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Procurement Standards Board approves four regulation changes, raises competitive bid threshold to $50,000
Summary
The Procurement Standards Board unanimously approved four changes to Metro procurement regulations, including raising the competitive bidding threshold to $50,000, revising small‑purchase references, updating reporting requirements and allowing cooperatives for services with Director of Finance sign‑off.
The Procurement Standards Board on Tuesday approved four changes to Metro procurement regulations, including raising the competitive bidding threshold to $50,000 and clarifying when cooperative contracts may be used for services, board Chair Janine Reed said at the meeting.
The changes align Metro rules with recent Metro Council action and state practice and revise longstanding reporting language the board and staff said is out of date. The board approved all four regulation changes by voice vote.
Zach Kelly, who presented the proposed revisions, said the first change updates regulation R 4.08.0.06 to reflect that Metro’s competitive bidding limit now matches the State of Tennessee’s recent increase to $50,000. "If it's more than $5,000 but less than 50, then you collect 3 quotes. One has to be from a certified minority‑owned business, one has to be from a certified woman‑owned business, and one has to be from a certified small or service‑disabled veteran‑owned business," Kelly said. He added departments must offer those firms the opportunity to bid but would not be required to award to them.
The second approved change removes an obsolete separate reference to a "small purchase" threshold of $1,000 and clarifies that purchases under $1,000 follow delegated purchase rules or existing contracts. The third change strips dated reporting language (some provisions traceable to 1994) and directs staff to present the board a modernized reporting template in the first quarter of FY26 for board review and approval; the purchasing agent will update reporting at least every five years unless the board requests interim changes. The fourth change revises R 4.12.0.09.0.05 to allow use of cooperative procurement vehicles for services (previously limited to goods) while retaining a requirement for Director of Finance sign‑off and encouraging practical participation by certified MBE/WBE/SBE firms when services are procured through cooperatives.
Board members moved and seconded each regulation change and approved them by voice vote. The record shows the board approved the minutes from its Dec. 19, 2024 meeting earlier in the session and then approved the four regulation changes; each motion carried with an "aye" vote.
The changes were positioned as part of a broader effort to speed solicitation timing and improve vendor diversity. Zach Kelly and staff said the regulation edits remove outdated language, enable Metro to follow state practice and create a structure for more current, benchmarkable reporting.
The board adjourned at the conclusion of the agenda and set its next meeting for June 2025 at 2 p.m.
Ending: The full text of the proposed regulation language and related staff reports were presented during the meeting; staff indicated they will provide the redlined regulatory text and the reporting template to the board as follow‑up for future review.
