One Card Resources

• One Card Procedures Manual

• One Card Holder Agreement

• One Card Check-Out

• One Card Waiver Request

• One Card Quick Notes

• Input Purchase Form

• One Card Register Receipt

• How to Reconcile One Card

Authorization to Purchase

Board policy addresses purchasing procedures in CH (Local).

“All purchase commitments shall be made by the Superintendent or designee on a properly drawn and issued purchase order, in accordance with administrative procedures . . . persons making unauthorized purchases shall assume full responsibility for all such debts.”

Available Cooperatives

The District uses contracts from the cooperatives and alliances named below. Normally, these purchases can be made without further bidding.

• Buyboard

• Central Texas Purchasing Alliance (CTPA)

• Choice Partners

• Department of Information Resources (DIR)

• Houston-Galveston Area Council (HGAC)

• Texas Procurement and Support Services (TPASS)

• The Purchasing Cooperative Network (TCPN)

• The Interlocal Purchasing System (TIPS/TAPS) 

• US Communities

Hays CISD Contracts and Agreements Signature Procedure

• Contracts and Agreements Signature Procedure

• Contracts and Agreements Signature Transmittal Form

• Signature Authorization for Contracts

• Consulting Services Agreement

Methods of Procurement

State law requires competitive bidding on the purchase of any property, real or personal, or services, when said property or services is valued at $50,000 or more in the aggregate for a 12-month period. Hays CISD uses the fiscal year as the 12-month period. Notice of the time by when and place where the bids or proposals, or the responses to a request for qualifications, will be received and opened shall be published in the county in which the district's central administrative office is located, once a week for at least two weeks before the deadline for receiving bids, proposals, or responses to a request for qualifications. These procedures shall apply to all purchases (including grants).

1. Small purchases that are under $3,500 are exempt from quoting or bidding as long as the District doesn’t purchase $50,000 or more of that commodity in a fiscal year. At least one quote should be obtained to ascertain correct item and shipping costs.

2. Purchases at $3,500 and less than $50,000 require 3 quotes unless prior approval has been obtained from the Director of Purchasing. Phone quotes are acceptable, but written quotes are encouraged. Complete the Price Quotation Summary Sheet and submit it with any back up to Purchasing to enable the release of your order.

3. Purchases at $50,000 or more require a formal written solicitation processed by the Purchasing Department. Purchases $50,000 and above require advertising two weeks, a formal written solicitation process and must be approved by the Board of Trustees. The Board of Trustees generally meets on the third Monday of every month (there is no meeting in July). Make sure that you allow sufficient time for this solicitation process. The campus/department is responsible for providing the necessary specifications or sufficient information for the specifications to be written. Specifications must describe the article or service clearly and in detail to ensure the correct product or service is ordered. Specifications must provide for open competition in the solicitation process. Prior to sending out the solicitation, Purchasing will forward the ordering campus/department the specifications for their approval. The campus/department may also suggest vendors that will receive the solicitation. After obtaining written bids, Purchasing will send a copy of the bids along with a bid tabulation to the campus/department for input in the evaluation process. Once the vendor(s) is chosen and the Board has approved the purchase, the campus/department will enter the requisition(s) into Frontline. Purchasing will assign a PO number and forward the Purchase Order to the vendor(s).

4. Orders must not be split to circumvent the above requirements.

5. Solicitations for items that are not a one-time purchase usually result in a one-year contract with four one-year options to renew. The Purchasing Department will contact the using campus/department prior to renewing a contract. It is the campus/department’s responsibility to keep accurate documentation on the contracted vendor. This documentation will be used as backup for the decision to renew or not to renew a contract.

6. INTERLOCAL AGREEMENT: Contracts created by entities with which the District has an Interlocal Agreement have already been competitively solicited and can be used without further solicitation by the District. Examples of Interlocal Agreements are Buyboard, Choice Partners, Department of Information Resources (DIR), State Term Contracts, Texas Multiple Award Schedule (TXMAS), Houston-Galveston Area Counsel (HGAC), The Purchasing Cooperative Network (TCPN), Texas Interlocal Purchasing system (TIPS/TAPS), US Communities, and any bid from a District belonging to the Central Texas Purchasing Alliance (CTPA) in which the vendor agrees to the CTPA Adoption clause.

7. SOLE SOURCE: Compliance with the State solicitation law (Education Code 44.031) is not required for purchases that are available from only one source, including:

   1. An item for which competition is precluded because of a patent, copyright, secret process, or monopoly.

   2. A film, manuscript, or book.

   3. A utility service, including electricity, gas, or water.

   4. A captive replacement part or component for equipment.

A SOLE SOURCE EXEMPTION FORM must be completed and approved by the Director of Purchasing or otherwise delegated signature authority for Hays CISD prior to Purchase Order release.  Forward the signed SOLE SOURCE EXEMPTION FORM along with any supporting documentation on the Vendor’s letterhead to the Purchasing Department inbox at purchasing@hayscisd.net for approval prior to creating the requisition. Upon receipt of Sole Source Purchasing approval, attach the signed exemption form and/or confirmation email to the requisition and reference. Then select Sole Source from the drop-down menu in Frontline when entering the requisition.

Frequently Used Vendors

Click here for a list of frequently used vendors along with their contract numbers and contract expiration dates. (PDF format)