Warrick County commissioners table purchasing ordinance after department heads say they never saw final draft

The Warrick County Board of Commissioners voted Feb. 9 to table a proposed county purchasing ordinance after department heads, including the sheriff, said they had not been shown the final draft and requested more time to review it. The motion to table passed unanimously.

The debate centered on changes to procurement thresholds and credit-card rules that staff said evolved from an initial effort to raise the county's minimum procurement thresholds. Sheriff Mike Wilder told the board he and other large purchasers in county government had been told they would see the final draft but had not: "We were told we get to see the final draft and nobody has seen the final draft," Wilder said during the meeting. He pressed for an opportunity to review and comment because his office is among the county's largest purchasers.

One commissioner described the ordinance rewrite as a response to an existing practice that required multiple quotes for purchases under $50,000 and said it had been edited to set a $5,000 micro-purchase threshold in the current draft. Other concerns raised included the interaction of the new language with department-specific purchasing needs and existing credit-card policies. The chair said the draft followed prior practice and noted there had been multiple meetings and versions circulated to stakeholders.

A commissioner moved to table the ordinance "until everybody's had a chance" to review it; the motion carried. Commissioners asked staff to schedule a dedicated meeting with department heads to review the final version and agreed to revisit the matter at the Feb. 23 meeting.

What happens next: staff will circulate the most recent draft to invited department heads and set a review meeting; the board will take up the ordinance again at the Feb. 23 session or a special meeting, depending on scheduling.