1. The City shall attempt to buy materials and services of high quality at a reasonable cost.

2. The City shall make sure that all purchasing actions are fair and impartial with no impropriety or appearance of impropriety. All qualified buyers and sellers shall have access to City business, and no individual or firm shall be arbitrarily excluded.

3. Every attempt will be made to secure the maximum feasible amount of competition.

4. All purchases and contracts shall be made by the City Administrator. The City Administrator may delegate the responsibility for all major construction contracts to the City Engineer and the responsibility for all other city purchases to the Purchasing Manager.

5. All budgeted purchase requisitions are subject to the following approvals:

" Every purchase is subject to the approval of the Purchasing Manager before purchase is made.

" Purchase requisitions up to $3,000 are to be approved by the Department Manager.

" Purchase requisitions from $3,000 up to $5,000 are to be approved by the City Administrator.

" Purchase requisitions of $5,000 and above are to be approved by the Mayor and Council.

If budgeted funds are not available, the Director of Finance shall be contacted to locate a source of funds prior to any purchase occurring.

6. Purchases of $30 and under may be made through petty cash.

7. The City shall maintain a yearly open purchase order system ($200 maximum per transaction) to cover purchases from specified vendors who supply the City with a high volume of the same or similar goods or services during the course of a year.

8. The City of Hagerstown Purchasing Manual shall cover all detailed City purchasing policies and procedures and is available from the Purchasing Department.