Explanation
BACKGROUND:
In the fourth quarter of 2019, the City of Columbus (City) through its Finance and Management Director, City Treasurer, and City Auditor issued an RFP for implementation of a procurement card (P-Card) pilot program with the possibility of expansion. The items to be covered in the pilot were the payment of airfare, registration, memberships, subscriptions, advertising, dues, online transactions requiring a card, and small purchases under $500 in lieu of petty cash purchases. The benefit the City expected to receive included efficient, cost-effective methods of paying business expenses, and purchasing goods and services.
The evaluation committee found all respondents to be competent, and, after in-person presentations to the evaluation committee by the two highest ranked Offerors, US Bank received the highest score. The Depository Commission and Treasury Investment Board voted to accept US Bank as the procurement card vendor for the City, subject to successful contract negotiations and authorized a five-year term for the contract. The contract with US Bank began its five-year term on September 7, 2020, with $20,000.00 in funding from the City Treasurer’s Office to cover any expenditures. As a result of the dollar threshold, it did not require City Council authorization.
In a normal year, the City Treasurer’s Office would be engaged in a new RFP process for procurement card (PCard) banking services. However, the initiation of the City’s pilot for its PCard program was roughly coincident with shutdowns associated with COVID-19. As a result of COVID, the PCard program’s pilot was substantively hampered by the cessation of business travel; attendance at conferences and trainings essentially ground to a halt.
As a consequence, the Treasurer sought a discussion with the members of the Depository Commission and Treasury Investment Board to gather consensus as to what action should be taken with respect to the PCard contract. It was recommen...
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