Procurement

Purpose

To provide a procurement process that will enable the FFPL Board, CEO and Staff to acquire the quality and quantity of goods and services required for the best value, while complying with all applicable legislative requirements and ensuring an open, transparent competitive process.

Purchases will be made in compliance with all relevant statutes and regulations including, but not limited to, Municipal Act s.270(2), Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA), and the Public Libraries Act.

Authority

The FFPL Board authorizes the CEO to act for the FFPLTC in the procurement of goods and services.

1. The CEO is authorized to proceed with formal agreements and contracts on behalf of the FFPLTC.
2. The CEO is authorized to delegate authority for procurement, depending on the scope and value of a purchase.
3. The authority to proceed with procurement is subject to the availability of sufficient funds within the approved FFPLTC budget.
4. If a project exceeds, or is anticipated to exceed, the approved contingency threshold, then the FFPL Board must be notified to approve additional funds.

Conflict of Interest

Members of the FFPL Board or an employee of the FFPLTC must declare pecuniary interest in any proposal, contract, tender, or quotation for the supply of goods and services to the library, should they have direct or indirect interest in said work or project.

Exclusions

This procurement policy includes the purchase of all goods and services for FFPLTC except for the following:

1. Utilities such as water, hydro
2. Training and education such as conferences, registration, courses, and workshops
3. Refundable employee expenses such as travel, mileage, accommodation
4. General expenses such as licenses, postage
5. Petty cash items less than $50

Purchasing Methods

1. Purchases not exceeding $500

   Purchases made pursuant to this section shall be made from the competitive marketplace whenever possible and may be made by using petty cash or purchase card. All petty cash fund disbursements shall be evidenced by sales receipts.

2. Purchases over $500 but not exceeding $5,000

   Purchases made pursuant to this section for the acquisition of goods and services shall be made from the competitive marketplace whenever possible and may be made using an approved invoice or purchase card.

3. Purchases over $5,000 but not exceeding $35,000

   Purchases requiring the acquisition of goods, services or construction having a total acquisition cost between $5,000 and $35,000 may be made by using a purchase card or approved invoice subject to at least three written quotes without the necessity of advertising or formal tender procedures prior to ordering.

4. Purchases Exceeding $35,000

   A request for tender shall be used for purchases exceeding $35,000 where the following criteria apply:

   1. Two or more sources are considered capable of supplying the requirement.
   2. The requirement is adequately defined to permit evaluation of tenders against clearly defined stated criteria.

   The CEO shall provide a report to the FFPL Board with recommendations containing all pertinent information.

Disposal of Goods Procured

1. Library materials

   The disposal of physical materials from library collections (including books and DVDs) is outlined in OP-03 Collection Development where withdrawn materials may be discarded or sold on authority of the Library CEO.

2. Surplus Goods

   1. Where the CEO or designate determines that any goods should be declared surplus due to being obsolete, worn out or no longer being useful for the FFPLTC, a list of such goods shall be created for inventory and tracking purposes.
   2. The CEO or designate shall be responsible for the handling of surplus of all library materials and shall determine the appropriate method of conveyance to best meet the library’s needs.
   3. Arrangements may be made for the disposal of the goods in any way that is believed will provide the highest return to the library including, but not limited to:
      • Trade-in as part of the procurement of other similar goods being acquired by the library
      • Donating to another community organization or neighbouring library
      • Selling the goods for a nominal fee
      • Town of Fort Frances Asset Sale
      • Classifying as waste and recycling, dismantling, destroying and/or disposing