Cooperative purchasing, using other government agency contracts
§10-201 Cooperative Purchasing Authorized
(1) Unless prohibited by law, and when in the County’s best interest, the Director of Procurement, on behalf of the County, may either participate in, sponsor, conduct, or administer a Cooperative Purchasing Agreement for the procurement of any supplies, services, or construction with one or more government agencies.
(2) All Cooperative Purchasing conducted under this Section shall be through contracts awarded through full and open competition, including use of source selection methods substantially equivalent to those specified in Section 3 (Source Selection and Contract Formation) of this Policy.
(3) Exemption from Competition for Other Cooperative Contracts
Unless prohibited by law, and deemed by the Director of Procurement to be in the County’s best interest, the competitive requirements specified in Section 3 (Source Selection and Contract Formation) of this Policy may be waived for procurements established under the Laws of Florida, Chapter 69-1119, Chapter 69-1112, Chapter 2004-466 (as amended by Chapter 2012-239); or awarded State of Florida contracts, Federal General Services Administration (GSA) contracts when authorized by GSA, provided such awards comply with §10-201(2) and are approved in accordance with §13-101 (Award Authority).
(4) Unless prohibited by law, the Director of Procurement shall also have the authority to utilize or “piggyback” competitively awarded contracts or procurements from other government agencies (states, counties, cities, etc.) and/or other purchasing cooperatives, provided such awarded contracts comply with §10-201(2) and are approved in accordance with §13-101 (Award Authority).
(5) Due to the unique and specific nature of such services, competitively awarded procurements of architectural, engineering, and other professional services defined in §287.055, Fla. Stat. (Consultants’ Competitive Negotiation Act) by other government agencies shall not be utilized or “piggybacked” by Hillsborough County, unless allowed in accordance with §10-201(6).
(6) Limitation on “Piggybacking” (Use) of Qualifications-Based Contracts Awarded by Other Governmental Agencies
Due to the subjective nature of the evaluation and selection process, contracts awarded by other government agencies based primarily on qualifications (rather than price) shall only be “piggybacked” or used if exigent circumstances warrant and/or are deemed to be in the County’s best interest. If used, such contracts shall comply with §10-201(2). This limitation does not apply to contracts awarded by the State of Florida or GSA.