Procurement Services: FAQs
Here are answers to common questions the ESDC Procurement Team gets from clients. You should also review the Procurement iService site.
1. Goods and Services Questions
1.1 How does ESDC buy the good or service that I need?
The ESDC Procurement Team has posted processes and steps on the iService Catalogue. Follow those processes. You can learn the practical steps involved, and then get started on your purchase.
1.2 What approvals are required for the certain good or service that I need? Is there a central cost pool or central budget for this purchase?
Branch-specific purchasing approvals and processes vary and change. Contact regional or branch corporate services. For central cost pools or central budgets you will find Procurement Services: Central Budgets in the iService Catalogue.
1.3 When there is a standing offer or supply arrangement for the things I need, what do I do?
Certain goods and services have mandatory standing offers or supply arrangements. This means ESDC must buy from the vendors listed, if possible. The iService (Procurement) page includes the lists of suppliers for these goods and services. You do not need to visit the Public Works and Government Services Canada (PWGSC) website or their Standing Offer index.
1.4 What tools does the ESDC Procurement Team offer? What help exists for things like Statements of Work (requirements definition) and contract management?
We have a Tools & Templates page and training that may help. We also have posted processes and steps on the iService Catalogue. Follow those procedures.
2. Competition and Quotation Questions
2.1 Are “three quotes” required to purchase a certain good or service?
When competition is required, you must not collect quotes. Instead, contact the ESDC Procurement Team so that a Procurement Specialist can run a legal competitive process.
For a low–dollar-value purchase, the rules usually do not require any competition.
At these low values, it is usually more cost effective to choose a single, qualified supplier, without comparing multiple quotes. Obtaining multiple quotes also has legal risks. The ESDC Procurement Team will not request multiple quotations if competition is not required.
If a purchase is more expensive, the rules may require competition. Simply getting three quotes may not qualify as competition under the current rules. The assigned Procurement Specialist, who is the one with the required Contracting Authority, will conduct a competitive process according to your requirement.
2.2 Is a competition mandatory for my purchase?
We have posted processes and steps on the iService Catalogue. Follow those procedures. Determining whether competition is required can be complex; the Procurement Specialist assigned to your Purchase Requisition will use their expert knowledge to help figure this out.
2.3 What special rules apply for a sole-source purchase?
The rules allow specific, strict exceptions that exempt certain purchases from competition. One exception covers low-dollar-value purchases.
However, it is essential that you do not contract split one big purchase into many little purchases to avoid competing a purchase – an act that the Government Contracts Regulations prohibits.
If you think one of the other exceptions to the Government Contracts Regulations clearly applies to your purchase, you must contact the ESDC Procurement Team immediately to confirm your decision is valid. You must document the decision and reasons for the exception. Do not proceed with the purchase without Procurement’s Contracting Authority approval.
3. Acquisition Card Questions
3.1 How do I get an Acquisition Card (AC)? What can I buy with an AC?
For the answer to this and many other AC related questions, please visit the Acquisition Card homepage.
4. Delegated Authority Questions
4.1 How much is my delegated authority limit?
General information on delegated authority is available in the Delegation of Authority Manual website.
4.2 What can I buy using that delegated authority?
The ESDC Procurement Team has posted processes and steps on the iService Catalogue. Follow those procedures.
4.3 What do I do if the total price (including taxes) exceeds my authority?
Beyond the dollar value limit of your delegated authority, a more senior manager or executive (generally at a higher “roll up” funds center) in your organization will need to approve and sign purchase documents. This includes, for instance, all required Financial Administration Act authorizations. General information on delegated authority is available in the Delegation of Authority Manual website.
4.4 What is the difference between the Procurement Specialist authorization and the funds centre manager authorization? Can the ESDC Procurement Team completely authorize a purchase without the funds centre manager’s input?
Generally, a funds centre manager or staff can make low-dollar-value purchases (see link above) on their own, without help from a Procurement Specialist.
At least two authority types exist for purchases. The delegated funds centre manager holds the Section 32 (budget/commitment – known as Expenditure Initiation Authority) and Section 34 (receipt – that is, confirmation that the goods or services were received as per the contract) Financial Administration Act (FAA) authorities.
The Procurement Specialist is the one who holds the Contracting Authority, which is the legal authority to enter into a contract on behalf of the GC. It is essential that this Contracting Authority be kept separate (or segregated) from managers’ Section 32 and Section 34 FAA authorities, and from the Section 33 (payment) FAA authority. This segregation is one way to avoid fraud and conflicts of interest.
Within the ESDC Procurement Team, we have established a delegation structure for Contracting Authority. Your Procurement Specialist may need to have a senior Specialist sign, per the dollar value.
Further, funds centre managers and their staff are best able to determine their exact needs. This is why the ESDC Procurement Team cannot prepare a contract or complete a purchase until we get appropriate details about your organization’s needs, based on the dollar value and complexity of the purchase. If we do not know exactly what your needs are, how can we possibly help you meet them? Training on requirements definition is available.
4.5 What does it mean when a manager authorizes Section 32 Financial Administration Act?
A Section 32 FAA authorization means that unencumbered funds are available within the budget he or she controls, for the purchase so certified and that the manager holds the required delegated authority. For Purchase Requisitions, this is authorized electronically within myEMS.
4.6 What does it mean when a manager authorizes Section 34 Financial Administration Act?
Section 34 FAA authorization means that the goods and/or services on the invoice were in fact delivered and received according to the contract and that the manager holds the required delegated authority. For the most part, this is authorized electronically within myEMS.
To find out what documents you should keep on file, or if you are unsure whether to authorize Section 34 for a particular invoice (especially for professional services), try the Contract Management Toolkit.
5. myEMS (SAP) Questions
5.1 What is myEMS (SAP)? Where can I get training on myEMS?
For detailed information on myEMS and available training options, please review the iService homepage.
6. Former Public Servant (FPS) In Receipt of Pension and/or Lump Sum Payment Questions
6.1 What is a contract with a FPS in receipt of a lump-sum payment or pension?
A contract with a FPS in receipt of a lump-sum payment, such as the Transition Support Measure (TSM), or a pension only exists when there is a direct contract between ESDC and the individual FPS in question. This could include any contract between ESDC and the FPS as an individual, or between ESDC and a small business (either owned or run largely by the FPS).
However, the following situations are not FPS contracts:
- Contracts with large corporations employing FPS. The fact that a major corporation has government contracts does not penalize any FPS who may happen to work somewhere at that corporation. That would fit neither the spirit nor the substance of federal policy. (See Conflict of Interest below, under “What Else Should I Know?”)
- Employment contracts, such as casual employment or indeterminate appointments: These are not a contract in this policy sense. Instead, they are an employment agreement. In this case, the FPS may have to repay some of the lump-sum amount (see next question).
- Temporary Help Services (THS, temp agencies): The contract in this case is between ESDC and the agency, not the FPS. The rules are similar to those for contracts with a large corporation. (If a FPS owns or manages the whole agency, the policy could apply.)
Other restrictions may apply. See the following questions.
6.2 What should I do if my contract is with a FPS in receipt of such a payment, as per the previous question? Will the person have to pay back the lump-sum payment amount?
It is important to keep documents that show the FPS is in receipt of a payment and that a contract is in place. Keep these on your requirement file. All contracts with FPS should “bear the closest public scrutiny and reflect fairness in spending public funds” (TB Contracting Policy, section 16.1).
During the lump-sum payment period, the FPS can only receive up to $5,000 in total from contracts. The “lump-sum payment period” means the number of weeks paid in the TSM. For instance, a FPS who received a TSM for 6 weeks’ pay would only be eligible to be paid $5,000 in total from contracts during the first 6 weeks after he or she leaves the public service. Note that only the TSM counts toward this limit. Any period that may be covered by any other lump sums (for example, severance) is irrelevant.
You must make sure any contract with a FPS in receipt of a lump-sum payment is limited to the appropriate dollar amount.
If the FPS is in receipt of a pension, and they have been retired for less than one year, another fee limit applies. Tell the Procurement Specialist assigned to your Purchase Requisition that this scenario applies, and the Specialist will inform you of the fee limits that would apply to the contract.
The FPS will not have to repay the lump-sum payment if he or she only has a contract with the federal government. The situation where a FPS actually has to repay that amount only occurs when he or she has been rehired, that is to say, appointed to a position in the public service (employment agreement). This is not a contract. (See previous question.)
6.3 What else should I know about working with FPS?
Other limits also apply after former public servants leave the public service. One major set of rules comes from the Treasury Board Policy on Conflict of Interest and Post-Employment (see Appendix B). This document outlines which types of alternate employment FPS, and especially senior executives, may or may not accept within a certain time after leaving the public service.
Proactive disclosure now applies to contracts with FPS, as per Treasury Board policy. Each quarter, all contracts over $10,000 (all taxes and amendments included) with FPS will be proactively disclosed on the ESDC website. A list of all contracts with FPS will be provided to the Minister annually.
7. Other Questions
7.1 What documents must I keep? What documents does the ESDC Procurement Team keep?
Generally, your group must keep most every document related to a purchase, which means all documents leading up to the purchase and during the purchasing process, and all documents produced after the contract is in place.
For any original signatures, keep paper documents. (If you must send the original to another group, such as accounting, do so. Simply keep a paper or electronic copy.) You can save most other documents in electronic format – you do not need to print electronic documents! Follow good IM practices.
Generally, the ESDC Procurement Team keeps copies of such documents as the contract itself and any requirements definition or Request for Proposal documents (if any). However, you should still keep a copy of these documents. It will be easier for you to access a local copy quickly, and it is a best practice for contract management (see the Contract Management Toolkit link above).
7.2 How do Interdepartmental Letters of Agreement (ILAs) and Memorandums of Understanding (MOUs) work in myEMS?
Delegated funds centre managers now negotiate and document ILAs and MOUs without involvement from the ESDC Procurement team. The only myEMS entry required for a typical ILA is to create earmarked funds, for payment. Funds centre managers or their staff should create these earmarked funds without contacting the ESDC Procurement Team.
7.3 How do I handle contracts that involve Intellectual Property (IP)?
Detailed information about how to handle Intellectual Property (IP) in contracts is available on the IP Centre of Excellence (IPCOE) iService site. Review the ESDC IP Management Policy. The IPCOE works with the ESDC Procurement Team. The Procurement Specialist assigned to your Purchase Requisition can give you advice. If the Specialist cannot find the answer, he or she will contact the IPCOE.
7.4 What about amendments and fiscal years in myEMS?
To request an amendment or to move money between fiscal years, you must update the Purchase Requisition in myEMS. You must do this with 10 to 15 business days advance notice.
7.5 Is training about Procurement available so we can learn more?
Free, on-line, step-by-step Procurement 101 training and Acquisition Card training is now available on the Online Learning Campus (transitioning soon – visit Procurement’s Training page for the latest).
7.6 Who exactly can I contact for help?
Detailed contact information is available.