Legal Compliance Audit Guide -- Section 4

CONTRACTING - BID LAWS LEGAL COMPLIANCE MANUAL CONTRACTING - BID LAWS Introduction A municipality entering into an agreement for the sale or purchase of supplies, materials, equipment or the rental thereof, or the construction, alteration, repair or maintenance of real or personal property must abide by the statutes relating to contracting and bidding. In addition, for counties, such statutory requirements also apply to contracts for “work or labor.” A municipality, for the purpose of this section, is a county, town, city, school district, or other municipal corporation or political subdivision of the state authorized by law to enter into contracts. Each contract must be approved by the appropriate authority, as authorized by statute or charter, within the municipality. If the audited governmental unit is one of the listed types of municipalities and it has the power to contract, complete the questionnaire to determine if the municipality conformed to the contracting and bidding statutes. Minn. Stat. § 471.345, the Uniform Municipal Contracting Law, was established to provide dollar limits for all municipalities upon contracts which shall or may be entered into on the basis of competitive bids, quotations, or purchase or sale in the open market. Vendors may now submit bids, quotations, and proposals electronically in a form and manner required by the municipality. Minn. Stat. § 471.345, subd. ...