PSD Frequently Asked Questions

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What are the significant changes to Procurement for this year?

The most meaningful change is that Procurement activities previously executed by schools are now being executed centrally by the Procurement team. Instead of schools and sites complying with all the Procurement requirements, now schools and sites will enter shopping carts, and Procurement will now process the Purchase Order (PO). This will ensure the District satisfies competitive bidding requirements, freeing up schools to focus on instruction and student achievement.

What do I need to do to get a Purchase Order (PO) issued?

For the purchase of professional services up to $25,000, submit a shopping cart and attach at least one quote (if available) along the vendor’s certificate of insurance (if available).
For the purchase of goods and general services up to $114,800, submit a shopping cart and attach at least one quote (if available) along the vendor’s certificate of insurance (if available).
For the purchase of professional services over $25,000; or for goods and general services over $114,800, submit a completed/signed Request for Procurement Action (RFPA) and District-authored Statement of Work to initiate an informal or formal competitive process.

How do I create a Purchase Requisition?

Do we need to submit a Purchase Requisition for all purchases?

What does my Purchase Requisition Status mean?

Composing- In this status, the document is in 'draft' status and has not yet been submitted for approvals. Requisitions can remain in composing status until they are ready to be issued or discarded. Ariba autosaves your progress while you are in composing status, so you won't lose your progress if you are inactive or navigate away from the page.

Submitted - Purchase Requisition has been submitted for approval but has yet to be fully approved.

Ordering- STOs for the Stores Warehouse will be displayed as ordering rather than Ordered. For POs in the Ordering status, this may indicate an issue with the Purchase Requisition (PR) preventing it from generating the Purchase Order (PO).

Ordered - Purchase Requisition is fully approved and a Purchase Order has been created. Available to start the Receiving process.

Receiving - Purchase Requisition is fully approved and a Purchase Order has been created. The order has been partially received.

Received - All items on the Purchase Order have been received, and no further action is required from the requestor.

How long does it take for transactions to occur/POs to be issued?

The answer varies by the type of procurement based on the value and complexity. Broadly speaking, P-Card transactions are processed in real-time. Once Procurement receives a completed package with all necessary approvals, the processing times for Shopping Carts is:

Up to 15-days for professional services up to $25,000
Up to 15-days for goods and general services up to $109,300
Up to 60-days for professional services $25,000 - $250,000 and for goods and general services $109,300 - $250,000
For any services over $250,000, processing times may vary, please consult with Procurement

If I am requesting a service such as after-school enrichment or supplemental arts instruction, do I have to get three quotes and insurance before submitting a cart?

No.
If you have a specific service and vendor in mind, please submit a District-authored Statement of Work with key details (i.e., who, what, when, where and why), contact information, a price quote, and a current certificate of insurance (COI), if available. Attach all these to the cart. Procurement will determine if anything further needs to be completed to put the service out to bid. Procurement will contact you to verify any information or ask follow-up questions. Procurement will then bid/request quotes from other like-vendors if necessary to move ahead. Obtaining two or more quotes for the same/ similar services may speed up the process. But this is not required and will be completed by Procurement Services if necessary.

Our school has used a particular Vendor for seven years. Why do they have to submit a bid or proposal?

How can a vendor get on a bench?

Vendors must participate in a competitive process (i.e., Request for Proposals) to be awarded a contract and be put on a “bench.” Benches are initiated by requestors (departments or schools, not vendor initiated) who also sponsor the bench. Vendors on a bench provide the same or similar services and offer choice to schools and offices. To access the available list of bench contracts available for use, visit the website at https://www.lausd.org/Page/14462.

Vendor Z says they are an “approved District vendor.” How can they be made known to all schools and offices?

There is no such designation as an “approved District vendor”. Being in possession of a District supplier/vendor number does not entitle a vendor to provide a product or service. A supplier/vendor number merely enables a vendor to receive an approved purchase order should a school or office choose to initiate one. Vendors with approved bench contracts are indicated on Procurement’s Master Agreement list as provided in #9 above. Schools and offices are supporting instruction and learning, and they should not be approached by salespeople. To be notified of bid or proposal opportunities, vendors may register HERE.

What are the insurance requirements for vendors?

Insurance requirements for agreements under $250,000 are listed below:

General Liability $1 MM/$2 MM aggregate
Professional Liability $1 MM/$1 MM aggregate (for professional/consulting services)
Sexual Abuse/Molestation $1 MM/$1 MM aggregate (for virtual or direct contact with students)
Cyber Liability -- If the SOW (Statement of Work) calls for vendors to access District data systems, then $1 MM/$1 MM aggregate, otherwise, Cyber Liability does not apply.

Requests over $250,000 are determined on a case-by-case basis and handled by Procurement in collaboration with Risk Management.

What is the process if the contract or service is being funded by PTA/PTO or another external organization?

It varies, depending on whether the PTA/PTO or other external organization is paying the vendor directly or donating the funds to the school/District.

If the organization is donating the funds to the school/District, then the procurement processes outlined in question #2 should be followed. In addition, reference BUL-5895 to ensure all donation guidelines are being followed.
If the organization is paying the vendor directly, then the procurement processes outlined in question #2 are not required. However, if the PTA/PTO or other external organization is paying the vendor directly and is asking the school to sign a contract/agreement, a school representative should email their region buyer the contract/agreement for review and execution along with a copy of the vendor’s certificate of insurance (COI), if available. The buyer will make it clear that, although Procurement will sign an appropriate contract, the costs are borne by the PTA/PTO or external organization. PLEASE NOTE: Only Procurement has delegated authority to execute a contract on behalf of the District, and therefore a school should not sign contracts/agreements.

What is the process for Associated Student Body (ASB), Student Council, Student Activities Group or other student groups?

A shopping cart is not required to process contracts from any of these groups. If a vendor is asking the school to sign a contract/agreement, a school representative should email their region buyer the contract/agreement for review and execution along with a copy of the vendor’s certificate of insurance (COI), if available. PLEASE NOTE: Only Procurement has delegated authority to execute a contract on behalf of the District, and therefore a school should not sign contracts/agreements. The District will review the contract and execute with the understanding that the student organization that raised the funds will be paying for the contract or services. There is no requirement to competitively bid but doing so might provide savings to the student organization.

**For bench contracts that are already in place for common student functions such as ordering class rings (Jostens), Photos, Yearbooks, graduation caps and gowns, etc., schools should contact the vendor for a quote and refer to the contract to ensure the vendor’s quote matches the contract. These contracts provide savings to your student organizations and should be used. Refer to BUL-1295.4, REF-6484.9 and REF-6643.2 for additional guidance on these types of transactions.

Do we have to submit a Facilities Use Approval with our shopping carts?

Who should I contact if I want to follow up on my shopping cart or have any Procurement related questions?

You should contact your Region Buyer:

Region East James Morton Jr., Buyer [email protected] (562) 654-9380	Region North Vanessa Ortiz, Buyer [email protected] (562) 654-9480
Region West Cheryl Wideman, Buyer [email protected] (213) 241-0537	Region South Stephen Vice, Buyer [email protected] (562) 654-9488
All Other Schools and Offices [email protected] (562) 654-9009

Couldn't find an answer to your questions? Visit the Contact Us page or Call (562) 654-9009