Non-Competitively Bid (NCB) Purchases and Purchasing Authority - 1502

NCB Purchasing

NCB contracts are limited by statute in accordance with Public Contract Code, Sections 12102 and 12102.1 for IT goods and services and Sections 10301 and 10302 for non-IT goods to the following conditions:

• Proposed acquisition of Goods and Services are the only Goods and Services that meet the State’s need, or;
• Emergencies, where immediate acquisition is necessary for the protection of the public health, welfare or safety.

NCB Purchasing Authority

Departments are granted purchasing authority on acquisition methods for which they have applied. If a department elects to apply for IT or Non-IT Goods purchasing authority, NCB contract authority will be granted for IT or Non-IT Goods.

A department’s Purchasing Authority Approval Letter (PAAL) designates NCB thresholds for both the justification and contract. There is a distinction between both, since the justification must be approved prior to a contract being approved and executed.

Departments should reference their PAAL for pre-procurement requirements.

NCB Justification Dollar Threshold Maximum

For Non-IT Goods and IT Goods and Services, a department’s NCB justification dollar threshold is set at $25,000.00 per transaction. The dollar threshold maximum excludes sales tax and use tax, finance charges, postage and handling.  Shipping charges are also excluded from the dollar threshold limits unless the shipping charge is included in the evaluation such as Free on Board (FOB), Origin, Freight Collect, or FOB Destination.

For Non-IT Services, the NCB justification threshold for all departments is $9,999 per transaction. NCB justifications for non-IT services valued at $10,000 and above must be sent to DGS/PD/Dispute Resolution Unit (DRU) for review and approval.

Departments without approved purchasing authority, or when the dollar value of the NCB justification exceeds a department’s approved dollar threshold, the department must submit the required NCB justification request to DGS/PD/DRU or CDT (if applicable) for review and approval.

Click here for contact information for DGS/PD/DRU and DGS/PD/OTA

Purchases Under $10,000

Departments with purchasing authority may solicit a bid from a single source for transactions under $10,000 when pricing is determined to be fair and reasonable. In this case, no NCB justification is required if fair and reasonable pricing is established and documented.  Refer to the Fair and Reasonable Acquisition Method for examples of fair and reasonable pricing methods.

Documentation to support fair and reasonable pricing must be retained in the procurement file.