State Purchasing Partnerships in Texas

State procurement in Texas is primarily built around the competitive procurement process to create many opportunities for vendors to do business with the state while ensuring the state receives the best value and return for its taxpayers. This article will focus on the contract vehicle subset called master contracts. Master contracts are forged from partnerships that improve bargaining power and drive a better value for all--the purchasing partners and the vendors who receive the contracts.

Competitively bid by select agencies authorized to implement master contracts, vendors have a chance to participate in procurements that result in multiple award master contracts for state agencies and other eligible customers to use. Though they come with drawbacks, these contracts can help save procurement professionals across the state time and headaches.

The world of state agency procurement in Texas has a lot of rules and regulations that can be difficult to navigate. Though rules can feel like a maze at times, procurement and contracting professionals can help guide customers through this process. The two agencies that implement these contracts are the Texas Statewide Procurement Division (SPD) of the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts (CPA) and the Texas Department of Information Resources (DIR).

Statewide Procurement Division Master Contracts

SPD solicits and awards master contracts for a variety of goods and services that state agencies and other eligible customers can use (and, in some cases, are required to use) for their purchasing and contracting needs. These goods and services include office supplies and furniture, janitorial services, vehicle fleets, facilities maintenance and repair services, and other non-IT-related categories. Many of these goods and services can easily be ordered through SPD’s Texas SmartBuy platform.

Department of Information Resources Technology-Based Master Contracts

Through their cooperative contracts and shared technology services programs, DIR also solicits and issues master contracts for various IT-related services, including IT hardware, software, data centers, cloud-based services, and more. Like the SPD contracts, eligible customers are able to utilize these contracts and are, at times, required to do so. DIR contracts can be searched using DIR’s contract catalog.

Benefits of Using Master Contracts

Procuring from master contracts can help reduce the overall timeline that the procurement process takes. They are solicited competitively and aim to provide as many options for purchasing as possible for each category. Because they are solicited in this way, once the contracts are executed, the customers do not need to procure them competitively, which saves the agencies many steps in the process. Specifically for DIR contracts, the DIR team helps add value by performing reviews and checks during the procurement process to ensure all tech-related concerns are addressed about which state customers might not be well versed.

Reach out to your purchasing team for guidance on using master contracts, including creating a realistic project timeline. Don’t forget they’re here to help make Purchasing easy

Another major benefit is that master contracts allow customers access to a discounted rate, bargained by the expected volume of purchasing throughout the state, compared to the discount a single agency might be able to negotiate.

Pitfalls and Timeline Constraints

While there are benefits to using master contracts, utilizing them is not without effort or time and sometimes confusion. Although, in some cases, purchase orders issued against master contracts can be completed quickly and easily, without the need to solicit multiple vendors for quotes, in other cases, some procurements can still take months or longer to execute. With the need for a statement of work reviews by DIR, procurement oversight & delegation reviews required by SPD for specific procurements, and other procedural requirements, the process can still take longer than expected. Awareness of these processes is key to creating a realistic procurement timeline. Confusing which steps are next in the process or failing to request the correct type of timely review can unexpectedly delay the project timeline.

In some cases, agencies may decide they want to procure their needs that are offered under master contracts through the open market and will need to request an exception from the pertinent agency. These processes to request an exception exist and are well outlined but will add to the overall procurement timeline. Customers will have to provide justification for why they want to circumvent the master contract process, and the exceptions might not always be granted.

Other potential downsides of utilizing master contracts are that, in some cases, the purchasing options may be limited compared to using open market options. However, the agencies issuing these master contracts work hard to ensure the most options possible will be available through their contracts.

Procurement and Contract Administration Professionals and their Value Add to the Process

This is where each agency’s procurement and contract administration professionals can be very helpful. These professionals obtain one or both of the certifications that SPD offers (the Certified Texas Contract Developer (CTCD) and Certified Texas Contract Manager (CTCM) certifications), which ensure that they are trained on state purchasing and contract management principals, as well as continuing to stay up to date on new guidelines and rule changes as they occur. Reach out to your purchasing team for guidance on using master contracts, including creating a realistic project timeline. Don’t forget they’re here to help make purchasing as easy as possible.

Procurement and Contract Administration Resources

• SPD’s State of Texas Procurement and Contract Management Guide can be a great tool for procurement professionals and SPD’s public-facing purchasing page.

• Vendors seeking opportunities to participate in master contract solicitations can monitor SPD’s Electronic State Business Daily website, which details available procurement opportunities.