Town Reforms Procurement Policy to Protect Taxpayers

Oyster Bay Town Supervisor Joseph Saladino and the Town Board recently approved reforms to the Town’s official Procurement Policy, a document which specifies the procedures for departments to purchase goods and services. The Town Board, together with the Inspector General, Town Attorney and the Department of General Services developed this enhanced policy to better protect taxpayers while increasing accountability for contractors and departments.

“My administration consistently looks for ways to improve government and protect taxpayers,” said Supervisor Saladino. “The enhancement of our procurement policy provided yet another opportunity for us to strengthen procedures and hold departments accountable for every taxpayer dime spent,” said Supervisor Saladino. ‘These enhancements, like others we’ve made in recent years, strengthens procedures and better holds both contractors and departments accountable for every taxpayer dime spent,

Some ways the new policy strengthens and improves the Town’s procedures include:

• Expanding the list of familial relationships that would constitute a conflict of interest so as to minimize the possibility of such conflicts.
• Better defining the terms ‘responsible bidder’ and ‘responsible vendor.’
• Establishing criteria to determine whether a vendor is capable of ‘fully performing’ the contract.
• Requiring prospective vendors to submit a disclosure questionnaire to the Inspector General so he may perform a thorough, top-down review of the vendor’s background information.
• Mandates the Town’s existing practice of requiring that RFPs be posted to the Town’s website.
• Provides criteria for RFP review committees to consider when evaluating proposals; and
• Requires departments to prepare and release a new RFP in any case when they seeks to extend an agreement for a period beyond three years from the original agreement date to ensure that the Town is getting the best price for the services or goods.

“I thank my colleagues on the Town Board for their diligence in ensuring that we continue to protect our residents wallets and make certain their best interests are at the forefront of all our actions,” said Supervisor Saladino. “These reforms continue our ongoing efforts of holding our departments accountable and protecting taxpayer dollars.”

From appointing a new, independent Board of Ethics to hiring an Inspector General who previously worked as a Federal agent with the CIA, the Town Board has implemented historic ethics reforms to protect tax dollars. As a result of these reforms, contractors, vendors and employees are subject to submit in-depth disclosure requirements and background checks through the use of forensic software. Approving these recent enhancements to the Procurement Policy codifies them in law and ensures that these best practices continue for generations to come.