Council approves first reading of purchasing ordinance to raise thresholds and streamline procurement

Thousand Oaks — The City Council held a public hearing and on Dec. 2 approved the first reading of a revised purchasing ordinance that raises procurement thresholds and modernizes delegation and solicitation rules.

Andrew Becker, purchasing supervisor, said benchmarking against other California agencies and inflationary changes informed the proposal. Key changes shown in the staff presentation include raising the formal written contract threshold from $5,000 to $10,000, increasing department head authority to $50,000 and city manager approval to $100,000 (city council approval required for contracts over $100,000). Task order approval limits for on-call professional and consulting contracts were also updated, with department heads allowed up to $50,000, the city manager up to $100,000 and city council review for task orders above $100,000.

Becker said the updates clarify single-source and sole-source definitions, update solicitation exemptions (including clearer language for subscriptions and software), and modernize bid-security handling. The changes do not alter public-works contracting, which remains governed by the California Public Contract Code.

Council members praised the thorough staff work and agreed the thresholds were outdated by inflation. Council member Adam moved the ordinance title on first reading; the council voted 5–0 in favor.

Next steps: The ordinance will return for subsequent readings as required by law and staff will publish updated procurement guidance and templates for departments.