Delray Beach tells small businesses to register: purchases under $5,000 can be ordered directly

Delray Beach city staff and procurement experts told local small-business owners at the 2025 Small Business Expo that registering with the city’s purchasing system is the fastest path to municipal sales and that purchases of $5,000 or less can be ordered directly by departments.

Rob Evans, a city staff member serving as master of ceremonies, opened the session by telling attendees, “if the order is under $5,000, people can actually call you directly from the city. They don't have to go through the RFP process, and they don't have to go through a 3 quote process.”

The guidance was repeated and expanded by Terrence Moore, the city manager, and by procurement consultant Kirk Buffington, who walked through basic procurement processes used by local governments. Buffington urged vendors to register in supplier portals and to maintain current state registration on Sunbiz. “You need to be registered in each of those portals,” he said, mentioning Periscope, BidsDirect/BidDirect.com, BidSync and OpenGov as examples of platforms businesses may encounter.

Jeff Horace, assistant city manager, summarized thresholds used by Delray Beach purchasing: “Up to $5,000, we just need 1 quote. Up to $65,000 of a purchase, we only need 3 quotes. We may put something out on the street, we may do a formal bid for that, but we only have to do it past 65,000.” He advised attendees to visit department tables so staff who make buying calls will know vendors and be able to call them when needs arise.

Speakers warned about legal and administrative requirements. Buffington explained that certain procurements are conducted through invitations to bid (ITB) — where the lowest responsive, responsible bidder wins — while requests for proposals (RFP) evaluate nonprice criteria. He also noted that procurement responses may be subject to public-records rules: “Florida has 1 of the broadest public records and public meeting laws in the country,” and pricing submitted in bids may become public record for several years.

Insurance, certificates of insurance, and sometimes performance bonds are required when agreements are signed. Horace stressed that vendors do not need to supply insurance to submit a quote but must have the required coverage before a contract is executed. Attendees were told the purchasing division can help vendors register and that supplier-portal registration is necessary to receive automated bid notices.

The city encouraged firms that cannot perform as prime contractors on large projects to pursue subcontracting with prime contractors, and emphasized the importance of performing well on awarded contracts to earn repeat business across municipal and neighboring agencies. For vendors needing technical help, staff and regional resources were made available at Expo tables and via online supplier portals.

For more information, vendors were directed to the City of Delray Beach purchasing page and to speak with procurement staff at the event.