MSAD 9 POLICY MANUAL
File: DJ-R
PURCHASING PROCEDURES REGULATIONS
Purchasing for the District shall be under the supervision and control of the Superintendent of Schools.
The Superintendent shall determine if price quotes shall be solicited for comparison or if bids shall be requested.
If bids are requested, the Superintendent shall advertise in the Franklin Journal, the Lewiston Sun and the Waterville Sentinel.
All bids shall be in writing, sealed and marked "BID - NOT TO BE OPENED UNTIL (date)", and filed with the Office of the Superintendent of Schools until opening time.
Bids shall be awarded to the low bidder unless:
a. A definite quality differentiation exists between the low bid item and the higher bid item;
b. The low bid item would create problems in operation;
c. Maintenance costs and/or availability of maintenance would create a major problem should the low bid item be accepted; and/or
d. The low bid item is submitted by an out of District vendor and the difference between the out of District vendor's price is not large enough to constitute a significant savings for the District.
On major items, the results of the bids shall be compiled and submitted to the Board of Directors for a decision.
On minor items, the Superintendent of Schools or his/her Assistant shall award bids based upon this policy. Any vendor may appeal the superintendent's decision to the Board of Directors of MSAD No. 9.
Purchases from vendors within MSAD No. 9 shall be encouraged. Administrators shall use the following guidelines in conjunction with the above bid criteria in awarding/accepting bids/quotes that include local vendors who do not present the lowest bid/quote:
If the total bid or quote is $2500 or less a local vendor will receive preference if their bid/quote is within ten (10) percent of the lowest bid/quote by an out-of-district vendor;
If the total bid or quote is between $2501 and $5000 then a local vendor's bid must be within $250 of the lowest bid/quote of an out-of-district vendor;
If the total bid or quote is over $5001 then the award will be made to the lowest bidder regardless of their location, provided the criteria listed above (a.-d.) about bidding are applicable.
Adopted: October 4, 1978
Revised: October 25, 1994
Revised: March 21, 2000
Reviewed: January 22, 2002