Oklahoma § 74-85.3 - Purchasing Division - Director - Employees Encouragement of certain purchases - Conflict of interest

§ 74-85.3. Purchasing Division - Director - Employees Encouragement of certain purchases - Conflict of interest

A. There is hereby created and established in the Office of

Management and Enterprise Services a Purchasing Division, the

administrative head of which shall be the State Purchasing Director.

B. The Director of the Office of Management and Enterprise

Services shall hire the State Purchasing Director. The State

Purchasing Director shall:

1. Have a thorough knowledge of office practices and buying

procedures in volume purchasing; and

2. Be a graduate of an accredited college or university with at

least five (5) years' experience in commercial or governmental

purchasing, or, in lieu of such education, have at least ten (10)

years' experience in commercial or governmental purchasing.

C. The State Purchasing Director, with the approval of the

Director of the Office of Management and Enterprise Services, may

employ such personnel as may be necessary to exercise authority and

perform duties under the Oklahoma Central Purchasing Act.

D. All activities of any state agency, department, or

institution relating to purchasing shall be under the direction of

the Purchasing Division unless otherwise provided by the Oklahoma

Central Purchasing Act.

E. The Purchasing Division shall provide qualified personnel to

assist the purchasing activities of state agencies, departments, and

institutions, as required by the Oklahoma Central Purchasing Act.

F. Each state agency, department, and institution shall

designate personnel to coordinate its purchasing functions with the

Purchasing Division.

G. The Purchasing Division may, if the needs of a state agency,

department, or institution are such as to so require, employ, and

establish a buyer within a state agency. The state agency shall pay

all expenses incurred for any buyer required to be placed within its

agency.

H. Except as provided in Section 34.36 of Title 62 of the

Oklahoma Statutes, no state agency subject to the Oklahoma Central

Purchasing Act shall have or maintain a purchasing section without

the prior approval in writing of the Purchasing Division unless

otherwise provided in the Oklahoma Central Purchasing Act nor shall

such purchasing section perform purchasing functions for another

state agency.

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 74. State Government

I. The Purchasing Division shall make acquisitions from

industries operated by the Department of Corrections pursuant to the

provisions of Section 549.1 of Title 57 of the Oklahoma Statutes.

J. None of the personnel authorized by this section shall:

1. Sell to or otherwise provide acquisitions to any state

agency subject to the Oklahoma Central Purchasing Act;

2. Be employees, partners, associates, officers, or

stockholders in or with any business entity that sells to or

otherwise provides acquisitions to any state agency subject to the

Oklahoma Central Purchasing Act;

3. Be employed in any of the positions authorized by this

section if a spouse or child owns any stock in any business entity

which sells to or otherwise provides acquisitions to any agency

subject to the Oklahoma Central Purchasing Act;

4. Be employed in any of the positions authorized by this

section if a relative within the third degree of consanguinity or

affinity sells to or otherwise provides acquisitions to any state

agency subject to the Oklahoma Central Purchasing Act or is

interested in any business entity which does so, except that such

relative, excluding a spouse or child, may own Twenty-five Thousand

Dollars ($25,000.00) worth or less, or one percent (1%) or less,

whichever amount is the lesser amount, of the stock of a corporation

or any business entity which sells to or otherwise provides

acquisitions to any state agency subject to the Oklahoma Central

Purchasing Act; or

5. Violate applicable rules of the Ethics Commission

promulgated pursuant to Article XXIX of the Oklahoma Constitution

that relate to accepting gifts from a vendor or a vendor's agent.

K. Any state agency, department, institution, or satellite

office thereof that is otherwise subject to the provisions of the

Oklahoma Central Purchasing Act, but is located in a county without

statewide contracted vendors, may elect to purchase necessary

equipment and supplies from a local business at or below state

contract pricing without first obtaining a waiver from or the

permission of the Purchasing Division after seventy-two (72) hours

from providing written or electronic notice to the Central

Purchasing Director of said purchase in an amount not to exceed Two

Thousand Five Hundred Dollars ($2,500.00). Any state agency that

elects to make purchases from local vendors pursuant to this

subsection shall maintain a document file for each acquisition the

state agency makes, which shall include, at a minimum, justification

for the acquisition, supporting documentation, copies of all

contracts, if any, pertaining to the acquisition, evaluations,

written reports, if required by contract, and any other information

the State Purchasing Director requires.

Added by Laws 1959, p. 350, § 3, eff. July 1, 1959. Amended by Laws

1961, p. 589, § 1; Laws 1968, c. 88, § 1, emerg. eff. April 1, 1968;

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 74. State Government

Laws 1976, c. 230, § 16, emerg. eff. June 15, 1976; Laws 1980, c.

159, § 34, emerg. eff. April 2, 1980; Laws 1983, c. 304, § 105, eff.

July 1, 1983; Laws 1993, c. 175, § 1, emerg. eff. May 10, 1993; Laws

1996, c. 214, § 2, emerg. eff. May 21, 1996; Laws 1999, c. 289, § 2,

eff. July 1, 1999; Laws 2008, c. 96, § 2, eff. Nov. 1, 2008; Laws

2011, c. 302, § 6; Laws 2012, c. 304, § 735; Laws 2015, c. 6, § 1;

Laws 2020, c. 98, § 3, eff. Nov. 1, 2020; Laws 2024, c. 136, § 1,

eff. Nov. 1, 2024.

§74-85.3A. Exempted entities - State purchasing contracts advisory

committee.

A. Compliance with the provisions of the Oklahoma Central

Purchasing Act shall not be required of:

1. County government;

2. The Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education, the

institutions, centers or other constituent agencies of The Oklahoma

State System of Higher Education;

3. The telecommunications network known as OneNet;

4. The Department of Public Safety gun range;

5. The State Treasurer for the following purchases:

a.

services including, but not limited to, legal services

to assist in the administration of the Uniform

Unclaimed Property Act, as provided in Section 668 of

Title 60 of the Oklahoma Statutes, and

b.

software, hardware and associated services to assist

in the administration of funds and securities held by

the state, as provided in Section 71.2 of Title 62 of

the Oklahoma Statutes;

6. Statutorily allowed interagency agreements between state

agencies;

7. The Oklahoma Department of Veterans Affairs, in accordance

with Section 63.22 of Title 72 of the Oklahoma Statutes;

8. The Oklahoma Military Department for the purchases of

heraldry items including, but limited to, medals, badges and other

military accoutrements;

9. A transaction, wholly funded by monies other than statederived funds, in which a state agency functions only as a passthrough conduit to fund an acquisition that is required by the

funding source for the benefit of another entity or individuals and

the state agency does not retain ownership of any part of the

acquisition as a result of the transaction; or

10. The Secretary of State when selecting a vendor for

publication of the Oklahoma Statutes in accordance with Section 13

of Title 75 of the Oklahoma Statutes.

B. The State Purchasing Director may form an advisory committee

consisting of representatives from entities exempted from the

provisions of the Oklahoma Central Purchasing Act. The purpose of

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 74. State Government

the committee shall be to allow committee members to provide input

into the development of shared state purchasing contracts,

collaboratively participate in the integration of their purchasing

platforms or electronic purchasing catalogs, analyze solutions that

may be used by state government to meet the purchasing needs of the

entities, explore joint purchases of general use items that result

in mutual procurement of quality goods and services at the lowest

reasonable cost and explore flexibility, administrative relief and

transformation changes through utilization of procurement

technology.

C. At the invitation of the State Purchasing Director entities

exempted from the provisions of the Oklahoma Central Purchasing Act

shall participate in the advisory committee referenced in subsection

B of this section.

D. The State Purchasing Director may invite representatives of

political subdivisions, and local common education entities to

participate as members of the advisory committee.

Added by Laws 1999, c. 289, § 3, eff. July 1, 1999. Amended by Laws

2008, c. 319, § 8, eff. Nov. 1, 2008; Laws 2009, c. 433, § 11, eff.

Nov. 1, 2009; Laws 2010, c. 2, § 94, emerg. eff. March 3, 2010; Laws

2010, c. 66, § 1, eff. Nov. 1, 2010; Laws 2012, c. 106, § 3; Laws

2016, c. 269, § 9, eff. Nov. 1, 2016; Laws 2019, c. 392, § 1, eff.

July 1, 2019 and Laws 2019, c. 472, § 1, eff. July 1, 2019; Laws

2020, c. 98, § 4, eff. Nov. 1, 2020; Laws 2021, c. 58, § 1, eff.

Nov. 1, 2021; Laws 2022, c. 228, § 53, emerg. eff. May 5, 2022.

NOTE: Laws 2009, c. 454, § 18 repealed by Laws 2010, c. 2, § 95,

emerg. eff. March 3, 2010. Laws 2020, c. 44, § 3 repealed by Laws

2021, c. 101, § 14, emerg. eff. April 20, 2021. Laws 2021, c. 101,

§ 13 repealed by Laws 2022, c. 228, § 54, emerg. eff. May 5, 2022.

NOTE: Laws 2019, c. 392, § 1 and Laws 2019, c. 472, § 1 made

identical amendments to this section.