HomeMy WebLinkAboutFin Purchasing Policy Ordinance AdoptionSUMMARY OF ORDINANCE NO. 2048
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF SAN RAFAEL AMENDING CHAPTER 2.55 OF
THE SAN RAFAEL MUNICIPAL CODE ENTITLED “PURCHASING POLICY” TO
UPDATE THE CITY OF SAN RAFAEL’S PURCHASING POLICIES AND
PROCEDURES
This Summary concerns a proposed ordinance of the City of San Rafael,
designated as Ordinance No. 2048, which will amend Chapter 2.55 of the San Rafael
Municipal Code. Ordinance No.2048 is scheduled for adoption by the San Rafael City
Council at its regular meeting of May 19, 2025. The City Clerk has been directed to
publish this Summary pursuant to City Charter and California Government Code section
36933(c)(1).
SUMMARY OF AMENDMENT TO MUNICIPAL CODE
An ordinance is proposed to amend Chapter 2.55 to make changes to the City’s
purchasing policies and procedures, including, but not limited to, the following: increasing
the City Manager’s award authority to $100,000; clarifying award authority for
modifications to contracts and purchase orders; clarifying requirement for available
budget appropriations for multi-year contracts; and increasing the threshold amount for
formal bidding to $100,000.
Copies of Ordinance No. 2048 are available for public review on the City’s
website: https://www.cityofsanrafael.org. You may also contact the City Clerk at (415)
485-3066 for information.
________________________________
LINDSAY LARA
San Rafael City Clerk
Dated: 5/9/25
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ORDINANCE NO. 2048
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF SAN RAFAEL AMENDING CHAPTER
2.55 OF THE SAN RAFAEL MUNICIPAL CODE ENTITLED “PURCHASING
POLICY” TO UPDATE THE CITY OF SAN RAFAEL’S PURCHASING
POLICIES AND PROCEDURES
WHEREAS, in 1994, the San Rafael City Council adopted Ordinance No. 1661, adding
Chapter 2.55, Purchasing Policy, to the San Rafael Municipal Code; and
WHEREAS, in 1997, the San Rafael City Council adopted Ordinance No. 1707, adding
Chapter 2.60, Professional Services Agreements, to the San Rafael Municipal Code; and
WHEREAS, in 2018 the San Rafael City Council adopted Ordinance No.1975 amending
Chapters 2.55 and repealing Chapter 2.60 of the San Rafael Municipal Code to
consolidate the City of San Rafael’s purchasing policies and procedures for procurement
of supplies, materials, equipment and services; and
WHEREAS, the City of San Rafael’s purchasing policies and procedures require updates
periodically in order to reflect best practices in procurement and purchasing, as well as to
comply with evolving federal and state requirements; and
WHEREAS, the City Council desires to amend Chapter 2.55 of the San Rafael Municipal
Code in order to update the City’s purchasing policies and procedures in order to reflect
best practices in procurement and purchasing while also promoting efficiency and
effectiveness of exercise of the City’s procurement activities;
WHEREAS, the City’s purchasing policy established the City Manager’s award authority,
which was last adjusted in 2018, and the City Council desired to provide for inflationary
adjustment to increase the City Manager’s award authority from $75,000 to $100,000;
and
WHEREAS, the City purchasing policy establishes dollar thresholds and award authority
for informal and formal bidding procedures, and whereby the current policy establishes
that informal bids, defined as not exceeding $75,000, shall be awarded by the City
Manager, and formal bid awards, defined as exceeding $75,000 shall be awarded by the
City Council; and
WHEREA, the City Council desires to update the dollar threshold for distinguishing
between informal and formal bid requirements from $75,000 to $100,000; and
WHEREAS, the City’s purchasing policy provides that award authority for modifications
to contracts or purchase orders may be awarded by the City Manager if the dollar value
of the modification is within their award authority; and
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WHEREAS, in July 2024 the City’s internal purchasing administrative procedures
developed to ensure compliance with the purchasing policy were updated to clarify that
for application of contract award authority, the value of a modification is determined by
the total value of the original contract or purchase order, plus the dollar amount of the
modification and the City Council desires to codify this clarification with the City’s formal
purchasing policy; and,
WHEREAS, City’s purchasing provides that no contract or purchase order shall be
awarded without sufficient available budget appropriations within the account to which the
contract is to be charged; and the City Council desires to amend the policy to include
requirements for multi-year contracts where funding is provided annually through the
budget process; and
NOW, THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SAN RAFAEL DOES
HEREBY ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS:
DIVISION 1:
Chapter 2.55 of the San Rafael Municipal Code entitled “Purchasing Policy” is
hereby amended as follows: Additions are shown in underline and deletions in
strikethrough.
CHAPTER 2.55 – PURCHASING POLICY
2.55.020 - Definitions.
As used in this chapter, the following terms are defined as follows:
G. "Purchasing agent" shall mean the city manager or theirhis or her designee.
2.55.040 - Award authority.
A. If the amount of any purchase or contract exceeds seventy-five one hundred
thousand dollars ($75,000.00$100,000), bids shall be awarded by the City
Council. Purchases or contracts equal to or less than seventy-five one hundred
thousand dollars ($75,000.00$100,000) shall be awarded by the city manager or
their designee.
B. No purchases made by any person, or in any manner other than as described
herein, shall be binding upon the City or constitute a lawful charge against any
City funds.
C. Modifications to contracts or purchase orders which represent no change in the
scope of the character of material or services provided in the original contract or
purchase order may be approved by the city manager or purchasing agent if the
dollar value of the original contract to purchase order plus the modification is within
their award authority.
2.55.080 - Encumbrance of funds.
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Except in cases of emergency, no purchase order or any contract or any modification
thereto shall be approved for supplies, materials, equipment or services unless there
exists an unencumbered appropriation in the fund account against which said purchase
or contract is to be charged. Multi-year contracts where appropriations are provided on
an annual basis shall be awarded subject to future budget appropriations.
2.55.260 – Informal bids.
Any contract or purchase not exceeding seventy-five thousand one hundred
thousand dollars ($75,000.00$100,000) may be made in accordance with informal bidding
procedures; provided, however, that requirements shall not be artificially divided so as to
constitute a purchase under this section.
DIVISION 2:
This Ordinance is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (“CEQA”)
pursuant to the State CEQA Guidelines, since it can be seen with certainty that there is
no possibility that this Ordinance or its implementation would have a significant effect on
the environment (14 Cal. Code Regs. Section 15061(b)(3)).
DIVISION 3:
If any section, subsection, sentence, clause, or phrase of this Ordinance is for any
reason held to be invalid, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining
portions of this Ordinance. The City Council hereby declares that it would have adopted
the Ordinance and each section, subsection, sentence, clause, or phrase thereof,
irrespective of the fact that any one or more sections, subsections, sentences, clauses,
or phrases be declared invalid.
DIVISION 4:
A summary of this Ordinance shall be published and a certified copy of the full text
of this Ordinance shall be posted in the office of the City Clerk at least five (5) days prior
to the City Council meeting at which it is adopted.
This Ordinance shall be in full force and effect thirty (30) days after its final
passage, and the summary of this Ordinance shall be published within fifteen (15) days
after the adoption, together with the names of the Councilmembers voting for or against
same, in the Marin Independent Journal, a newspaper of general circulation published
and circulated in the City of San Rafael, County of Marin, State of California.
Within fifteen (15) days after adoption, the City Clerk shall also post in the office of
the City Clerk, a certified copy of the full text of this Ordinance along with the names of
those Councilmembers voting for and against the Ordinance.
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THE FOREGOING ORDINANCE was first read and introduced at a regular meeting of
the City Council of the City of San Rafael on 5th day of May 2025, and was passed and
adopted at a regular meeting of the San Rafael City Council on the 19th of May 2025 by
the following vote, to wit:
AYES: Councilmembers:
NOES: Councilmembers:
ABSENT: Councilmembers:
________________________________
Kate Colin, Mayor
ATTEST:
______________________
LINDSAY LARA, City Clerk