A revised purchasing policy that includes “buy local” provisions gained the support of the Minot City Council Monday.

The council’s approval of the draft paves the way for a formal resolution to be created and presented to the council at its next meeting. The council voted 6-1 in support of the policy, with Josh Wolsky opposed.

“I simply think the thresholds we’re talking about here are farther than the public is comfortable with. In terms of not until $50,000 do we start a sealed bid process, I’m just uncomfortable with that. I think that number is too high. I like the general framework of what we’ve talked about here but I can’t support this particular policy,” Wolsky said.

The existing city ordinance requires formal bidding and council approval on purchases that exceed $15,000.

City Attorney Kelly Hendershot said thresholds vary greatly among North Dakota cities, ranging from $25,000 before sealed bids are required in Bismarck to $100,000 in Wahpeton. The State of North Dakota also has a $100,000 threshold.

Hendershot clarified that under the proposed policy, purchases of less than $50,000 still must come to the city council for review if they are outside the approved budget.

City Manager Tom Barry said the sealed bid process takes time and can be onerous for the city and for vendors.

“We’re trying to modernize these thresholds to allow for greater flexibility, while preserving the same level of scrutiny – actually improving the level of scrutiny because of the way we’ll be processing these,” Barry said. “Informal oral quotes start at $5,000, so there will be price checking going on there. It’s not a sealed bid process, but there will be at least three required informal quotes between $5,000 and $25,000, then three informal written quotes, which we’ll have to justify as well, between $25,000 and $50,000.”

He added the higher thresholds allow for more informal processes and encourage the buy-local concept. While any vendor can submit a sealed bid, the city can target local vendors when it seeks quotes.

MacMartin agreed that the informal quote process should be good for local businesses.

“It’s going to increase the likelihood that some dollars are going to be spent locally. I think that was ultimately what we were looking for,” he said.

Council member Stephan Podrygula said he supports buying local as long as safeguards exist against conflicts of interest.

“If we have more flexibility, we need to have that ironclad assurance that there is no conflict of interest, and people are acting on behalf of what’s best for the city, not for themselves or their relatives or business,” he said. “We’re dealing with the public’s money. We have to be above reproach.”

The local preference language in the proposed policy references “local” as within about 65 miles of Minot. City purchasing agents are to make reasonable efforts to obtain at least one quote from a local vendor when seeking informal oral or written quotes. When a sealed bid process is used, the city shall notify local vendors registered as bidders on the city website of the opportunity to bid.

Under the proposed purchasing policy, department heads can make purchases of up to $5,000 without oversight. Purchases then are subject to three informal oral quotes up to $25,000 and three informal written quotes from $25,001 to $50,000, with sealed bids for purchases exceeding $50,000. Emergency purchases need approval from the department head and city manager or finance director, and the council would be informed at its next meeting. There also are rules regarding sole source purchases and purchases that piggyback on other purchases.

Current policy allows department head purchasing discretion up to $1,000, with two oral quotes required for purchases from $1,000 to $3,000. From $3,001 to $15,000, two written quotes are required, and sealed bids must be obtained for purchases over $15,000.

City Finance Director David Lakefield said a computer software upgrade next fall will give the city more information and control over how it handles purchasing.

“In today’s environment, if it doesn’t require formal bids, a lot of this work is done behind the scenes at the department levels,” Lakefield said. “Oftentimes, by the time we see the information, it’s an invoice. We’ve already got the goods, and if there is a problem at that point, it’s hard to go back and correct that or to undo what’s already been done. So, the thought process is, as we move forward, we’re going to take a more front-end approach with a requisition process.”