According to a press release by NIGP, research has proven time and time again that educated and certified procurement professionals have the necessary skills and tools to get the most use from each and every tax-payer dollar.

Purchasing Month is an international event that re-cognizes the significant contributions public purchasers make to the quality, efficiency and effectiveness of small and large governmental agencies every day, not only in the United States but throughout the world.

The Purchasing Division’s annual training conference strives to provide the ingredients to an efficient mixture of education, experience and networking. For additional information on this upcoming training event, please turn to pages 4 and 5 or visit our website at www. state.wv.us/admin/purchase.

All state agency purchasers and managers are encouraged to take a proactive position to further the awareness of ethical purchasing practices in our state government.

Since the month of March is traditionally set aside to reflect on the accomplishments of the past and the visions of the future, I hope that you take time to review the practices and processes for which you have implemented in your agency and look toward the future to continue to find ways to make positive improvements.

ATTENTION ALL STATE AGENCY PURCHASERS: Don't miss out on this spectacular event to not only learn valuable information about many purchasing-related topics, but our participants also will have plenty of networking opportunities. In addition, many of our vendors will display their products and services during our Products Exposition.

The State Capitol Complex is experiencing dramatic changes relating to accessibility. On behalf of the Division of Protective Services, the Purchasing Division awarded a contract last year for a card security system to be installed in the buildings on campus.

According to Jay Smithers, deputy director of Protective Services, the pilot program for the security system in Building 3 has been successful and the roll-out to buildings 5, 6 and 7 is now in progress. The State Capitol will be the last to be completed due to the complexity of installing the equipment in the exterior.

"This system will greatly enhance the security of all state employees and visitors at the Capitol Complex and allow those individuals on campus a peace of mind," Smithers said.

A "proximity card" will be assigned and distributed to each employee which they will be able to scan in a special devise at the building’s entrances. Without ‘access’ to the building, the individual will have to enter through the ‘official’ entrance as would a visitor.

Smithers suggests to have your card ready when approaching the device and not to ‘piggyback’ on a card. Two people may not gain access through the use of one card.

If an employee’s card is lost or stolen, the employee must contact Protective Services immediately. The card will be cancelled and a new card will be issued at a cost of $20.

For more information or a copy of the videotaped training that was conducted last fall for each employee working at the Capitol Complex, please contact Protective Services at 558-9911.

Whether an automatic deduction covers payments for insurance or something else, stopping it can prove to be difficult. What are you to do?

First, contact the company to cancel the automatic payment arrangement.

Banks indicate that it is common for unscrupulous companies to sneak one additional payment or more through your account. They recommend a stop-pay order.

Such companies may try to circumvent the order by making small changes in the amount so stop-pay won’t work.

What should I do if I experience poor performance from a vendor that my agency has been doing business with?

If a vendor does not provide the product or service for which it was contracted or such appropriate levels of delivery or quality were not met, agency purchasers should complete a Vendor Performance Form (WV-82) and submit to the Purchasing Division, detailing the steps it has taken to resolve the problem.

EVEN if the problem has been resolved, the Purchasing Division requests that the agency complete the form to document the problem which had occurred.

Only after all attempts have been exhausted by the agency to resolve the problem will the Purchasing Division intervene.

Please note that the Vendor Performance Form is available on the state's Intranet site for your convenience.

The Purchasing Division is offering something new and exciting this year and it can be summed up in a few words: 2003 Agency and Vendor Purchasing Conference & Product Exposition!

In the past, separate conferences were held for representatives of state agencies and businesses, respectively. This year, there will be a single conference with the buyers and sellers joined together.

Lakeview Resort & Conference Center in Morgantown, West Virginia will host this year’s training conference. Agency purchasers will arrive on Tuesday, April 8, with a packed full agenda awaiting them. The conference will conclude April 11 at about 11:30 a.m.

The Purchasing Division promises that this year’s purchasing conference will be the best ever. The agenda has changed dramatically to provide every participant with an abundance of information, networking possibilities and educational opportunities that will greatly benefit the agency purchasers and business representatives.

In addition to workshop sessions for agency purchasers and combined classes with vendor participants, businesses will be offering a Product Exposition to showcase their products and services.

A brief itinerary is included in the insert on this page. There are many changes from past conferences. The appropriate dress for this conference is business casual, with a suggested business attire for the banquet.

In addition to the valuable information presented within the workshops, the conference also offers ample opportunities to network with others to discuss similar issues and concerns.

Registering for the conference is simple. There are two different ways to register:

8:30 a.m. – 9:30 a.m.
Group Breakfast and Conference Commencement

9:30 a.m. – 1 p.m.
Product Expo Open

1:30 p.m. – 2:30 p.m.
Concurrent Workshop Sessions

2:45 p.m. – 3:45 p.m.
Concurrent Workshop Sessions

10:15 a.m. – 11:15 a.m.
Concurrent Workshop Sessions

11:30 a.m. – 12:45 p.m.
Group Luncheon

1 p.m. – 2 p.m.
Concurrent Workshop Sessions

9 a.m. – 10 a.m.
Concurrent Workshop Sessions

10:15 a.m. – 11:15 a.m. Concurrent Workshop Sessions

The Purchasing Division continues to provide agencies with a monthly listing of any agency contracts that are expected to expire within a 60- day period.

According to Karen Byrd, Director of the Acquisitions and Contract Administration Section, the feedback from the agencies regarding these reports has been very positive and viewed as helpful reminder.

"We began sending agencies these reports last summer as a result of an increased problem with agencies requesting backdated contract renewals," said Byrd. She added that some improvement has been made since the implementation of these reports.

The Agency Contract Expiration Reminder Reports offer agencies the purchase order number, description, vendor name, origination date and expiration date.

Byrd requests that agencies provide the Purchasing Division with a renewal or rebid request no less than 30 days prior to an expiration of a contract, to provide the Purchasing Division adequate time to take action.

If you are planning a trip to the Purchasing Division’s office or a vendor has asked you to provide directions to our location, we’ve made it easy on you.

Products and services that we use every day are changing. What better way can we learn about these changes than from the business leaders who are spearheading the products and services of tomorrow?

At the 2003 Agency and Vendor Purchasing Conference in April, business representatives will be participating in our Product Exposition. State agency purchasers will have plenty of time to browse from exhibit booth to exhibit booth to see, feel, touch and talk to the innovators of the products and services that we may be using in the future.

The March 31, 2003 deadline is approaching, at which time all vehicles affected by Gov. Bob Wise’s Executive Order 03-1 must be retired to the West Virginia State Agency for Surplus Property.

The Purchasing Division distributed a Vehicle Reduction Action Plan to the affected agencies, which provided guidance as to the retirement of such vehicles. A total of 555 vehicles will be retired as a result of this reduction.

The Purchasing Division request-ed that by February 28, 2003, agencies submit the list of vehicles to be retired in preparation of the delivery of nearly 270 vehicles at the Surplus Property location in Dunbar, West Virginia. An additional 278 vehicles retired by the Department of Transportation will be made available on a regional basis to eligible organizations and to the public. Regional public auctions have been established to take place in Wheeling, Martinsburg, Buckhannon and Beckley.

The Purchasing Division was charged by the governor to organize the retirement and sale of these fleet vehicles. "Once we were informed that we would be the central point of contact for the fleet reduction, we quickly created a plan and shared this information with all agencies involved," said Purchasing Director Dave Tincher. "We have communicated with the agencies, political subdivisions and the Governor’s Office to ensure that everyone is aware of the status of the reduction and how the vehicles will be received and made available for sale."

The West Virginia State Agency for Surplus Property will be conducting an absolute auction on March 15, 2003 at its Dunbar location at 2700 Charles Avenue, beginning at 10 a.m. Approximately 100 vehicles will be sold at this auction. Property may be inspected from March 10-14, 2003 from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Are you unsure of certain purchasing procedures? ... Do you have a question regarding travel requests? ... Would you want to know what surplus property is available? ... If you need information concerning any function within the Purchasing Division, complete this form: