Utah Procurement Code: Brief Explanation

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Purpose

The Utah Procurement Code (Utah Code 63G-6a) has four main purposes:

To ensure transparency in the public procurement process
To ensure the fair and equitable treatment of all persons who participate in the public procurement process
To provide increased economy in state procurement activities
To foster effective broad-based competition within the free enterprise system

Entity Applicability

Except as provided in Utah Code 63G-6a-107.6, the Utah Procurement Code applies to every procurement unit.

Procurement units with independent procurement authority shall comply with Utah Procurement Code. In other words, a procurement unit (see below) that has independent procurement authority is independent from the Utah Division of Purchasing and General Services, not the Utah Procurement Code.

Procurement units {state legislative, state executive, state judicial, educational, local government procurement unit (a municipality, county, or the Utah Housing Authority that has adopted some of the Utah Procurement Code), local district, special service district, local building authority, conservation district, public corporation} are subject to the Utah Procurement Code. Interlocal entities are not considered a “procurement unit.”

Municipalities, counties, and the Utah Housing Authority have the authority to adopt their own individual procurement code, but it must be adopted by ordinance. Municipalities, counties, and the Utah Housing Authority may choose to adopt some or all of the Utah Procurement Code.

Each entity is subject to an Administrative Rulemaking Authority, such as the entity governing body. This Authority is different for each entity (and for some entities may be the Utah Division of Purchasing and General Services) and must adopt rules consistent with the Utah Procurement Code. These rules cannot conflict with or exceed the statutory limits in the Utah Procurement Code. An entity may adopt an internal policy that further limits an entity’s procurement, such as a school limiting small purchases to $350, as opposed to $1,000.

Entities subject to Administrative Rule R33 include: executive branch procurement units, school districts (except as they adopt non-conflicting nonadministrative rules), charter schools (except as they adopt non-conflicting nonadministrative rules), local districts (which have not adopted their own rules), and special service districts (which have not adopted their own rules).

Applicability Table

Entity Type	Subject to Utah Procurement Code	May adopt own procurement code	Subject to Administrative Rule R33
County	Yes	Yes	No
Municipality	Yes	Yes	No
Local/Special Service District	Yes	No	Yes, except to the extent that the board of trustees of the local district or the governing body of the special service district adopts its own rules
Interlocal Entity	No	No	No
School Districts & Charter Schools	Yes	No	Yes, except to the extent of a school district’s own nonadministrative rules that do not conflict with the Utah Procurement Code provisions

Other Utah Code Purchasing Policy Requirements

Counties (Utah Code 17-36-20): A person may not make a purchase or incur an encumbrance on behalf of a county unless that person acts in accordance with an order by, or approval of, the person duly authorized to act as purchasing agent for the county, except encumbrances or expenditures directly investigated and specifically approved by the executive or legislative body. Unless otherwise provided by the governing body, the budget officer or the budget officer’s agents shall serve as a purchasing agent.

Municipalities (Utah Code 10-6-122): All purchases or encumbrances thereof by a city shall be made or incurred according to the purchasing procedures established by each city by ordinance or resolution and only on an order or approval of the person duly authorized to act as a purchasing agent for the city.

Local and Special Service Districts (Utah Code 17B-1-618): All purchases or encumbrances by a local district shall be made or incurred according to the purchasing procedures established by each district by resolution and only on an order or approval of the person or persons duly authorized.

Interlocal Entities (Utah Code 11-13-226): The governing board of each interlocal entity shall adopt rules or policies for the competitive public procurement of goods and services required for the operation of the interlocal entity.

School Districts (Utah Code 53G-4-405): An officer or employee of a school district may not make a purchase or incur indebtedness on behalf of the district without the approval and order of the local school board.

Purchasing Policy Considerations

Regardless of Utah Procurement Code applicability to your entity, you should consider the following when drafting a purchasing policy:

Amount under which competitive quotes are not required
Amount over which verbal quotes will be obtained
Amount over which written quotes will be obtained
Amount over which public advertising is required
Method of soliciting quotations
Purchases made from a single or sole source provider
Emergency Purchases
Cancellation and rejection of bids

Purchasing Assistance

The Utah Division of Purchasing and General Services has entered into multiple contracts for a variety of products and services that can be used by entities without having to undergo the RFP and bidding process themselves. This provides entities with access to high quality products at a lower price. In addition, State Purchasing offers assistance to entities undergoing the bidding and RFP process which lack experience and expertise in this area. For more information about state contracts and other purchasing assistance, visit purchasing.utah.gov. Note that if an entity (such as a county or municipality) prohibits State Cooperative Contracts within its adopted procurement code, these resources should not be used.

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