A.
Amount of bond. In accordance with § C-119 of the Charter, the following named officials, employees and agents of the Municipality shall, prior to entering upon the duties of their respective offices, execute and file with the Municipality corporate surety bonds, conditioned upon the honest and faithful discharge and performance of their respective duties and the proper application of all money or property coming into their hands by virtue of their offices, in the following amounts:
B.
Bonding companies. All such bonds shall be approved
by the Municipal Solicitor and placed with one or more surety companies
as Council may determine. Any bond placed with two or more surety
companies shall obligate all such companies jointly and severally.
The Municipality shall pay the premium for all surety bonds. To the
extent that an official or employee of the Municipality acts in a
similar capacity for another political subdivision or governmental
entity, the bond covering such official or employee may reflect such
other political subdivision or entity as an additional loss payee.
C.
Insurance reports. The Chief Administrator shall submit
reports to Council at least biennially, or six months prior to the
expiration of any policy in the case of policies with a term of less
than three years, reviewing all municipality insurance coverage in
all liability areas and recommending coverage deemed reasonable and
prudent. Said areas shall include but not be limited to the following:
(1)
Catastrophic liability insurance.
(2)
Comprehensive business liability and damage insurance.
(3)
Municipal property protection insurance.
(4)
Professional police liability insurance.
(5)
Workmen's compensation and employer's liability insurance.
(6)
Public officials' and employees' indemnity insurance.
D.
Competitive bidding not required. As provided in § C-122 of the Charter, competitive bidding shall not be required for contracts for insurance and surety bonds. The Chief Administrator shall, in the insurance report required in Subsection C above, submit a recommendation including, where available, quotations from two or more insurance companies or brokers concerning whether insurance and bonds should be purchased through a competitive bidding procedure or on a direct-purchase basis.
[Amended 12-16-1991 by Ord. No. 305-91]
Preparation and adoption of the annual operating budget shall be accomplished in accordance with §§ C-103 through C-110 of the Charter. The budget shall be prepared with a detailed chart of accounts utilizing the format set forth in the publications of the Department of Community Affairs of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
Payment of all invoices, bills and claims shall be in accordance with § C-113 of the Charter.
A.
Borrowing and nonelectoral debt limits are regulated
in accordance with the laws of the commonwealth.
B.
Incurrence of debt.
(1)
Notwithstanding the provisions of Act 185 of July
12, 1972 (hereinafter the "Local Government Unit Debt Act"),[1] Council may not incur debt (as hereinafter defined) unless approved by an affirmative vote of six Council members in accordance with § C-112 of the Charter.
[1]
Editor's Note: See now 53 Pa. C.S.A. §
8001 et seq.
(2)
"Debt" means any obligation for the payment of money,
whether due and payable in all events or only upon the performance
of work, possession of property as lessee or rendering of services
by others, except:
(a)
Current obligations for the full payment of
which current revenues have been appropriated, including tax anticipation
notes, and current payments for the funding of pension plans.
(b)
Obligations under contracts for supplies, services
and pensions, allocable to current operating expenses of future years
in which the supplies are to be furnished, the services rendered or
the pensions paid.
(c)
Rentals payable in future years under leases
not evidencing the acquisition of capital assets.
(d)
Interest or assumed taxes payable on bonds or
notes, which interest or taxes are not yet overdue.
(e)
All net debt incurred with the assent of the
electors.
(3)
Any ordinance calling an election for the purpose
of obtaining the assent of the electors to the incurrence of debt
shall be deemed approved upon the affirmative vote of four Council
members.
C.
As directed by Council, the Director of Finance or
his designated agent shall invest, redeem and reinvest funds available
for but not immediately required for municipal operations in a separate
municipality account or in a municipal funding pool. Such investments
shall be made only in securities backed by the full faith and credit
of the United States Government, by the Federal Deposit Insurance
Corporation, by the Federal Savings and Loan Insurance Corporation
or by the pledges of assets of the type and valuation provided under
the laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Temporary investments
may also be made in bank certificates of deposit supported by fully
pledged collateral and repurchase agreements for United States Government
or other allowable securities. It shall be the responsibility of the
Director of Finance to maximize investment revenues consistent with
law and minimum investment risk.
B.
The Chief Administrator shall establish by Administrative
Manual[1] and administer a purchasing system which shall provide the regulations, policies and procedures covering the acquisition of goods and services by the Municipality, subject to the provisions of this code. Such purchasing system shall cover all purchases made by the Municipality except those specifically excluded in § C-122 of the Charter.
[1]
Editor's Note: The Administrative Manual is
on file in the office of the Chief Administrator.
A.
Dollar limitation.
[Amended 6-22-1982 by Ord. No. 105-82; 3-21-1994 by Ord. No.
386-94; 4-4-2012 by Ord. No. 857-12]
(1)
Except as hereinafter provided, all contracts for
the purchase of goods, properties or services involving an expenditure
of more than $18,500 shall be entered into with the party submitting
the lowest responsible bid.
B.
LOWEST RESPONSIBLE BIDDER
RESPONSIBLE BIDDER
Definitions. As used in this section, the following
terms shall have the meanings indicated:
A responsible bidder who, in a competitive bidding situation,
submits a bid which, as finally determined by Council, is the best
bid available in terms of price, product and/or service quality, adherence
to specifications, timeliness of delivery, serviceability and maintenance
and other factors that Council may establish.
A bidder who is considered responsible either through previous
experience in business dealings with the Municipality or through an
investigation of the credit, reliability and performance of the bidder.
D.
Responsible bidders list. The Chief Administrator
shall cause to be established and maintained a bidders list for each
type of goods or service purchased by the Municipality. Inclusion
on the bidders list shall signify that a bidder is considered responsible
either through previous experience in business dealings with the Municipality
or through an investigation of the credit, reliability and performance
of the bidder. Once qualified as responsible, a bidder shall remain
on the bidders list indefinitely unless removed by reason of disqualification.
E.
Disqualification of bidders.
(1)
A bidder may be disqualified for reasons including
but not limited to the following:
(a)
Documentation of unsatisfactory performance
by the bidder or of unsatisfactory goods or service provided by the
bidder to the Municipality or to other municipalities.
(b)
False or misleading statements about a product
or service.
(c)
An attempt by a bidder to influence the purchase
of goods or services by the Municipality through any gift, gratuity,
favor or benefit or promise thereof to a municipal official or employee.
(d)
Collusion with another bidder in an attempt
to regulate the price, quality or availability of goods or services
to the detriment of the Municipality.
(2)
Upon disqualification, a supplier shall be removed
from the responsible bidders list until requalified. Such requalification
shall consist of reasonable proof that the cause for disqualification
shall not recur.
F.
Invitation to bid. When it is determined that a purchase
is to be made through competitive bidding, an invitation to bid shall
be sent by mail to all vendors appearing on the bidders list for the
item to be purchased. The invitation shall include:
G.
Publication requirements. The Municipality shall publish
the invitation to bid one time not later than 10 days prior to the
scheduled bid opening.
H.
Specifications. Specifications shall be prepared for all purchases made through competitive bidding. Specifications shall consist of a specific complete and accurate description of the item to be purchased, the performance requirements and conditions and terms of purchase. Specifications shall be clearly worded but shall not be so specific or strict as to effectively eliminate acceptable products from competition. If a maintenance or a performance bond is to be required before a contract is awarded, the amount, manner and form shall be prescribed in the specifications. See Subsection M below.
I.
Bid deposits. A bid deposit shall be required for
any purchase made under these procedures in an amount equal to 25%
of the bid price quoted. The bid deposit of the lowest responsible
bidder, as determined by Council, shall be forfeited to the Municipality
if the product or service purchased is not delivered as required in
the specifications.
J.
Bid procedure. All bids shall be firmly sealed in
an envelope and labeled so as to indicate the specific purchase for
which the bid is submitted and the scheduled date and time of the
bid opening. Bids shall be opened at the appointed time by the Municipal
Secretary. All bid openings shall be open to the public. Any bids
received after the bid opening has commenced shall be returned to
the bidder unopened. Upon completion of bid opening, the Chief Administrator
will analyze the bid for conformance with the specifications and recommend
to Council the lowest responsible bid.
K.
Bid award. Council shall review the recommendation
of the Chief Administrator and may award a contract to the lowest
responsible bidder. All such awards shall be made in a public meeting
by the affirmative vote of four Council members. Council shall at
all times reserve the right to reject any and all bids received or
to waive any informalities in the bids received if said informalities
do not conflict with this code or the Charter.
L.
Filing of bids. The Chief Administrator shall maintain
on file all bids received for a period of not less than three years
and shall make such files available for public inspection upon request.
M.
Bonds.
(1)
Contracts entered into under these procedures shall
be accompanied by the following bonds in form and substance satisfactory
to Council:
(a)
A performance bond in an amount equal to 100%
of the contract price, guaranteeing the work to be completed and/or
the equipment to be supplied in accordance with the contract.
(b)
A maintenance bond in an amount equal to 100%
of the contract price, or such other amount deemed adequate by Council,
to insure maintenance of all improvements, work and materials for
a period of at least 24 months or such greater period as specified
by Council.
(2)
Council may waive the requirement for either or both
of the above bonds where it is shown that such a bond(s) is not commonly
available.
A.
When emergency circumstances require that a purchase be made within a limited period of time so as to preclude the competitive bidding process, the Chief Administrator may waive the bid requirement and authorize an emergency purchase. For purposes of § C-122A(6) of the Charter and this section, an emergency shall be limited to situations where:
(1)
Delay in making the purchase would present a threat
to the health, safety or welfare of the residents of the Municipality.
(2)
The purchase is required by unforeseen circumstances
and delay would seriously hinder the effective delivery of essential
Municipality services.
(3)
There are no feasible alternatives to the emergency
purchase.
B.
Every effort shall be made to provide competitive
conditions during the emergency purchase. Quotations should be obtained
from as many vendors as possible, although such quotations may be
oral in nature. A record shall be made of all oral quotations received,
and such record, signed by the municipal official or employee receiving
the oral quotations, shall be made part of the Municipality's files.
As soon as possible after becoming aware of the need for an emergency
purchase, the Chief Administrator shall advise the Mayor or, in his
absence, the President of Council. All emergency purchases shall be
reported to Council at the next regularly scheduled meeting.
When it is determined that property or equipment of the Municipality is surplus or no longer usable, the Chief Administrator shall so advise Council. At the direction of Council, such property shall be offered for sale through published notice and sealed bids as required for purchases under § 3-52 of this code, or such property may be sold in an advertised public sale either by auction or sealed bids. Nothing herein shall prevent disposal of obsolete or surplus property as a trade-in on the purchase of similar property or equipment.
In accordance with Article IX of the Charter, Council shall appoint, for the purpose of an independent annual audit of all municipal revenues, expenditures and accounts, an auditor who shall be a certified public accountant or a firm of certified public accountants licensed to practice in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania for each fiscal year. Such appointment shall be made not later than January 30 of each succeeding year. The auditor so appointed shall conduct the audits in accordance with the requirements of Article IX of the Charter.
[Amended 3-7-2001 by Ord. No 563-01]
The election, compensation, obligations and duties of the Director of the Department of Tax Collection shall be as set forth in Article VIII of the Charter. The salary of the Director of the Department of Tax Collection shall be as set forth in Ordinance No. 143-76, as amended from time to time.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: This ordinance is on file in
the municipal office.
