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Purchasing Information

Contact Information
Purchase Requisitions
- Information on various methods of purchasing
- Instructions for completion
- Reporting Receipt of items
Selecting a Vendor
- Preferred sources
- MWBE
Dollar Thresholds
Enterprise Car Rentals
Special Purchases
- Blanket Orders
- Honoraria/Personal Services
- Memberships
- Equipment Maintenance
- Conference Registration
- Subscriptions
- Wal-Mart
- Credit Card/VISA Purchases

Office location    Netzer 218
Office Staff:
Cindy Meres, Manager of Purchasing     436-3388
Judi McWherter    436-3386
Deborah Murphy    436-2858
Office Fax    436-3172
Office hours       Monday – Friday: 8am - 4:30pm
Summer Office hours    Monday – Friday: 8am - 4:00pm
For Contracts and bids:
Denise Straut, Director of Business Services        436-2583

2. Purchase Requisitions

GENERAL INFORMATION AND METHODS OF PUCHASING
All items purchased from College funds should be ordered via requisition. Employees making purchases without prior authorization via a purchase order can be held responsible for the payment. The College does not authorize purchases from vendors who do not accept purchase orders unless we are able to order with the campus VISA card. Every attempt should be made to purchase first from a MWBE or State Contract vendor. Departments should not place their own orders unless arrangements have been worked out ahead of time with the Purchasing staff.

PDF Requisition Form available here – follow instructions for paper requisition forms (below). Upon completion, print 3 copies, send 2 signed copies to Purchasing, and retain one for your department records. (PDF form cannot be saved.)
Paper Requisition Forms - forms are available from the campus supply room at no cost
On-line Requisitions -Departments may now enter requisitions on-line for direct transmittal to Purchasing. Training is required. Contact Cindy Meres if you are interested in receiving access and training.
Reimbursement for items purchased - In no case should an item be purchased and later submitted for reimbursement to the employee, with the exception of travel or candidate meals unless specific arrangements have been made ahead of time.
Travel - Travel costs shall be encumbered prior to the trip via completion of the ‘Request to be Absent and Travel Form’ (see Campus Travel Manual)
Rental vehicles – Travel in Enterprise rental vehicles is encouraged as the College fleet is not large enough to meet all requests. Reservations may be made online directly here OR by calling 433-1000. Either method of reservation requires follow-up with a purchase requisition at least one business day prior to car pick-up. Otherwise, you will need to pay for the car and apply for reimbursement after the trip. There is no need to purchase additional insurance for Enterprise rentals if the College has confirmed your reservation via a Purchase order because we use the College’s Travel VISA card, which carries trip insurance. However, under all other circumstances and with all other rental agencies, additional insurance must be purchased.

INSTRUCTIONS FOR COMPLETION OF PAPER REQUISITION FORMS
Purchase Requisition forms may be acquired from the Supply Room, MOC. There is no charge for these forms. The more information provided by the department, the more accurate the order. A separate requisition form is needed for each vendor.

(Suggested) VENDOR INFORMATION (The College has the final determination as to where an item will be purchased from.)

Name
Complete address, including street/city/zip code
Phone and fax numbers. (If the fax number is included, the Purchasing Department will automatically fax the order to the vendor.)
Federal Identification number. All purchase orders must include this number.

SUNY ACCOUNT AND SUBACCOUNT NUMBERS – The account(s) that should be charged for this purchase. One requisition may be used by one or more departments with various accounts. Include how much should be charged to each account, and have the requisition signed with the appropriate authorized signatures for each account. Purchasing will assign the object code.
DESCRIPTION - Include, when applicable:
- A clear description of the item (needed to assign a product code)
- Catalog/Part number
- Make/Model number
- Color/size
- Packaging information – include how many items in package
QUANTITY – The quantity should agree with the unit listed (Example: if items are sold as individual units, list as 12 ea, not 1 dozen.
UNIT – How items are packaged (Example: each, dozen, thousand, package)
(UNIT) PRICE – This price should be for the unit specified. If an item is FREE, make sure to indicate this in the unit price field.
T OTAL– This is the total amount for this particular item. (Multiply quantity by unit price.)
TOTAL AMOUNT OF ORDER – Total of all items included on requisition
DEPARTMENT – Print name of the department ordering. This information is critical for Central Receiving to know where items are to be delivered. (If you would like items delivered to a location other than the ordering department, include this information in the Description area.)
AUTHORIZED SIGNATURE – Signature of authorized Account Manager assigned to the account being charged. Purchasing maintains an annual listing of all authorized signatures. Alternates must be listed on the authorization form in order to sign a requisition. Unauthorized signatures will result in requisition being returned to the submitting department.
ATTACHMENTS - should be stapled (not paper clipped) to the back of the requisition. Make a copy of any backup information to keep in your files.
SUBMIT completed form to the Purchasing Department, 118 Netzer. The majority of requisitions can be completed within 3 working days, and you should receive notification from Purchasing (via the stamped yellow copy of requisition) within 5-7 days after submitting your requisition.
SPECIAL INSTRUCTIONS - should be written directly on the requisition. The more information we have, the better we will be able to meet your needs. Special instructions may include the following:

“The vendor’s copy of the purchase order should be returned to the requisitioning department” so they can pick up the items themselves, or so they can mail additional information to the vendor.
“The vendor listed should be used because …..”
“The items/services are needed by a special date.” (Please highlight this information so we can include it on the purchase order.)
“The purchase order should be faxed to the vendor”. If a department includes the fax number for the vendor on the requisition, Purchasing will automatically fax the purchase order to the vendor. The number listed should indicate “fax number” or we will assume that the number is a telephone number.
“The payment must be routed back to originating office” as is often the case for speakers and performers.

REPORTING RECEIPT OF ITEMS
The Accounts Payable Office cannot pay invoices unless they have confirmation of receipt of orders. The Purchasing Office sends the Goldenrod copy of the Purchase Order to Central Receiving so they are able to match incoming orders with appropriate ordering department. When an order is received, Central Receiving will indicate receipt of items on the Goldenrod and submit to Accounts Payable to allow payment of the invoice.
When an order is to be sent directly to the ordering department or the purchase is for services, a Blanket Order or Maintenance Agreement, the Goldenrod copy of the Purchase Order is sent to the ordering department. These should be signed upon completion of order, and sent to Accounts Payable. Also indicated on or with the Goldenrod copy should be the following:

Quantity of items received
Date items received or services performed
Signature of person confirming the filled order

3. SELECTING A VENDOR AND DOLLAR LIMIT RULES

Please feel free to contact the Purchasing Department for help in selecting a vendor!

First consideration should always be given to purchasing from:

State Preferred sources (NY Industries for the Blind and Disabled and New York State Corrections) It is the policy of the State University to utilize preferred sources whenever possible. These include the Division of Correctional Industries and NYSID –New York Industries for the Disabled. We may, however, consider whether form, function and utility of the products or services from these sources meet our needs.

Minority and Woman Owned Businesses It is the policy of the State University to take affirmative action to ensure that New York State certified minority-and women-owned business enterprises (M/WBEs) are given the opportunity to demonstrate their ability to provide the University with commodities and services at competitive prices. The College strongly encourages the selection of M/WBE vendors when possible.

State Contracts

Many items have been negotiated under contract by the Office of General Services (OGS) at excellent rates. To see if your item may be available under a State contract, please check this OGS website.

4. DOLLAR THRESHOLDS FOR PURCHASES

Items on State Contract

Advertise in Contract Reporter

Three written quotes

Sealed bids

Vendor Responsibility determination

Vendor Responsibility disclosure

Lobbying Record of Contact form

Procurement Lobbying vendor forms

ST-220 Tax Certification

Contract Approval from AG & OSC

Before you fill out a requisition, determine the total amount of the purchase. Orders cannot be split into separate items or services to avoid these requirements.

Items or Services at or above $20,000.00 must be advertised in the Contract Reporter prior to ordering to ensure that the agency is obtaining available price quotes and opportunities. Contact Denise Straut to place an advertisement prior to selecting a vendor. Intent to purchase such items or services must appear as a notice in the New York State Contract Reporter at least 15 days in advance of the date on which an order is placed.

Items or Services at or above $15,000 require a Lobbying Record of Contact form (pdf) to record all contacts made by vendors that were an effort to attempt to influence your procurement decision. Submission of a bid or quote at our request is not considered a contact. Any contact with a potential vendor during the “Restricted Period” (considered by the Office of the State Comptroller to occur from the time the campus announces its intention to purchase via the Contract Reporter through the actual order of the product) is limited to either the employee identified in the advertisement as the Agency Contact and/or Denise Straut, the general campus designated agency contact. The form should be submitted with your Purchase Requisition. For questions, contact the Office of Finance & Administration.
Items or Services at $50,000 - $124,999 require hard copy proof of competition in addition to advertising in The Contract Reporter. The department should receive a minimum of three written quotations before submitting a requisition. (You must place your order with the vendor who submits the lowest quotation!) Faxed quotations are acceptable as long as they are on the vendor’s letterhead and include a description of the items/services being quoted and the price. All original quotations must be attached to the back of the requisition with the lowest quotation on the top. Please make copies for your files before submitting.
Items or Services $125,000 and over require a formal bid and contract process, which normally takes 6-12 weeks to complete, depending on the bid specifications and selection process desired. Please contact Denise Straut as soon as considerations are being given to making purchases at this threshold.
Items or Services $250,000 and over require contracts resulting from a bid and must be approved by both the Office of the State Comptroller and the State Attorney General prior to deliver of any goods and services and any payments made by the College’s Accounts Payable Office. This process may take 3- 5 months, depending on the specifications of the bid and questions that may be raised by the State Comptroller.

Exceptions to the above limits:
Any items/services covered by a New York State Office of General Services contract do not require any additional competition, and those purchased from a preferred source (workshops for the blind, mentally ill, Division of Correctional Industries, etc.) may not require any additional competition, depending on dollar value of purchase. (Only contracts issued by the State of New York are exempt. Federal Government contracts do not qualify and must follow the above rules.)

5. RENTING FROM ENTERPRISE

Employees may rent a vehicle through the New York State contract vendor, which is currently Enterprise Rent-a-Car. (You are not required to apply for a campus vehicle first, but you may choose to do so. ) Our local dealer is located on State Highway 23 in Oneonta.
For more information on State travel, see the College’s Travel Policy -
To reserve a vehicle, you may either call the local office at 607-433-1000 or reserve online here.
A Purchase Requisition must then be submitted to the campus Purchasing Office, whether you are reserving on-line or by phone, and should include the Enterprise confirmation number. Reservations confirmed through the Purchasing Office will be charged to the proper department account via the college's VISA card, and purchase of any additional insurance is not necessary.
Reservations that are not confirmed with a Purchase Requisition from the Purchasing Office can not be charged to the College's VISA card. The employee will be expected to pay at the time of rental and the employee will be reimbursed per the College travel reimbursement procedures. When this method is used, the renter must purchase the Loss Damage Waiver Insurance (LDW).

6. SPECIAL PURCHASES

BLANKET ORDERS –
Used for multiple small dollar purchases from the same vendor. Once a blanket order has been set up by the Purchasing Office, you can place your own orders by fax, phone, or pick up, referencing the assigned purchase order number on communications with the vendor.

To receive a Blanket Order: