State says Ulster BOCES should bid professional services

ALBANY – An audit of Ulster
BOCES by the state Comptroller’s Office has recommended that the
joint school district board should issue requests for proposals when procuring
professional services.
State law requires that purchase contracts over $20,000 and public works projects over $35,000 within 12 months are subject to competitive bidding. Goods and services not required by law to be competitively bid, such as professional services, “must be procured in a manner to assure the prudent and economical use of public moneys,” auditors wrote.
While Ulster BOCES does have policy in place for purchase and public works contracts that exceed those spending limits, it does not have anything in place for professional services. State auditors said the district should revise its policy to require the use of a request for proposals process or other appropriate method of soliciting competition in the procurement of all professional services.
BOCES officials responded to the auditors’ recommendation, noting state law does not require the use of an RFP process with acquiring professional services. However, Superintendent Dr. Charles Khoury and School Board President Patrick Rausch wrote that “we will adjust our policy to insure that we take the necessary steps to insure competition in the acquisition of professional services, which will likely minimally include our widely advertising each anticipated professional service opportunity.”