Padre Dam Municipal Water District

Criteria or specific requirement: Procurement - ($3,500 or less) may be awarded without soliciting competitive quotations, (b) small purchases ($3,500 to $150,000) require price or rate quotations from an adequate number of qualified sources, and (c) sealed bids required for purchases in excess of $150,000. The Uniform Guidance has various requirements for written policies and procedures. Section 200.318 of the Uniform Guidance requires written standards of conduct covering conflicts of interest and governing the performance of its employees engaged in the selection, award, and administration of contracts. Section 200.430 of the Uniform Guidance requires established written policies regarding compensation. Condition: The District's purchasing policy is less restrictive than the Uniform Guidance in that the policy only requires quotes for expenditures in excess of $5,000, which is higher than the $3,500 limit required by the Uniform Guidance. No issues were noted as a result of testing only that the policies have not been updated for the Uniform Guidance. The District did not have the above written policies. Questioned costs: None noted. Context: Not applicable - lack of required written policies and procedures. Cause: The District was not aware of the requirement. Effect: The District was not in compliance with requirements of the Uniform Guidance for written procedures and some purchases could have been made without the required number of quotes and corresponding documentation. Recommendation: We recommend that the District establish written policies and procedures in line with the requirements of the Uniform Guidance.