201 - Purchasing & Procurement

The function of purchasing is to serve CUES' programs by providing the necessary supplies, equipment, and services. The CUES Executive Board declares its intention to purchase competitively without prejudice and to seek maximum educational value for every dollar expended. The acquisition of supplies, equipment, and services will be centralized in the front office, which functions under the supervision of the director of CUES, and through whose office all purchasing transactions are conducted.

1. PURCHASING AUTHORITY:
   
   The CUES Executive Board assigns the director of the responsibility for the quality and quantity of purchases made. The prime guidelines governing this responsibility are that all purchases fall within the framework of budgetary limitations and that they be consistent with the approved services and programs of CUES.
   It is the responsibility of the director to approve purchases for program use. The director is authorized to approve purchases in accordance with budget allocations. Major purchases/contracts for the operation of the CUES office over $5,000 require Executive Board approval.
   Separate, independent purchasing by individual programs presents a difficult budget control problem and leads to inconsistent procedures and possibly unwise or illegal transactions. Therefore, individual programs will have no authority to make purchases except as approved by the director.
   
   
2. PURCHASING REGULATIONS:
   
   
   1. An estimate of the needs of each program will be made at the close of each fiscal year. A budget for each department will be prepared by the director to be approved by the Executive Board in its June meeting.
   2. Requisitions must be completed with all the information needed. Incomplete requisitions will be returned to the responsible individual or program.
   3. When items on a requisition are not received at once, then a second requisition should not be sent in unless the duplicate of the previous requisition has been returned with some notation.
   4. CUES personnel shall never purchase items without first sending in a requisition and receiving a purchase order from the director. This procedure must be followed in all cases where such items are to be charged to CUES. When local purchases are made employees must first secure a purchase order through the director. At the time of purchase, the sales slip must be signed and a copy delivered to the CUES Office Manager. The purchase order number must be written on the sales slip.
   5. Approval orders. Some items must be previewed. Employees must submit a requisition as usual and label “Order on Approval Only.” A purchase order will be sent, labeled the same way, and the invoice will not be paid until the fiscal agent has been notified to do so.
   6. Emergencies. In the case of rush items, employees should hand carry the requisition to the director and it will be considered immediately.
   7. Violations. Employees failing to comply with the above procedures may be held responsible for payment of the invoice.
   8. CUES equipment. Ordinarily items over $500 in cost, that will not be consumed in a short time, but will last and can be identified and inventoried, are defined as equipment.
   9. CUES employees will follow all policies and procedures for the use of their individual credit card regarding items less than $500.
      
      
3. PROCUREMENT OF GOODS AND SERVICES
   CUES is required to comply with legal standards established by the Utah Procurement Code and guidelines provided by the State Office of Education.
   1. REGULAR FUNDS PURCHASES
      1. If an employee desires to purchase any item or group of items costing $1,000.00 or more, bids or quotations will be required (i.e. a group of chairs, costing $2.00 each, for a total of $1,000 shall be bid). Any item or group of items over $2,000 require written bids and over $20,000, advertisement plus sealed written bids.
      2. The requesting employee should prepare specifications describing the item or services desired. Include the required size, function, and quality. Specific brand names may be listed with an indication that a comparable quality is desired.
      3. At least three quotations shall be obtained and submitted with the requisition to the director.
      4. A reasonable time for response should be allowed, at least 3 days. In the case of written bids, at least 10 days should be given. In an emergency refer to Code 201 - B – 6 of the CUES Policy Manual.
      5. “Informal” verbal bids will be acceptable in most cases. Informal bids should be recorded on the appropriate CUES form.
      6. All evaluation criteria of bids shall be stated in the Invitation for the LOWEST Bids. The Invitation for bids shall state the criteria of product BIDDER acceptability and cost criteria such as, but not limited to, transportation costs, insurance costs, energy cost, personnel cost, ownership, life-cycle etc.
      7. The CUES staff will assist by suggesting sources. CUES will also coordinate and deliver bid forms for quantity purchases, to obtain a better bid. The staff will also handle major purchases with input from the specialists involved.
      8. Purchases made under the state bidding contracts must contain the state contract number on the requisition and don’t require individual bids to be secured by CUES.
      9. Bids will be evaluated by the invitation for of lowest bids. The director may reject any or all bids. A suggested Evaluation criterion is as follows: final price (weighted 30%), Speed or efficiency (weighted 25%), history of good prompt service (weight 25%), vendor caters to government or education (10%), local vendor (10%).
         
         
   2. GRANT FUNDS PURCHASES
      The same procedures must be followed for purchases made with grant funds. Grant fund information should be kept on file at least three years.
      
      
   3. RECEIVING, CHECKING, AND REPORTING GOODS RECEIVED
      In order to ensure efficient business procedures, a check must be made of all goods received against the purchase orders issued. This procedure guarantees that CUES receives the items that have been paid for. The following procedure is established at CUES within the policies established by its fiscal agent and will take place each Monday.
      1. Invoices must be submitted to the Sevier District Office to be paid. Invoices must include all material, supplies, equipment, furniture, books, etc., received by CUES for which purchase orders have been issued and for which payment is to be made. This includes local purchases and goods from outside suppliers.
      2. When packing slips are available they should be attached to the Report of Goods Received. If invoices are picked up from local suppliers, they must be signed by the person receiving the item being purchased and sent to the Sevier District Office.
      3. No item will be paid for until properly reported.
      4. All invoices for payment will be reviewed and signed by the CUES director.
      5. The Sevier District Office will process invoices for payment weekly.
      6. Checks issued will be mailed out directly by the Sevier District Office.
         
         
   4. INVOICING AND BILLING PROCEDURES
      CUES will be responsible to invoice each district or organization using its resources. The following procedure will be followed:
      1. CUES shall make two (2) copies of each billing invoice. One copy will remain with the school or unit receiving the materials. One copy will be retained by CUES.
      2. Monthly charges shall be due and payable upon receipt of the monthly statement submitted by CUES.
      3. All statements are to be paid directly to CUES for deposit with Sevier School District to the account of the center.
      4. Districts or organizations failing to make prompt payment of services rendered will be required to make payment in advance for all materials and services rendered until an adequate adjustment is made. Payment is to be remitted at the time of order.
         
         
   5. PAYMENT PROCEDURE
      All invoices will be paid on the following conditions.
      1. Sevier School District’s clerk who pays all vendor bills will insist that all receipts and invoices are provided with all requests for payment. Without said receipts or invoices, no payment should be made, and the director of CUES notified. It should be an expectation of the clerk to require signatures of approval on all pages of each invoice. A signature stamp is not acceptable. It is also expected that a periodic review of the payment process be conducted by Sevier’s business administrator or designee.
      2. The Sevier School District business office shall provide access to expenditures for each program at CUES, so that CUES Program Specialists and Executive Board members may track payments.
      3. The CUES Executive Board will authorize and approve the check warrants reports (vouchers) at their scheduled meetings. This report will consist of current checks issued.
         
         Any claim for reimbursement must include receipts, proper documentation, and a description of the transaction. All claims must be reviewed and signed by the CUES director. A stamped signature will not be accepted.

   6. FRAUD, WASTE, ABUSE REPORTING

      1. It is the policy of the Board of CUES, CUES employees to be accountable to education stakeholders and strive to ensure public trust and confidence that financial resources are appropriately managed and safeguarded. CUES, in coordination with the Utah State Board of Education Internal Audit Department, provides an avenue for education stakeholders (e.g., citizens, employees, contractors) to report:
         1. Suspected financial improprieties or violations of (i) laws or applicable regulations
         2. Waste or misuse of CUES funds or resources
         3. Gross mismanagement
         4. Abuse of authority
         5. Unethical conduct
         6. Constructive suggestions for improving CUES regarding financial related matters, internal controls, or compliance
      2. The hotline coordinates the efforts of existing resources and public education governance structures to ensure efficient and effective consideration of concerns, while mitigating potential duplication of efforts.
      3. Complaints may be submitted through any of the following avenues:
         1. Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. – this is a dedicated email just for hot lines
         2. Phone: 801-538-7813 – this is a dedicated line just for hotlines.
         3. US Mail: Director of Internal Audit
            Utah State Board of Education
            PO Box 144200
            250 East 500 South
            Salt Lake City, Utah 84114-4200
         4. In-Person: by visiting the offices of the Internal Audit Department at the Utah State
         5. Board of Education (see address above).
         6. Direct Webpage submission: Report Fraud, Waste, or Abuse Form tab at https://schools.utah.gov/internalaudit
         7. Consider including the following information with your concerns:
            1. Description of the suspected violation(s).
            2. The name of the employee(s) involved.
            3. The school, division, and location where the action occurred.
            4. The date(s) the action occurred.
            5. Any other details that may be important for the investigation – other witnesses, evidence, documents, dollar amounts, time period, etcetera.
            6. Specific law or regulation that has been violated if known.
            7. Your name, address, email, and phone number, although personally identifiable information is not required (i.e., you may report anonymously). If you elect to provide personally identifiable information, you may still choose to keep your information confidential (see Confidentiality below).
      4. Whistleblower Protection
         1. Utah Code § 67-21-3 prohibits public employers from taking adverse action against their employees for reporting government waste or violations of law in good faith, to the appropriate authorities. A CUES employee is presumed to have communicated in good faith if they have given written notice or otherwise formally communicated the conduct to a governing or management body or audit office as outlined in Utah Code §67-21-3(1)(b)(iv) and (vi). Whistleblower protections do not apply to anonymous complaints.
      5. Confidentiality
         1. The identity of the complainant is considered protected information under the Utah