Procurement

All Purchase Orders are subject to Boulder County’s terms and conditions.

Purchases under $10,000 do not require bidding.

County departments and offices are required to follow county policies and internal processes for purchases at this dollar amount. They will directly reach out to vendors to request pricing or a quote. When a selection is finalized, the vendor will receive purchase orders directly from the department or office placing the order.

Informal bids are processed at the $10,000 to $99,999 level

County departments and offices must reach out to vendors to solicit quotes and/or proposals.

Communication during open solicitations

Departments and offices will communicate through email and/or phone, at their discretion.

Minority- and Women-owned Business Enterprises

Departments and offices are required to search the City and County of Denver certification database for MWBE-certified entities, and invite at least one vendor from the search results to provide a quote or proposal. Bid and Proposal opportunities are published in the Boulder County Procurement Portal.

Find out more about how Boulder County supports Minority- and Women-owned Business Enterprises at our Equitable Procurement page.

At this level, Boulder County requires the use of a formal competitive process.

Invitation to Bid (ITB or BID) and Request for Proposal (RFP) Processes

Notices of both types of formal competitive processes are posted to the Boulder County Procurement Portal and listed on the county’s Bids and Proposals page. In some cases the county will utilize email, mail, journals, and newspapers to advertise and distribute ITBs and RFPs. However, the official way to receive these documents from Boulder County is to consult the Procurement Portal.

Communication during open solicitations

Communication is achieved through the Procurement Portal only. Attempts at communication through email, phone or other means will result in redirection to the Portal.

Minority- and Women-owned Business Enterprises

The Procurement division will search the City and County of Denver certification database for MWBE certified entities, and perform outreach to matching vendors. Bid and Proposal opportunities will be published on the Procurement Portal.

Find out more about how Boulder County supports Minority- and Women-owned Business Enterprises on our Equitable Procurement page.

Products and services that have a lesser adverse effect on human health and the environment, when compared with competing products that serve the same purpose, will receive greater consideration for purchase.

The first step is to create an account in the Boulder County Procurement Portal. Proceed to the Bids and Proposals page for further instructions.

Boulder County utilizes 3 procurement thresholds. All details are provided in the Policies and Procedures section.

We recommend vendors:

• Select all the NIGP (commodity) codes that apply to the services and goods their company provides.
• Ensure every question is answered, especially required items marked with an asterisk (*). We recommend double-checking all entries before submitting, as the system will not allow to proceed if any required question is left unanswered.
• Complete the self-identification question regarding possible status as a minority and/or woman, and if applicable: upload your entity’s MWBE certification. Consult the Equitable Procurement page for more information on MWBE certification.
  

Vendors are notified of new opportunities that match the NIGP codes entered when registering their vendor account on the Procurement Portal. Codes may be added or removed from an existing account.

Boulder County recommends the following:

• Understand the solicitation completely by evaluating its entire contents, making note of
  • deadlines,
  • mandatory forms,
  • insurance, bonding, and licensing requirements.
• Proposal preparers should pay special attention to any required provisions, where missing or incorrect information could lead to ineligibility or disqualification. Look for keywords indicating a particular piece of information is mandatory.
• Analyze whether solicitation requirements match your organization’s capabilities; confirm the Scope of Work is within your organization’s technical capacity.
• Double-check if pre-bid meeting attendance is mandatory or not.
• When submitting a bid, answer each question clearly and concisely.
• Ask questions early via the the Boulder County Procurement Portal, and ensure they are submitted before the Questions Deadline listed on the solicitation page.
• Ensure you recheck the solicitation page periodically for any published addenda: an addendum communicates changes through new and updated documents and instructions, and/or answers any submitted questions.
• Unless stated otherwise in the solicitation, submit a Proposal for the entire project. Submitting a partial Proposal may result in disqualification.
• Identify all evaluation criteria and ensure your Proposal addresses them all.
• For projects with Contract Participation Goals, review Exhibit D carefully to ensure compliance. Additional documentation is required, such as:
  • Commitment form,
  • Utilization Plan,
  • Subcontractor/Supplier List,
  • Letter of Intent.

  This documentation allows us to identify MWBE subcontractors that count towards the Goals.

• Highlight any past experience and capacity your organization has brought to similar projects and outcomes.
  

The solicitation will clearly state whether or not the pre-bid meeting is mandatory. If the pre-bid meeting is listed as mandatory: you must attend in order to be eligible.

Date and times for pre-bid meetings are provided in the solicitation details.

Not unless it is stated otherwise in the solicitation details. By default, you must submit a proposal for the entire project. Submitting a bid for only a portion of the project may result in disqualification.

Vendors may request a debrief to receive feedback and learn how to strengthen future proposals. Debrief requests are accepted by email only, at procurement@bouldercounty.gov.

County departments and offices, including Boulder County Procurement, select vendors based on the following criteria:

Vendor Selection Criteria

Irrespective of the method used, purchases must be made so as to provide the best value to Boulder County and promote its best interests. Offices and Departments must obtain goods and services that represent the best value to the county and are provided at a competitive price.

Rules applicable to solicitations starting at the $10,000 level are listed in the Policies and Procedures section. No specific rules apply to no-bid purchases below $10,000.

In certain circumstances, a vendor may protest an award through the following objection process:

1. Vendors may object to an award decision of an Elected Official (EO), Department Head (DH), the County Administrator, or the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) by submitting an objection letter to the Procurement Officer within ten calendar days of official notification of the Award by the Office of Financial Management (OFM).
2. The Procurement Officer, with the assistance of the department or office, will draft a written response to the objection letter. OFM will send the objection letter, along with its response, to the County Administrator or BOCC for their review, depending on who made the award.
3. For an Award by the EO/DH or County Administrator: At their sole discretion, the County Administrator may determine that an award should be withdrawn. In this case, OFM will notify the awarded vendor and other competing vendors that it has been withdrawn.
4. For an Award by the BOCC: At its sole discretion, the BOCC may permit a vendor to address its objection in a Business Meeting prior to formal decisionmaking, In such an event, OFM will notify the vendor of the date, time, and location of the Meeting. Vendors do not have a right to present information at the meeting.
   

A normal timeline typically takes 30 days, starting from when an invoice is received by the responsible department, until check issuance or ACH payment.

Pre-bid meetings give interested bidders a chance to meet project managers and go over solicitation terms, conditions, requirements and specifications before the submission deadline. These meetings may also include site visits to review work locations where applicable. Pre-bid meetings are also great opportunities to meet prime contractors or subcontractors.