Except for the purchase of voter registration advertising, and temporary staff the voter registrar shall submit bids for the purchase of items or services to be paid for with Chapter 19 funds according to the following guidelines:

1. (1) No competitive bids for individual purchases of less than $2,000 are required. However, the voter registrar shall take the steps necessary to insure that all charges are reasonable and competitive relative to the local market. (Note: A large purchase may not be divided into small lot purchases to circumvent the dollar limits established by this section. For example, expenditures for computer equipment to a single vendor that total more than $2,000 are subject to the competitive bid requirement and may not be split between printers/scanner/computers.)
2. (2) Request for funding for individual purchases of $2,000 but less than $10,000 must be accompanied by three written bids from three different vendors stating the vendor's name, complete mailing address, telephone number, and the amount of the bid. Copies of all bids received will be forwarded to the Agency as an attachment with the electronic submission. In instances when the specifications on the lowest bid are unacceptable, a signed letter by the voter registrar must accompany stating the reason specifications on the lowest bid does not meet your needs. If a purchase is through the Texas Procurement and Support Services (TPASS) cooperative purchasing programs for state contract purchasing for the State of Texas, bids are not required. Proper documentations must be submitted to indicate the type of procurement service used and the source for those services.
3. (3) Any request for funding for a purchase of $10,000 or greater must have received the prior written approval of the Agency. Upon receipt of such approval, the voter registrar will advertise for bids in the manner dictated by county regulations. Copies of all bids received will be forwarded to the Agency as an attachment with the electronic submission.
4. (4) If a purchase is handled by a county's purchasing department, the voter registrar may use county purchasing guidelines instead of those set by paragraphs (1) and (2) of this section. However, a copy of the bids, if applicable per your county, a copy of the county guidelines and signed recommendation of the county purchasing department must be submitted with the Chapter 19 Purchase Request.
5. (5) Sole source vendor purchases and situations when the lowest bid is not accepted are discouraged. In rare instances when this type of purchase is required, a waiver request, stating a justification, must be submitted and signed by the voter registrar. If the item purchased is greater than $2,000, the waiver request must also be signed by the person responsible for county purchases. Only when a sole source vendor purchase or the acceptance of a bid higher than the lowest bid is required by county guidelines may such purchases be reimbursed with Chapter 19 funds and then, only upon receipt of the waiver request described herein above.

Source Note:The provisions of this §81.17 adopted to be effective October 1, 1995, 20 TexReg 7277; amended to be effective September 8, 1997, 22 TexReg 8389; amended to be effective October 7, 1999, 24 TexReg 8545; amended to be effective January 3, 2007, 31 TexReg 10755; amended to be effective June 22, 2008, 33 TexReg 4663.