Purchasing Authority

Scope

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Policy Statement

Purchasing authority is vested in the Board of Trustees of Indiana University and delegated through the President and the Vice President and Chief Financial Officer to the Associate Vice President of University Procurement Services. Only authorized Indiana University personnel may commit University funds for goods and services.

Policies, mission statements, systems development, and institutional reporting are the responsibility of the Associate Vice President of University Procurement Services. The Associate Vice President of University Procurement Services or a delegate has the authority to review any and all records to assure compliance with University policy. The Associate Vice President of University Procurement Services is responsible for documenting and communicating purchasing policy to all campuses. Each campus will be responsible for the implementation of University purchasing policy, management of operational procedures, and the organization of its purchasing department. The Associate Vice President of University Procurement Services is also responsible for implementation of University purchasing policy, management of operational procedures, and the organization of University Procurement Services. IU Northwest, IU South Bend, IU Kokomo, IU East, and IU Southeast have purchasing authority up to $50,000 per order. Orders that exceed this amount may be processed by the aforementioned campuses when the purchase is made from an existing University or campus-specific contract. In this event, the regional campus has the authority to complete the transaction; they must also notify the appropriate Purchasing Contract Manager and place a note to this effect on the order’s note screen in the procurement system. Exceptions to this policy must be approved by the Associate Vice President of University Procurement Services.

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Reason for Policy

Authorization to commit university funds for goods and services.

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Procedures

The Associate Vice President of University Procurement Services is responsible for maintaining a current organizational chart and a policy and procedures manual. See Solicitation Process Procedures.

Procedure Reference

The Associate Vice President of University Procurement Services is responsible for maintaining a current organizational chart and a policy and procedures manual. See Solicitation Process Procedures.

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Definitions

Purchasing Authority: the University Procurement Services' authority to commit University funds for goods or services, and all agency powers associated with the business activities.

Purchasing: A process which includes:

• consultation with user departments
• selection of vendors
• solicitation of quotations
• awarding of orders
• recording of audit trail

Throughout the purchasing process, the purchasing departmental staff follows University policies, statutes, regulations, and ethical standards.

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History

This policy was established on February 18, 1992.

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