A group of local business owners and operators met Tuesday night to discuss the city’s purchasing policy and how changes to the policy will affect relations between private companies and the city.
Committee members Terry Sparks, Daniel Mathew, Linda Sigg, Ron Moore and Dana Nauertc met in City Administrator Carl Slaugh’s office to discuss the city’s policy from the perspective of local business owners and operators.
Most members were pleased with the changes that had been made. Moore, owner of Iola Office Supplies, said the policy brought to the city last April was inefficient and difficult to work with.
“It’s a lot of help the way they have done it,” Moore said. “It (the old policy) looked like a waste of manpower to me.”
The changes to the policy include a raise in the dollar amount required to place a formal bid for any product, as well as a raise in the dollar amount required to obtain a purchase order for any item. Changes made are meant to make the process more efficient, while still safe-guarding the city from possible embezzlement.
“It is a nuisance, but it (embezzlement) happens so easy, and it happens a lot,” Sigg, owner of Party Girls, said.
Both Sigg and Mathew, who is a salesman with Hampel Oil, said they would like to see a specific clause in the policy dedicated to a preference in purchasing from local businesses. Mathew cited a specific instance last year when his employer missed being awarded a bid by a slight margin over an outside competitor.
“Hampel missed a diesel bid by one-quarter of a cent,” Mathew said. “And we are right down the road from city hall.”
He said if preferences were given to local businesses, situations where local dollars are being lost to outside competitors could be avoided.
Slaugh said there are no numerical percentages allotted in the purchasing policy that give preference to local businesses, but there is a stipulation in the policy that urges the city to prefer local businesses “whenever practical and possible…after consideration of the effects of time, of delivery, maintenance and repair services.”
Committee members agreed the current policy is a significant improvement over the version crafted in early 2012. Slaugh emphasized the importance of a policy in a city government environment.
“All cities should have purchasing policies, I don’t have any issues with the policy I have now,” Slaugh said.
The committee was not urged to schedule additional meetings. Slaugh said he will keep contact with the members in case of any further changes to the policy, or if other discussions were needed.
Committee discusses revised purchasing policy
