Bidding Process

When products or services are required, a requisition from the respective Department or Division of the County is submitted to Purchasing. The requisition outlines what is to be purchased, when it is needed and verifies budget.

Purchasing then solicits bids by advertising in the Citrus County Chronicle and the Internet to get as many potential companies as possible to submit bids.

A due date is established for the submittal of bids. When the due date is reached, no additional bids can be accepted for the particular product or service being procured.

After the bids have been received, Purchasing opens the bids. This event is open to the public as well as the companies who submit bids.

After the bids are opened, Purchasing evaluates the bids for completeness and compliance with established bidding criteria. This is to ensure an "apples-to-apples" comparison of the bids so that no one company is favored over another. Bids from companies that do not meet the established criteria are rejected.

Then the bids are compared to each other monetarily. The company that meets the bid criteria and offers the lowest price is recommended for award.

Once a determination has been made as to recommendation of award, Purchasing presents the recommendation to the Board of County Commissioners for their approval.

Once approved by the Board, Purchasing drafts a contract for the Board and the selected company to sign, making the purchase "official".

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