The Purchasing Department is responsible for all aspects of procurement for the Washington County Public School System.  Our goal is to provide goods and services at the lowest total cost to provide students and staff of WCPS the necessary tools to achieve the highest level of academic excellence.  We encourage open competition among vendors through fair negotiation, competitive bidding and contract buying.

MBE Information

MBE - New 60% Rule

MBE - Sample Form B

Bidding/Quoting

• All formal bidding is handled through the WCPS Purchasing Department.
• Procurements of school buildings, improvements, supplies and equipment, with an anticipated price of between $10,000 up to $25,000, require three written quotations.
• Procurements of school buildings, improvements, supplies and equipment, with an anticipated price of $25,000 and up, require a formal bid or request for proposals.
• A procurement may be for a group of the same or similar items being purchased over a period of time.  As such, quoting/bidding may be required if the anticipated cumulative price of goods from one vendor or for one project will exceed $10,000, even if no individual item exceeds this amount.
• Exceptions to quoting/bidding requirement includes: textbooks, instructional materials and emergency repairs/services.
• Competitive pricing of professional services contracts is required for procurements that are expected to exceed $25,000. 
• Architectural/Engineering services must be competitively bid if the anticipated construction cost will exceed $1,000,000.
• Minority Business Enterprise participation goals must be established for the bidding of construction projects for which State funds are being provided.

Contracts

• All agreements between WCPS and a vendor involving finanical consideration of public funds in exchange for goods/services, must be made on a Purchase Order or Contract Form. 
• The Superintendent must approve all contracts and professional service agreements.
• All contracts must be reviewed and approved by the Legal Department prior to submission to the Superintendent.
• Contracts for services anticipated to cost $50,000 require the approval of the Board of Education.
• Twice annually, the Superintendent provides an informational report to the Board of Education of all professional service contracts anticipated to cost $25,000 to $50,000 or more.

For more information regarding approval guidelines and Board of Education policies applicable to procurement dollar thresholds, download the Approval Guideline Reference Sheet.