Section 5-E3702. APPROVAL AUTHORITY

 

3702.1The Superintendent of Schools shall designate a procurement officer who shall have the primary responsibility to assure compliance with applicable laws and regulations, procedures, and the dictates of good management practice in the conduct of an effective and efficient procurement program.

 

3702.2The school system shall not generally be bound by agreements or contracts made to prospective contractors by persons to whom procurement authority has not been delegated or who are lacking the approval(s) required by this section.

 

3702.3Contractual commitments made by personnel lacking authority to bind the school system shall not be ratified by the Superintendent or his or her designee possessing that authority unless a determination is made, based upon records, documents, and statements submitted by the individual who made the unauthorized contractual commitment, and after review by legal counsel, that ratification of the contractual commitment is in the best interest of the school system.

 

3702.4Ratification shall not preclude the school system from initiating disciplinary action against those who acted without authority to represent or bind the school system.

 

3702.5All negotiated contracts shall be reviewed by and receive the written approval of a contract review committee, whose membership shall be designated by the Superintendent of Schools.

 

3702.6The membership of the contract review committee (which need not be constant) shall include, but need not be limited to, the following:

 

(a)A representative of the Legal Services Branch;

 

(b)A representative of the Office of Financial Management; and

 

(c)A representative of the division, department, region, or office of the school system for which the negotiated supplies or services is intended.

 

3702.7No contract for supplies (including equipment, furnishings, and those for which specific construction authority has been granted) or services shall be awarded unless there is prior certification by the school system’s Division of Finance that sufficient funds are available.

 

3702.8Requests for services or goods exceeding twenty-five thousand dollars ( $ 25,000) not in the aggregate in value, other than for bulk purchases, shall be approved in writing by the Associate Superintendent for Financial Management.

 

3702.9Requests for services and goods exceeding fifty thousand dollars ( $ 50,000) not in the aggregate in value, other than for bulk purchases, shall also be approved in writing by the Superintendent of Schools.

 

3702.10Requests for the acquisition and purchase of services and goods valued five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000) or more shall be submitted in advance to the Board of Education for approval. Requests for the acquisition of services and goods valued between $100,000 and $499,999 that were not competitively solicited by the District of Columbia Public Schools shall be submitted to the Bsard of Education on a monthly basis, for informational purposes.

 

3702.11The provisions of § 3702.9 in no way diminish the right of the Board to exercise its oversight authority, acting through its committee structure, to review established procurement procedures and any specific procurement, purchase, or negotiated agreement consummated by the Administration.

 

3702.12The Superintendent will submit monthly to the Board of Education a listing of all contracts or agreements entered into by the District of Columbia Public Schools, which will include the following categories: contractor, contract amount, type of contract, source of funding, identify whether the contractor is a certified local, small, or disadvantaged business enterprise, type of procurement, period of performance, source of funding, number of bids received, description of contract, program office, performance measures, past performance evaluation (if applicable), and identification of subcontractors.

 

3702.13The Superintendent shall certify that all contracts or agreements valued at $ 100,000 and above entered into by the District of Columbia Public Schools comply with applicable federal and District of Columbia laws.

 

3702.14The Superintendent shall certify monthly that the District of Columbia Public Schools complies with the requirements of the "Small, Local, and Disadvantaged Business Enterprise Development and Assistance Emergency Act of 2005," D.C. Code §§ 2-217.01 et seq.

 

source

Final Rulemaking published at 30 DCR 3771, 3772 (July 29, 1983); as amended by Final Rulemaking published 36 DCR 7290 (October 20, 1989); as amended by Final Rulemaking published at 53 DCR 2394 (March 31, 2006).