Notice inviting bids shall be published as a Class I legal advertisement. Such notice shall include a general description of the article to be purchased, shall state where bid blanks and written specifications may be secured, and the time and place for opening bids. Additional notice of such invitation to bid shall be posted on public bulletin boards in the Municipal building.
(i) Bids shall be submitted sealed to the City Clerk and shall be identified as bids on the envelope. Such bids shall be opened in public and in the presence of at least three persons, including a representative from the City Manager and City Clerk's office and at the time and place stated in the public notices. A tabulation of all bids so received shall be posted on bulletin boards in the Municipal building for public inspection.
(j) Pursuant to the guidelines herein set out, City Council shall have and hereby is granted the authority to reject any or all bids, parts of all bids or all bids for any one or more supplies or contractual services included in the proposed contract.
(k) The Finance Director shall establish procedures for purchases of goods involving the estimated expenditure of less than fifteen thousand dollars ($15,000) of public money. These procedures shall require that competition be sought and written records adequate to document the competition be maintained in order to properly account for the funds expended, and facilitate an audit of the small purchases made.
(l) The City Manager shall require evidence of payment and performance bonds secured by a surety company authorized to do business in the State before entering a contract. The bonds shall be such amount as the Manager shall find reasonably necessary to protect the best interests of the City.
(m) Notwithstanding the procedures as are set out in this article, the City Manager is hereby authorized with prior approval of the Department of Finance and Administration of the State to purchase supplies and equipment for the City pursuant to West Virginia Code 8-12-10 or 8-12- 10(a), when it was deemed that such purchase will result in a substantial savings to the City.
(Passed 10-9-07.)
(n) Procurement of Architect-Engineer Services.
(1) In the procurement of architectural and engineering services for projects with an estimated cost of construction of $250,000 or more, competition shall be sought by the City Manager through a solicitation of interest which shall include information regarding project ownership, intended use, project scope, schedule, quality, budget, funding sources, known proposed contract terms, and firm selection procedures. The solicitation of interest shall be advertised by the City Manager once a week for two successive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation published in the City. The City Manager shall appoint and chair a committee of no less than three persons to evaluate the statements of qualifications and other information solicited and/or submitted by interested firms. The committees shall short list and then interview a maximum of five firms, and then shall develop the scope of services, solicit price, and negotiate a contract to recommend to Council for final approval in the manner it deems most expedient given the project, the circumstances, and the best interest of the City.
(2) If in the judgment of the City Manager the project has an estimated construction cost of under $250,000, or an emergency exists and seeking competition is not practical or in the best interest of the City given the project, the City Manager may select and contract with a firm based upon known or submitted qualifications acquired within the last 36 months from a public solicitation.
(3) No contract may be authorized to any business or individual that is delinquent in any financial obligation to the City or is not operating with all required licenses and permits. (Passed 1-11-16.)