Policies and Procedures

The University's policy on personal business is as follows:

Click on the links below for our policies and procedures.

Applicability of Policies    Approvals   Bidding Guidelines    Confirming Orders    Conflicts of Interest    Gifts & Gratuities    Grant-Funded Orders    PO Revisions    Returns    Review & Approval   
Rush Orders    Screening Labels    Self Approvals    Sole Source & Specification    Standards & Ethics   University-Funded Orders   Environmentally-Preferable Procurement Policy
 

Applicability of Policies

The purchasing practices and procedures contained in this administrative policy apply to all purchases if they are to be the legal and financial obligation of Yeshiva University. As such, all University and grant purchases are subject to the policies contained herein as well as policies or requirements set forth by the applicable granting agency. The University is not responsible for obligations incurred unless there is full compliance with this policy.

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Approvals

Deans, chairpersons, directors and administrators are authorized to approve expenditures of University funds based upon prior approved budgets. Principal investigators are authorized to approve expenditures of restricted funds based upon prior approved budgets. No purchases can be made without prior approval and verification of the availability of funds. Therefore, Procurement Services will only issue an official purchase order when the procurement requisition has been previously approved by an authorized signatory.

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Bidding Guidelines

1. Items from $7,500 to $20,000
Procurement Services shall solicit a minimum of three verbal quotations from responsible vendors. Documentation of the quotes will be noted on the purchase order. Generally, the purchase is made from the vendor quoting the lowest price, whose product and offer comply with the terms of the solicitation. If the purchase is not made from the bidder quoting the lowest price, a written justification for the low bid bypass will be retained by Procurement Services.

2. Items $20,000 and Over
Procurement Services shall solicit a minimum of three written competitive bids from reliable vendors. The written quotes will be retained by Procurement Services. Purchase will be made from the vendor quoting the lowest price, whose product and offer comply with the terms and specifications of the solicitation. If the purchase is not made from the bidder quoting the lowest price, a written justification for bypassing the low bid will be made and retained by the Procurement Services. A bypass of a low bid requires the approval of the Chief Procurement Officer of Procurement Services.

3. Evaluating the Bids
Once the bids are received, they must be evaluated to determine which vendor will be given the order.

If the products offered by each of the bidding vendors are of equal quality, if each vendor promises the same delivery date and if there are not other considerations, the order would go to the low bidder. However, all these factors are seldom equal and many orders are, therefore, placed with other than the low bidder for good reasons. No set formula can be devised that can be applied to all products for all orders. The quality and delivery requirements will vary for different products and for different uses. The delivery requirements may vary for different orders as well. For these reasons, the act of selecting the bid which best suits the needs of the University's is one that requires the judgment and experience of Procurement Services.

4. Follow-up of Nonbidders
A bidders list that is active and current is maintained by Procurement Services. This stimulates competitive bidding and should result in maximum response to an invitation to bid. Those requesting the purchase of goods or service subject to competitive bidding must allow sufficient lead time so all solicited vendors are able to submit timely bids. Within existing time constraints, alternate vendor(s) will be sought to provide bids. Vendors not returning a bid will be queried as to the reasons they chose not to respond and Procurement Service's bidders list will be updated accordingly.

5. Sole Source and Specified Vendors
The originator of the Procurement Requisitions frequently suggests or requests a specific manufacturer or supplier. Procurement Services will review the request for reasonableness, but reserves the right to place orders with vendors whose prices are lower than those of the vendor that appears on the requisition and who have extended their services to the University. The originator will be so advised prior to purchase. When an item is unique, available from only one supplier or a substitution is not feasible (commonly referred to as ''sole source''), a Request for a Waiver of Competitive Bid approved by a department head for University fund purchases or the principal investigator for grant purchases must be completed. Procurement Services will determine the reasonableness of the Request for Waiver by investigating the price and services available from the ''sole source'' vendor. The Waiver must be approved by the chief procurement officer.

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Confirming Orders

A confirming order occurs when a department wishes to place an order for a needed item or service without subjecting the purchase to the normal purchasing procedures of the University. Confirming orders are permitted only in bona fide emergency situation. Examples of bona fide emergencies are a university owned motor vehicle in need of road repairs, emergency equipment repairs and other situations resulting from unforeseen circumstances. Poor planning or poor management are not acceptable reasons for placing a confirming order. The chief procurement officer is responsible for the interpretation of ''emergency situations.'' The nature of the emergency which promulgated the confirming order should be stated in the notes section and approved by the department head for University purchases or the principal investigator for grant purchases.

If a bona fide emergency condition exists which warrants a confirming order, the following procedure is to be utilized when the emergency exceeds $500 where a quick order can be used. An emergency purchase order number must be obtained from Procurement Services prior to placing the order with the vendor. Enter your request electronically into PROS, call Procurement Services at 718.430.3001 giving specific information regarding your order (i.e., Req. Number) to the Procurement Services personnel, who will complete the order and issue an emergency purchase order number after financial approval has been obtained.

When an emergency purchase order number is requested for repairs or service, the requisition should be submitted after the service is completed and the service report must be forwarded to Procurement Services. The vendor should be requested to mail the invoice showing our purchase order to Yeshiva University, Accounts payable Office, for processing and payment.

Individuals requesting Emergency Purchase Order numbers for confirming orders who abuse the system through excessiveness or lack of follow-up documentation, will forfeit the ability to use the emergency system.

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Conflicts of Interest

University employees involved in committing any University managed funds shall not have a business interest or a family relationship with a supplier of goods of services to the University so as not to impair the integrity and objectivity of the purchase. An apparent conflict of interest, or at a minimum, the appearance of one, may exist if any employee has a direct or material indirect financial interest in a vendor company or when there is a family or other personal relationship.

All instances where conflicts of interest appear or are suspected must be brought to the immediate attention of the chief procurement officer of Procurement Services.

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Gifts & Gratuities

As stated in this policy under Standards and Ethics, University employees are to "Decline ALL personal gifts and gratuities."  If offered from a vendor, you should reject it courteously and explain to the vendor the policy of this University.

"In order to avoid improprieties, or the appearance of improprieties, employees of Yeshiva University are prohibited from purchasing personal items from vendors who transact business with the University unless said vendor has a retail operation normally open to the public. Even in that case, employees may not use their employment with Yeshiva University to influence the vendor in any way. (Caution must be exercised as to the appropriate invoicing for personal purchases which, to avoid the possibility of error, should be billed and shipped to the employee's home address.) Salespersons normally servicing University accounts are not to be involved in any personal transactions."

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Grant-Funded Orders

1. Purchase Requisitions
Due to the pre-encumbrance and net free balance checking for nonequipment purchases of the electronic system, this type of requisition need not be sent to the Finance Department for approval.

2. Purchase Requisitions for Equipment or Shipments to Off-Site Locations
Equipment is coded to two object codes: 330 and 331. All equipment valued in excess of $500, regardless of object code, must be sent to grant accounting for approval. In addition, for any items shipped to a location other than a University facility, the order must be forwarded to the Finance Department for approval.

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PO Revisions

Any changes in a previously issued purchase order can be made only by the issuance of a Purchase Order Revision.

Only Procurement Services is authorized to issue a revision. In case of extensive changes, Procurement Services may choose to reproduce the complete information on the purchase order, in effect, canceling the original order.

Changes may refer to price, quantity ordered, terms and conditions, delivery point, funding source, etc. As a result of these or any other changes, the accounting information may also have to be altered and the appropriate documentation sent to the Finance Department.

A revision is issued only after the change has been agreed to verbally by the vendor and/or the requesting department. Issues that might require a revision include:

1. Request for a change received by a department or originated by Procurement Services
2. Request from vendor for change in the provisions of the purchase order
3. Any error (typographical or otherwise) discovered by any section of Procurement Services

Disposition of a Revision

Revision will be processed in the same manner as the original purchase order.

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Returns

At times, items must be returned to the original vendor due to overshipments, damage or repairs. Also, items are returned to vendors for upgrade or analysis. No equipment is to leave the University without proper documentation. Yeshiva University's Complaint and Credit Form is to be properly filled out and accompanied by a purchase requisition for repairs and upgrades.

No purchase order is necessary for returns for credit. However, all originating purchase order information will be required.

Packages shipped Federal Express should not use this form, but must follow the procedures as outlined in Express Main procedures.

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Review & Approval

In order to minimize institutional vulnerability to legal claims, unintended program obligations and financial liabilities, all contracts, letters of agreement, leases, real estate and construction documents and service contracts must be reviewed as to form and approved by the Office of General Counsel before any commitments are undertaken.

After documents are approved as to form by the Office of General Counsel and execution is authorized, the next step, in many instances, is the preparation and the submission of a purchase order and its budget approval in accordance with the purchasing procedures as outlined in this policy. The written approval of the Office of General Counsel, as to contract documents and any comments, should be attached to the purchase order.

Do not attempt to negotiate with the vendor. Procurement Services will perform all negotiations and obtain the appropriate institutional authorized signature for any required documents.

If this procedure is not followed, the institution will not be responsible for the financial and legal consequences.

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Rush Orders

The Purchasing System allows for processing of several types of orders; any of which could be designated as Rush. Orders under $7,500 without any contracts or special requirements are usually handled within 2 to 3 business days. Those orders above $7,500 requiring bidding (see Bidding Guidelines), have a contract attached to it or have special requirements could take up to 10 business days.

If you have any order that needs to be expedited faster than this, you need to enter your order as a Rush. To do so, enter a Y in the top of the header screen next to "Rush Order (y/n)". All rush order must have notes saying why it is a rush (i.e., overnight shipping, special pricing, grant is expiring tomorrow, etc.). Unless otherwise noted, all rush orders will be shipped using express mail. Entering a rush order is Procurement Services' authorization for any extra shipping charges. All orders that need overnight shipping must be sent to Procurement Services with the appropriate paper work and approvals no later than 2 p.m.

Orders less than $500 that fall within the specifications of a Quick Order (see Quick Order Guidelines) should be done as such and placed by the department.

Not following the above procedure may cause the order to be returned to you.

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Screening Labels

The University inventory control system requires that all purchases of equipment items of $3,000 or more have screening certification approved by a designated departmental administrator. Equipment costing more than $5,000 must, in addition, have property manager's certification approved by the property manager.

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Self Approvals

Employees can not authorize disbursements on their own behalf.

Those who are authorized to approve expenditures, cannot approve expenditures on their own behalf, for internal control purposes. Reimbursements through Accounts Payable or Petty Cash, as well as travel expenses and P Card expenses which are for the benefit of any individual (ie: directly reimbursing the individual, or being paid out for an event the individual is participating in), are to be authorized by another individual who has authority for that account. For an Academic Department, the Chair could authorize for the Administrator, and the Administrator could authorize for the Chair. If the alternate is not easily accessible, the CFO or the Associate Dean for Business and Finance can provide authorization. Administrative Department Heads all have someone they report to. Again, if that person is not easily accessible, the CFO or the Associate Dean for Business and Finance can provide authorization.

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Sole Source & Specification

The originator of the Procurement Requisitions frequently suggests or requests a specific manufacturer or supplier. Procurement Services will review the request for reasonableness, but reserves the right to place orders with vendors whose prices are lower than those of the vendor that appears on the requisition and who have extended their services to the University. The originator will be so advised prior to purchase. When an item is unique, available from only one supplier or a substitution is not feasible (commonly referred to as ''sole source''), a Request for a Waiver of Competitive Bid approved by a department head for University fund purchases or the principal investigator for grant purchases must be completed.

Procurement Services will determine the reasonableness of the Request for Waiver by investigating the price and services available from the ''sole source'' vendor.

The Waiver must be approved by the chief procurement officer.

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Standards & Ethics

The Standards and Ethics by which Procurement Services operates are to:

1. Strive to obtain the maximum value for each dollar of expenditure
2. Decline personal gifts or gratuities
3. Grant all competitive suppliers equal consideration insofar as state or federal statute and institutional policy permit
4. Conduct business with potential and current suppliers in an atmosphere of good faith, devoid of intentional misrepresentation
5. Demand honesty in sales representation whether offered through the medium of a verbal or written statement, an advertisement or a sample of the product
6. Receive consent of originator of proprietary ideas and designs before using them for competitive purchasing purposes
7. Make every reasonable effort to negotiate an equitable and mutually agreeable settlement of any controversy with a supplier; and/or be willing to submit any major controversies to arbitration or other third-party review, consistent with the established policies of the University
8. Accord a prompt and courteous reception insofar as conditions permit to all who call on legitimate business missions
9. Cooperate with trade, industrial and professional associations, and with governmental and private agencies for the purposes of promoting and developing sound business methods
10. Foster fair, ethical and legal trade practices

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University-Funded Orders

All expenses greater than $5,000 require approvals as follows:

Approval Chart for Manhattan Campuses and Einstein

This flow of approvals is designed to decrease the amount of time it takes for a requisition to be processed. Sending requisitions directly to the office responsible for funding approval will allow Procurement Services to receive a completely approved requisition. The order will then be generated in a timely fashion, thus expediting receipt of needed materials and services.

For this procedure to be effective, pricing must be obtained prior to funding approval--catalog or quoted pricing is sufficient (indicate the source of the information on the requisition in the Notes Section). Procurement Services will then verify the price while placing the order. Requisitions cannot be completed on the Purchase Requisition On-Line System (Jacada) without pricing and a valid eight-digit funding code (with available funds), and correct three-digit object code.

If help is needed with the eleven-digit funding code, contact the appropriate Finance Office. If there is uncertainty about a price or from whom a commodity is available, contact the individual in Procurement Services responsible for that commodity.

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