Purchasing

Responsibilities

The Purchasing Division of the Finance Department purchases goods and services on behalf of the City in accordance with the City’s Municipal Code requirements and City Council direction. Purchasing staff are responsible for conducting solicitations (Requests for Proposal, Requests for Qualifications, Requests for Quotation, and Invitations for Bid), as well as executing contract documents, including amendments and change orders as required, in accordance with established City processes and procedures and in coordination with the awarded vendor and City department. Goods and services procured by the Purchasing Division vary and can include, but are not limited to, professional, consulting, architectural, and engineering services, smaller public works projects (construction), public works maintenance and repair services, maintenance supplies and parts, computers and associated accessories, software, etc.

Purchasing staff are available to meet with firms who were not awarded a contract based on a solicitation to debrief them on their proposal's strengths and weaknesses.

Purchasing Process

Purchasing makes every effort to maximize competition among qualified vendors and obtain maximum value and benefit for each dollar spent by the City.

Purchasing Requirements

Per Municipal Code Section I-2-3.01, purchases less than or equal to $10,000 may be made without a competitive procurement.

Purchases > $10,000 through $50,000 may be made utilizing an informal bidding process.

Purchases > $50,000 must be made based on a formal procurement. 

Per Municipal Code Section I-2-3.03, certain exceptions to competitive may be applicable. 

Additionally, per Municipal Code Section I-2-3.13, contracts for consulting services may be made by the City without a competitive procurement.

Public Works Projects

 Per Municipal Code Section I-2-3.20, the City follows the California Uniform Public Construction Cost Accounting Act (CUPCCAA) for Public Works projects as defined by

California Public Contract Code § 22002. As of January 1, 2025, CUPCCAA procurement thresholds are as follows:

For Publics Works projects $75,000 or less, a contract may be awarded without competition.

For Public Works projects between $75,000 and $220,000, an informal bidding process (or formal bidding process if the City chooses) will be used.

For Public Works projects over $220,000, formal bidding procedures must be used.

Contracts

Following contract award, the City will execute a Purchase Order or Agreement with the awarded firm, and a copy of the signed document will be sent to the firm. The firm and the City are contractually bound to the terms and conditions of the signed document.

Bid Advertisements

The City publishes its solicitations on our Milpitas purchasing website at https://www.milpitas.gov/264/Bid-Opportunities, and on our e-procurement website, OpenGov, at https://procurement.opengov.com/portal/milpitas-ca.

All bidders must register on OpenGov to submit bid responses. If you are not already registered, please go to https://procurement.opengov.com/portal/milpitas-ca and click on +Subscribe. There is no cost to register for and participate in City of Milpitas solicitations.

For Public Works project solicitations, per CUPCCAA requirements, the City will also publish the bid notification in The Milpitas Post and through designated news groups.

Disclaimer

While the City of Milpitas intends to maintain continuous access to this Website, from time to time access to information and/or documents may be interrupted or prevented either because of site problems, user problems or Internet problems. Not all access difficulties can be resolved by the City since some access failures may be due to the type of computer or communication equipment and services employed by the Website user. Suppliers are cautioned that the competitive nature of their offers could be affected if their submissions do not include all response documents and acknowledgement of all amendments. For this reason, vendors are advised to frequently revisit all solicitations to which they intend to respond. It each vendor’s responsibility to check the website from time to time for updates to opportunities and to pick up additional amendments and information.