Doing Business with the County
Learn about what we buy, how we advertise and solicit, what competitive procurement methods we use:
County Procurement Summary - What and How the County Buys
Insurance Requirements Reference (Updated 7/10/2020)
Active Term Contracts Expiring in FY 2023-24 (Updated 6/5/2023)
Supplier Registration
Thank you for your interest in doing business with the County of San Diego. All suppliers interested in doing business must register on BuyNet. There is no fee for any supplier to register, receive email notifications, download documents, respond to solicitations, or be awarded a contract. It is simple and easy to do. If you have difficulty with the registration, please call (858) 505-6367 or email cosd_procurement@sdcounty.ca.gov for assistance. Viewing and downloading solicitations does not require registration. However, to participate in submitting a response to a solicitation, you will be asked to log in or register. Register with BuyNet today and receive notice of business opportunities from the County of San Diego. The County does not mail out bid notices to contractors but relies on BuyNet for all communications.
The County of San Diego does not utilize prequalified suppliers
except as may be identified and established separately under a
specific procurement. Our goal is to seek competition for all County
requirements for goods and services to the maximum extent
possible.
Solicitation Postings
The Department of Purc hasing and Contracting posts solicitations on
BuyNet for all procurements such as Requests for
Quotes (RFQs); Requests for Bids (RFBs); Requests for Proposals
(RFPs), and Requests for Statement of Qualifications (RFSQs). Requests
for Information (RFIs) may also be posted on BuyNet. Email notifications are automatically sent
to all suppliers registered on BuyNet based upon the particular commodity or
service code(s) selected by the supplier in the registration system.
Suppliers should periodically review their registration to ensure all
information is accurate and up-to-date, and the commodity and services
codes of interest are selected. Automatic notifications should not be
relied upon, and suppliers are encouraged to regularly check BuyNet for opportunities.
Sales, Use, and Excise Taxes
The County of San Diego is exempt from Federal Excise Tax. However,
the County is not exempt from State of California Sales and Use Tax.
Unless advised otherwise, suppliers must itemize all taxes in invoices
presented to the County for payment.
Local Preference
As with many government agencies, the County of San Diego has
adopted a local preference program for businesses located within the
County of San Diego that are also certified as a Disabled Veteran
Owned Business, Veteran Owned Business, or Small Business. A five (5)
percent or fifty thousand dollar ($50,000) preference, whichever is
less, may be applied to the total price during the evaluation of a bid
or proposal in Request for Bid (RFB) and for Request for Proposals
(RFP) procurements. For RFPs, the preference will be applied to the
price scoring factor. The local preference does not apply to Requests
for Quotes (RFQs). To qualify as a Local Business, the business must
maintain a headquarters or physical location providing the same or
similar services to those proposed within the geographic boundaries of
San Diego County. Local preference will not apply to public works
contracts or where precluded by state or federal law or
regulation.
Equity in Contracting
The way the County of San Diego (County) buys goods and services supports the County’s Strategic Plan, including the Equity and Community sections of the plan. We welcome and help small businesses, local businesses, and community-based organizations take part in County bids and proposals.
We also share information on how to do business with the County at outreach events we host or attend. Contact the DPC Outreach team if you would like us to join you at your next event.
The San Diego County Board of Supervisors (Board) creates the rules that guide the County’s day-to-day work. The Board created guidelines and special programs to help local businesses in San Diego County. These programs are the Local Business Preference meant for businesses located in San Diego County and for Veteran-Owned Businesses. The Board also has guidelines focused on Small Businesses. More information can be found by reading Board Policy B-39a and B-53.
The County follows Section 31 of the California State Constitution and does not provide special treatment to any individual or group on the basis of race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin in the public procurement function.
Product Demonstrations
Product demonstrations are discouraged unless part of a specific
solicitation posted on BuyNet. Suppliers that may have a product or
services of interest to the County of San Diego are encouraged to:
register on BuyNet; and participate in County and/or other
vendor/supplier outreach events hosted by various professional and
trade associations. Any questions should be addressed to DPC at
858-505-6367 or by email at cosd_procurement@sdcounty.ca.gov.
How We Buy Goods and Services
The County of San Diego posts its requirements for goods and services on BuyNet. For procurements of goods and services up to $250,000 a Request for Quotation (RFQ) is typically used. RFQ responses are reviewed by the department and evaluated based upon price and other factors. Award recommendations are made to the offeror(s) that present the best value to the County . More complicated and higher dollar procurements for goods, services, and construction will typically be posted on BuyNet as Request for Bid (RFB) or Request for Proposal (RFP) solicitations. Evaluations and award criteria will be established in each solicitation.
Below is a brief explanation of other procurement tools used by the Department of Purchasing and Contracting:
- The procurement of architectural, landscape architectural, engineering, environmental, land surveying, construction project management, and related professional services is governed by Board of Supervisors Policy F-40 “Procuring Architectural, Engineering, and Related Professional Services” and procured using a qualifications-based selection process T Price negotiations will be conducted to ensure that prices are fair and reasonable and in the best interest of the County.
- Job Order Contracts (JOCs) are competitively awarded public works contracts used for repair, remodeling, or other repetitive work. JOCs cover a number of construction specialties such as general construction, electrical, asphalt paving, painting, HVAC, etc. As projects are needed, the County will issue task orders to the applicable JOC contractor to prepare a proposal for discussion and final task award by the County.
- Cooperative purchasing agreements are used by the County of San Diego for the procurement of goods and services that were previously competitively solicited and awarded by other public agencies for the same products or services.
Who to Contact Regarding Payment Status
Should you have questions concerning the status of a payment, the first step should be to contact the department that received your goods or services; the Contracting Officer Representative (COR) established in the contract/PO; and/or the Procurement Contracting Officer at DPC. If you have reason to think your payment has been lost, contact Accounts Payable (AP) at (858) 694-2053.
Reutilization and Repositioning of Surplus Property
Surplus property is tangible property that has reached it’s useful life expectancy an is no longer of use to any County department because it’s either be determined to be obsolete, uneconomical to repair, or valued only for its material components or contents. Surplus property may include anything from office supplies and furniture to vehicles and heavy equipment.
The Department of Purchasing and Contracts offers an online reutilization/repositioning website accessible by county personnel for the purpose of reutilization of surplus County property within the County. Property from this site may be reutilized only for official County of San Diego use. list of items for reutilization . The sale of vehicles and heavy equipment has been contracted to our contracted auctioneer. You can learn more about upcoming auctions by visiting our Auctions/Property Disposal page.
The current auctioneer on contract can be found on the Reutilization/Repositioning internal website. The auctioneer is responsible for maintaining all registration requirements for use of the online portal.
All surplus is sold, AS IS, WHERE IS, with no warranty of any kind
as to condition or serviceability.
County Property Disposal can be reached at:
Phone (858)
858-505-6841
Email: PropertyDisposal.CS@sdcounty.ca.gov
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