Section 220-RICR-30-00-2.2 - CENTRALIZED PROCUREMENT AUTHORITY FOR STATE AGENCIES SET FORTH IN CHAPTER 37-2A. R.I. Gen. Laws § 37-2-12(1) All rights, powers, duties, and authority relating to the procurement of supplies, services, and construction, and the management, control, warehousing, sale, and disposal of supplies, services, and construction exercised by any state agency as established by the General Assembly, shall be under the jurisdiction of the state's Chief Purchasing Officer. 1. R.I. Gen. Laws § 37-2-54(3) No purchase or contract shall be binding on the state or any agency thereof unless approved by the department [of Administration] or made under general regulations which the Chief Purchasing Officer may prescribe. a. Purchasing Authority shall be defined as the authority to act on behalf of the state to commit funds, enter into binding agreements or contracts, dispose of state property, or in any other manner control procurement or obligate the State.b. No state agency official shall have the right to exercise purchasing authority through written or oral agreements or contracts or in any other way financially or otherwise obligate the State without the express written consent of the Chief Purchasing Officer.c. No state agency may place orders or negotiate with suppliers or potential suppliers without the participation or express approval of the Chief Purchasing Officer.2. The Office of Purchases within the Department of Administration shall be the state's centralized purchasing and contracting authority.B. R.I. Gen. Laws § 37-2-1 Within the Department of Administration there shall be a purchasing agent who shall be appointed by the Chief Purchasing Officer with the approval of the Governor, and who shall now and hereafter be in the classified service of the state. R.I. Gen. Laws § 37 - 2-11 The Purchasing Agent shall be the administrator of the Office of Purchases and shall: 1. R.I. Gen. Laws § 37-2-11(1) Serve as the central procurement and contracting agent of the state;2. R.I. Gen. Laws § 37-2-11(2) Recommend regulations, rules, and procedures to the Chief Purchasing Officer;3. R.I. Gen. Laws § 37-2-11(3) Purchase or otherwise acquire, or, with the approval of the Chief Purchasing Officer to delegate the purchase and acquisition of, all supplies, services and construction for the state.C. R.I. Gen. Laws § 37-2-54(1) The Chief Purchasing Officer, except as otherwise provided by law, shall purchase, or shall delegate and control the purchase of, the combined requirements of all spending agencies of the state including, but not limited to, interests in real property, contractual services, rentals of all types, supplies, materials, equipment, and services, except where competitive bids may not be required, and except as otherwise authorized by R.I. Gen. Laws § 37-2-18(a)-(h)"Competitive Sealed Bidding" and these regulations. 1. Delegated Purchase Authority shall mean the transfer of Purchasing Authority from the Chief Purchasing Officer or the Purchasing Agent to another state official in accordance with the provisions and limitations of R.I. Gen. Laws § 37-2 and the regulations set forth herein.a. The Purchasing Agent may recommend to the Chief Purchasing Officer that purchasing authority be delegated in circumstances where cost-effectiveness and efficiency are best served.b. The Purchasing Agent may delegate purchase authority with the written approval of the Chief Purchasing Officer.c. Requested Delegated Purchase Authority shall be specifically justified by an agency director/chief executive and authorized by the Purchasing Agent in advance of any purchase action.d. All delegated purchasing authority shall be specific as to:(1) The names and titles of individuals authorized by an agency director to commit funds on behalf of his agency(2) The accounts, commodities and levels of expenditures for which the agency director authorizes individuals to commit fundse. The Chief Purchasing Officer shall transmit on an annual basis a list of officials approved to authorize delegated purchase transactions to the Office of Accounts and Control and the Budget Office.f. The implementation of Delegated Purchasing Authority shall be monitored by the Purchasing Agent and the State Controller. If at any time a user agency is deemed to be in violation of purchasing rules, regulations, policies and procedures, the Chief Purchasing Officer or the Purchasing Agent, with the approval of the Chief Purchasing Officer, may revoke any Delegated Purchasing Authority privilege which has been previously granted.D. R.I. Gen. Laws § 37-2-9(1) The Chief Purchasing Officer shall have power and authority over, and may, except as otherwise expressly provided in R.I. Gen. Laws § 37-2, adopt regulations pursuant to R.I. Gen. Laws § 42-35-2 governing the purchasing management and control of any and all supplies, services, and construction, and other items required to be purchased by the state. The Chief Purchasing Officer shall consider and decide matters of policy with regard to state procurement. The Chief Purchasing Officer shall have the power of review with respect to the implementation of regulations and policy determinations.E. R.I. Gen. Laws § 37-2-10 The Chief Purchasing Officer may provide for the distribution of the Department's procurement activities and functions among the various divisions within the Department. However, in accordance with R.I. Gen. Laws § 37-2-13(3) the Chief Purchasing Officer shall not delegate his power to issue state purchasing regulations to any other person or agency, and no state purchasing regulations shall be issued except as approved by the Chief Purchasing Officer.F. R.I. Gen. Laws § 37-2-54(3) The Department of Administration shall have supervision over all purchases by the various spending agencies, except as otherwise provided by law, and shall prescribe rules and regulations to govern purchasing by or for all such agencies, subject to the approval of the Chief Purchasing Officer and shall publish a manual of procedures to be distributed to agencies and to be revised upon issuance of amendments to such procedures.G. R.I. Gen. Laws § 37-2-54(4) The Chief Purchasing Officer shall require agencies to take and maintain inventories of plant and equipment and the Department of Administration shall conduct periodic physical audits of inventories.H. R.I. Gen. Laws § 37-2-54(5) The Department of Administration shall require all agencies to furnish an estimate of specific needs for supplies, materials and equipment to be purchased by competitive bidding for the purpose of permitting scheduling of purchasing in large volume. It shall establish and enforce schedules for purchasing supplies, materials, and equipment. In addition, all agencies shall submit to the Department of Administration prior to the beginning of each fiscal year an estimate of all needs for supplies, materials and equipment during that year which will have to be acquired through competitive bidding. 1. The Chief Purchasing Officer may require any agency to submit annual or multi- year plans for proposed procurements of supplies, material, equipment, and supplemental services.2. The Chief Purchasing Officer may require the sub-mission of procurement plans with the submission of budget requests. I. R.I. Gen. Laws § 37-2-54(6) The Department of Administration shall have power, with the approval of the State Properties Committee, to transfer between departments, to salvage, to exchange, and to condemn supplies, equipment, and real property.
1. R.I. Gen. Laws § 37-2-45 Supply Disposition Process. - The Chief Purchasing Officer shall sell or otherwise dispose of all property (including any interest in real property) of the state which is not needed or has become unsuitable for public use, or would be more suitable consistent with the public interest for some other use, as determined by the Chief Purchasing Officer subject to the approval of the State Proper-ties Committee and pursuant to the provisions of R.I. Gen. Laws 37-7. The determination of the Chief Purchasing Officer shall be set forth in an order and shall be reached only after review of a written request by the agency desiring to dispose of the property. Such request shall describe the property and state the reasons why the agency believes disposal should be effected. All instruments required by law to be recorded which convey any interest in any such real property so disposed of shall be executed and signed by the acquiring authority pursuant the provisions of R.I. Gen. Laws § 37-7 a. Disposal of equipment which has attained the end of its useful life, as determined by the Purchasing Agent, and is intended for use as a "one-for-one" trade in applied to the procurement of new, similar equipment shall be exempted from review by the State Properties Committee.220 R.I. Code R. 220-RICR-30-00-2.2