Williams County commissioners on record asked county staff to provide purchase order (PO) quotes and requisition listings before approval for larger, atypical bills after discussion of a roughly $25,000 Job and Family Services (JFS) security camera purchase.

The request came during the board’s regular session when Commissioner Scott Lareau pressed for a clearer process for seeing purchase orders before final payment approvals. “When you go spend 25 k on a camera that puts a — I don't know how many cameras they put in,” Lareau said, adding that seeing the PO or quote would make commissioners more comfortable approving payment later.

The discussion focused on how commissioners currently see only the final bill when the county pays vendors, rather than the earlier quote or PO that specifies work (for example, “installation of 4 cameras” or “fob the front door”). Lareau noted that if the board could review the quote or the purchase order requisition before approval, commissioners could flag concerns such as pricing or the scope of work. “If I looked at that bill and I said, it's gonna be $25,000 and I called this company that I know of, JQuad, and they said, hey. You know what? I can do that for 10. I would be all about that,” he said.

Vaughn, a county staff member, and other staff said they can share quotes and a listing of PO requisitions before approving them, although that practice will slow the procurement process somewhat. A staff speaker said they could “share the quotes with you. I can also before I approve them, I can send you a listing of these purchase order requisition saying they're asking to buy these things out of this account for this much money.” Commissioners indicated they were comfortable with staff providing that additional visibility.

The board discussed vendor reliance and local sourcing. Commissioners said the county has tended to use a longstanding vendor for access control and security systems and that local alternatives may be limited for countywide fob or hardwired security work. Commissioners suggested inviting quotes from local vendors when feasible.

This was a discussion about process and oversight; the board did not take formal action to change procurement rules during the meeting. Staff committed to sharing quotes and PO requisition lists for larger or unusual purchases prior to approval.

The conversation began as part of routine bill approvals and followed commissioners’ review of the payment to JFS for the camera system. It also included operational clarifications: a purchase order is created before work is done and typically reflects the vendor’s quote, and the county’s payment process often first shows money movement rather than the underlying quote documentation.

Commissioners said they expect staff to follow up by producing a format for sharing larger PO requisitions and quotes before final approvals, to give the board an opportunity to raise price, scope, or vendor questions earlier in the procurement cycle.