State Purchasing Process
Most vendors are constantly looking for new markets for increased sales and a reasonable profit. This is ideal from the state's viewpoint because the state is constantly looking for innovative, reliable, and competitive vendors who have know-how and can demonstrate more effective and efficient ways of satisfying the state's requirements. This practical guide to selling to the state is intended to help achieve expanded and mutually satisfactory vendor/purchasing agent relationships.
The Law and State Purchasing
State laws govern the purchase of goods and services by the state. These laws:
- Place authority and responsibility for all state purchases within the executive branch in the Department of Management Services, State Purchasing. State Purchasing develops policies, procedures and rules to fulfill the requirements of the law.
- Permit State Purchasing to delegate authority for purchases to other state agencies.
- Ensure that fair and open competition exists in all procurement activities in order to avoid the appearance of and prevent the opportunity for favoritism and to inspire public confidence that contracts are awarded equitably and economically.
Levels of Purchasing Delegation
The Department of Management Services develops contracts and delegates authority for some purchases to other state agencies.
Purchases of goods and services that are ongoing and are common to several state agencies, generally are consolidated under standard specifications and are developed into state term contracts. State Purchasing issues state term contracts that tell an agency purchasing office who the vendors are, what the prices are, and how to order. Agencies issue purchase orders to the vendors to fill their needs from these contracts. Payment is made directly by the ordering entity. These contracts are also available for use by county, municipality or other local public agencies. However, the standard procedures defined by State Purchasing apply for all state purchases whether made centrally or locally.
Who is Buying and Where
State agency purchasing offices are located throughout the state where you may have a chance to make a sale. For example, the district offices of the Department of Transportation, and Department of Corrections, and the institutions and administrative offices of the Department of Children and Family Services and the Department of Health, the Department of Environmental Protection, the Department of Veterans' Affairs and the ten Florida university campuses, among others.
Every year these agencies and campuses purchase over $1,200,000,000 worth of goods, services, and capital equipment. Approximately 33% of these purchases are procured through the use of the state term contracts