Investments, Gift Acceptance & Naming, Purchasing, Procurement Cards, and Fixed Assets

Investments

All investment policies and procedures of the Library will be in accordance with Illinois law. The authority of the Board of Trustees to control and invest public funds is defined in the Illinois Public Funds Investment Act, and the investments permitted are described therein. Management responsibility for the Library’s funds is delegated to the City of Bloomington and investment of the Library funds is governed by the City of Bloomington Investment Policy.

Gift Acceptance and Naming

On behalf of the Library, the Library Director shall be authorized to accept gifts of cash or marketable securities, unrestricted donations of books and other library materials, and in-kind donations specifically designated or solicited for existing projects.

Board of Trustees consideration and majority vote approval is required for the following types of gifts:

• Gifts that will significantly encumber the Library either financially or administratively.
• Securities that are not readily marketable. These may include closely held stock, limited partnership interests, joint venture interests, and other forms of investments that may not fall into the marketable securities category.
• Real estate. Every proposed gift of real estate must be examined on its individual merits, including, but not limited to, the title to the property and its insurability, the results of environmental investigations, and marketability. A current appraisal completed by a qualified appraiser must be provided by the donor.
• Gift annuities.
• Charitable Remainder or Lead trusts.
• Named endowment funds.

The Library will consider gifts that meet the following conditions:

• Compatible with the overall mission and policies of the Library.
• Shall not place undue burden on the Library or the Library Foundation’s resources.
• Shall not impede the ability of the Library to acquire gifts from other sources.
• Shall not subject the Library to adverse publicity.
• Provides the Library with full and unconditional ownership of all gifts.
• Allows the Library to make the final decision on the use, display, housing, access, withdrawal, or other disposition of all gifts and/or items purchased with gifts.

The Library reserves the right to decline any gift. Bequests and other gifts in excess of $10,000 will be channeled through the Library Foundation.

The Library considers the naming of a room/area of the library in honor or memory of a living or deceased individual, corporation, foundation, or organization to be one of the highest distinctions it can bestow. Proposals for naming a room/area of the library shall be considered in the case of significant gifts or when a person has given distinguished service to the Library that merits recognition in the Library's history.

Naming rights will normally remain in place for a period of no longer than twenty-five (25) years and will normally not extend beyond the normal life of the room/area of the library, whichever comes first. In the event the room/area of the Library is significantly altered in a timeframe less than 75% of the agreed upon time when the name was approved, the Library will roll the name forward in a similar capacity and any donor plaques displaced as a result of this will be rededicated in an alternative location in accordance with the timeframe developed for the original gift.

If an individual or organization, after which a room has been named, comes into disrepute at the Library or in the community at large or promised funds are not received, the Library, upon action of the Board of Trustees, may discontinue use of the name.

When a named room has reached the end of twenty-five years, the end its normal life, or the name has come into disrepute, the room/area of the library may be renamed in recognition of a new donor or honoree.

Upon approval of the naming proposal, an appropriate dedication ceremony may be planned and conducted. When a major building project is undertaken, multiple dedication ceremonies may be combined into one large event. A dedication plaque or comparable marking may be erected or unveiled at the dedication ceremony. All building plaques must conform to the signage that has been selected for the area in size, design, location, materials, and content.

Purchasing

These purchasing policies are to be followed in the purchasing of materials, supplies, construction, and services for the Library. 

Purchases of the Library are governed by the State of Illinois statutes. Further, it is the policy that all purchases, contracts, and expenditure of funds shall be awarded to the lowest responsible bidder or supplier considering conformity with specifications, terms of delivery, quality, and serviceability.

The Library is required by Federal law to engage in a policy of strict nondiscrimination in employment without consideration of race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin, marital status, veteran status, and/or physical or mental disability unrelated to ability. Federal law also requires the use of provisions in every contract or purchase order that require contractors and subcontractors to conform to strict nondiscrimination practices. 

All employees shall be responsible for adherence to these purchasing policies and to the National Institute of Government Purchasing Code of Ethics.

All purchases of goods and services should be made within the parameters of the approved working budget and shall be approved by the Board of Trustees in the form of a monthly bills list.

Procedures

For Purchase Amounts of:	Description of Purchase:	Proper Procedure to make the purchase:
Up to $4,999.99	Any purchase not described above	May be purchased at the Department’s discretion and submitted via direct invoice. Staff should obtain the best value under the circumstances.
$5,000 - $9,999.99	Travel advances Employee reimbursements Utilities Postage Professional printing services Advertising Employment related memberships & dues Insurance premiums Temporary employment services Artist fees Payments to instructors and other independent contractors Resale or concessions Vehicle maintenance	May be purchased at the Department’s discretion and submitted via direct invoice. Staff should obtain the best value under the circumstances.   These purchases shall be highlighted in Business Manager’s monthly board report.
$5,000 - $9,999.99 (continued)	Construction/building repairs Professional services, such as architectural & engineering, land surveying consulting, etc. Annual building maintenance contracts, e.g., elevator, HVAC, etc. Software licensing and maintenance contracts Any other maintenance renewal contracts Computer equipment	Requires a written memo and the Library Director’s approval.   These purchases shall be highlighted in Business Manager’s monthly board report.
$5,000 - $9,999.99 (continued)	Any purchase, excluding eResources, with three quotes not described above	Requires a quote comparison form and the Library Director’s approval.   These purchases shall be highlighted in Business Manager’s monthly board report.
$5,000 - $9,999.99 (continued)	Any purchase, excluding eResources, without three quotes not described above	Requires a written memo, the Library Director’s approval, and the Board of Trustees’ approval.
$5,000 -$24,999.99	Any eResources (typically purchased from the public access software budget line) with three quotes	Complete the EResource Evaluation Form and the Resources Comparison Form (i.e. evaluation of at least three sources is required).   Purchases over $5,000 in this category shall be highlighted in Business Manager’s monthly board report.
$5,000 -$24,999.99	Any eResources (typically purchased from the public access software budget line) with one of the following documented exemptions: Sole source* Limited source* Per State/Federal statute*	Complete the EResource Evaluation Form, Column 1 of the Resources Comparison Form, and attach documentation of the exemption. Purchases over $5,000 in this category shall be highlighted in Business Manager’s monthly board report.
$5,000 - $24,999.99	Any utilities	May be purchased at the Department’s discretion and submitted via direct invoice. Staff should obtain the best value under the circumstances.   These purchases shall be highlighted in Business Manager’s monthly board report.
$10,000 - $24,999.99	Any purchase procured through a joint/co-op purchase agreement	Requires a written memo, the Library Director’s approval, and the Board of Trustees’ approval.
$10,000 - $24,999.99 (continued)	Any purchase with three quotes not described above	Requires a written memo, the Library Director’s approval, and the Board of Trustees’ approval.
$10,000 - $24,999.99 (continued)	Any purchase without three quotes, not described above, and with one of the following exemptions: Sole source* Limited source*	Requires a written memo including documentation of the exemption, the Library Director’s approval, and the Board of Trustees’ approval.
$25,000.00+	Any purchase with one of the following documented exemptions: Sole source* Limited source* Per State/Federal statute* Already approved through a state competitive bidding process or through a joint purchase agreement with one or more other governmental units	Requires a written memo including documentation of the exemption, the Library Director’s approval, and the Board of Trustees’ approval.
$25,000.00+	Any other purchase	Requires a competitive bid.
Any	Any purchase related to urgent construction decisions or during emergencies involving public health or safety	The Director, in consultation with board president or their designee, is authorized to waive the requirements of the purchasing policies, including the bid process, without the prior approval of the Board of Trustees.
Any	Multi-year agreements or leases	For the first year of the agreement/lease, follows the appropriate purchasing policy guidelines listed above. The Director is authorized to approve the subsequent payments for the remainder of the agreement period.

Once the proper procedure to make a purchase has been completed, staff making the purchase recommendation may work with the vendor to finalize the purchase and sign any applicable vendor contracts.

*Explanations of exemptions:

• Sole source:  Only one sole vendor exists.  If there is truly one vendor, then the transaction being considered is non-biddable and a bid exemption can be granted. This rarely occurs. A signed quote from the vendor must be obtained.
• Limited source:  A much more common exemption may be granted if a good or service provided by a specialized supplier meets or exceeds the Library’s specifications, or for improved public service or long term operations needs of the Library based on security, patents, copyrights, critical need for responsiveness, proximity, Federal, State or other regulations, necessary replacement parts and/or compatibility, warranty.
  • A good example: The Library uses Dell computers and Microsoft software products and licensing and has invested years of money and training into these purchases. Therefore, creating a limited source for operational reasons.
• Per State/Federal statute: Explicit bid exemptions exist within the law (75 ILCS 5/5-5) for legal and employment related services (testing, occupational, employment contracts), collection agencies, employment related trade and professional organizations, and lobbying groups.

Procurement Cards (P cards)

Procurement cards (P cards) are essentially credit cards and are issued to employees who are responsible for making purchases or paying bills on behalf of the Library. 

• Library P card holders will follow the City policies and guidelines for P cards unless specified otherwise in this policy.
• The purchasing procedures listed above also apply to any purchase made with a P card.
• P cards are not to be used for personal purchases under any circumstances. 
• While it is preferred that P cards are not used if the vendor attaches a processing fee, a P card purchase with a processing fee is acceptable if it is the only accepted method of payment or the only method of payment that will meet a payment deadline. Most P Card holders have a monthly maximum of $1,000; those with higher than a monthly maximum of $1,000 must be justified and approved by the Library Director.

Fixed Assets

The procedures listed above also apply to the purchase of fixed assets. The Library maintains a fixed asset replacement schedule which is revised annually to reflect the addition of new items. A dollar amount is transferred each year from the operating budget to the fixed asset replacement fund to plan for the replacement of fixed assets, such as furniture and equipment. The threshold for determining if an item is a fixed asset is:

1. The item is not consumable and has a useful life expectancy of greater than one year.
2. The cost of the item, which includes delivery and set-up charges, is greater than $5,000.
3. Individual parts that cannot stand alone or be used individually may be grouped together to be considered a fixed asset.  For example, the individual components of a desk may not cost $5,000 each, but the sum of the parts together, if over $5,000, make the item a fixed asset.