General Policy
While the Foundation may provide funding for all allowable expenditures, purchases of goods and services, other than those acquired for fundraising, donor and alumni cultivation, and support of Foundation operations, should be processed through the University of Georgia system. (Please see Expenditure Matrix 8.1.1.) Example of goods and services in support of Foundation operations include Foundation accounting services, legal services, and fundraising event expenses.
Purchase Order Guidelines
Purchase orders to be processed by the Foundation should be authorized by the administrative unit head after ascertaining that the appropriate bid procedures (see below) have been followed. Purchase orders fall under the following categories for bid purposes (Note amounts listed below exclude Georgia sales tax):
- Purchases of goods or services less than $25,000: Though recommended, no prior purchase order or prior bids/quotes are required. It is recommended due diligence of vendor selection and pricing should be maintained in departmental records. For payment, submit a completed UGAF check request as described in Foundation policy 8.2, General Procedure for Processing Check Requests.
- Purchases of goods and services greater than $25,000:
- The requesting unit should obtain competitive pricing in the form of a minimum of three quotes prior to submitting a purchase order. A signed purchase order is then forwarded to the Foundation’s Expenditure Control team along with a copy of the three bids.
- Should the purchase qualify for a sole source justification, the requesting unit should forward a signed purchase order along with a written sole source justification to Expenditure Control. The justification should generally include information to establish the context leading to the request of the sole source and exclusive capabilities of the proposed supplier making them the only company or person who can complete the task.
After review and approval of the purchase order, the Foundation returns the purchase order to the requesting unit. In the event a vendor contract must be executed, further review may be necessary and the UGA Foundation Chief Financial Officer will serve as the binding signature. The requesting unit then sends the purchase order to the vendor. After goods or services have been received, the purchasing unit prepares a check request and forwards the check request to the appropriate Dean, Vice President, or Director for approval. The purchasing unit then forwards the check request along with a copy of the purchase order to Expenditure Control for processing and payment.
Equipment Purchases
All equipment purchased with Foundation funds will be transferred to the University to follow proper UGA inventory procedure and will become property of the University of Georgia.
Also, all equipment purchased with Foundation funds requires the payment of state tax and property tax. The amount of the tax shall not be considered a part of the $25,000 minimum bid qualification.
Last Updated on December 2, 2022