Committee approves library payments but orders staff training after procurement split raised

The Sumner County Financial Management Committee voted Oct. 16 to approve grouped payments for several library purchases while directing finance to provide procurement training for library directors after staff and the committee identified a split-invoice issue that skirted the countys bidding threshold.

Finance staff and committee members reviewed a county-funded flooring project at the library that originally measured about $13,000. Library staff said the vendor offered a discounted price to bring the countys portion to just under the $10,000 threshold; the library used a county purchasing card (p-card) and an outside friends group to cover the small overage. Committee members flagged the countys procurement policy, which prohibits splitting invoices to avoid bidding requirements.

"Our policy specifically says that you're not supposed to split invoices to be able to avoid a bid," the committee chair said while reviewing an email the library director had sent. Committee members expressed concern that splitting purchases among funding sources removed an opportunity for competitive bids and could circumvent controls intended to ensure price competition.

The library director said she used the county p-card after receiving the vendors offer to waive card fees and after consulting with finance staff; she apologized and said she believed she was acting within her limits. Finance staff said the p-card transactions are imported daily and reviewed as part of normal controls; they also said other similar purchases in prior years had gone through the normal bid process.

After discussion the mayor amended an earlier motion to "group and approve and pay these with training" for library directors. Finance agreed to provide procurement training to the library directors, to be completed within 90 days, and the committee approved paying the invoices as presented subject to that training requirement. The committee did not pursue disciplinary action at the meeting; several members recommended internal retraining and tighter controls going forward.

Committee members also discussed whether the matter should be referred to the library board or kept at the financial-management level; the chair said the committee could handle it given contemporaneous concerns about the library boards composition. The committee asked finance to review p-card limits and internal processes and to ensure departments understand procurement thresholds and bidding rules.