Piggyback purchases are purchases made under the terms and conditions of another public agency's contract when that contract includes a provision that extends its pricing, terms, and conditions to other public agencies.
A. The Contracting Services Manager, with concurrence of the General Manager and the General Counsel, may enter into a cooperative purchasing agreement to acquire materials and services under the contracts of other public entities, and may participate in, sponsor, conduct, or administer a cooperative purchasing agreement for the procurement of materials and services with one or more public entities.
B. When a requisition or a consultant services request whose projected contract amount is $75,000 or more is submitted, Contracting Services may determine that there is another public agency contract that can be used to make the acquisition. Consideration for use of another public agency's contract includes:
- The cost of the goods or services provided on the contract.
- The quality and specifications of the goods and services provided on the contract.
- The terms and conditions of the public agency's contract.
- The circumstances surrounding the acquisition such as the time and cost involved in processing a Metropolitan solicitation.
Before entering into a cooperative agreement under which another public entity undertakes procurement, the Contracting Services Manager verifies that the public entity has conducted procurement through competitive procedures and that use of the cooperative agreement under consideration is economically advantageous to Metropolitan. General Counsel verifies that the competitive procedures substantially meet the requirements of Metropolitan for competitive bidding.
