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Committee forwards draft Beaufort County procurement ordinance to council
Summary
The Finance, Administration & Economic Development Committee sent a comprehensive rewrite of Beaufort Countys purchasing ordinance to full County Council for consideration, centralizing purchasing authority under the procurement services director and adding new definitions, P-card rules and delegation language.
The Finance, Administration and Economic Development Committee voted to send a replacement for Beaufort County Code of Ordinances, chapter 2, article 7, division 4 to County Council for its three readings and a subsequent public hearing.
Assistant County Administrator Robinson summarized the rewrite as a countywide procurement code establishing centralized purchasing "based on integrity, transparency, uniformity, and accountability," and said the ordinance "shall apply to all contracts and the procurement of all supplies, services, and construction entered into by Beaufort County departments, appointed officials, and elected officials" irrespective of funding source. The draft updates definitions (after-the-fact purchases, capital assets, sole-source, split purchase), clarifies the delegation of authority and codifies the procurement services directors duties and responsibilities.
Robinson highlighted several substantive additions: a section on procurement cards that sets compliance expectations and misuse-management procedures, clearer rules for selection committees and solicitation types (IFB/RFP/RFQ), and language on dollar thresholds and delegation. Committee members asked staff to define "standing committees of council" to avoid ambiguity about which committees can authorize certain contract actions; staff said that change will be incorporated before council consideration. Robinson and members said the ordinance is a response in part to recommendations and commitments from the Hainesworth, Sinclair, Boyd report discussed earlier this year.
Committee members also discussed whether the procurement services director should negotiate contracts for elected officials or delegate that authority. Robinson said the director would retain responsibility for ensuring ordinance compliance and could delegate negotiation to subject-matter experts or department heads as appropriate, with more procedural detail to be worked out in accompanying policies rather than the ordinance itself.
After discussion, a committee member moved to forward the ordinance to County Council; the motion was seconded and approved with no recorded objection. The ordinance will appear on County Councils agenda for three readings and a public hearing.
What happens next: County Council will consider the ordinance at its next meeting for the required readings and to schedule public comment before a final vote.
