The University of Louisiana at Monroe
PURCHASING DEPARTMENT
Contract Rules
L.S.A.-R.S. 39: Public Finance
December 1, 2014
Professional Contracts is a section of the Office of State Procurement that is
charged by law with adopting rules and regulations for the procurement,
management, control and disposition of all professional, personal, consulting, and
social services contracts required by state agencies.
Professional Contracts are received by the Office of State Procurement and are
reviewed for appropriateness of contract terms and language, signature
authorities, evidence of funding and compliance with applicable laws, regulations,
executive orders and policies. Professional Contracts also reviews agencies'
procurement processes against competitive solicitation requirements of law.
The review process also ensures that a central record of all such agreements is
maintained and that comparative statistics in the number and kinds of services
needed can be developed for planning and reporting purposes.
The Louisiana Revised Statutes Title 39:1481-1526 directly address the laws
governing Professional, Personal, Consulting, and Social Services Contracts. The
official rules and regulations of the Office of State Procurement, Professional
Contracts appear in Title 34, Part V of the Louisiana Administrative Code.
Policy and Procedures for
Submitting Contracts for Professional,
Personal, Consulting and Social Services
DEFINITIONS
 Professional Services


A profession is a vocation founded upon prolonged and
specialized intellectual training that enables a particular service
to be rendered. The word "professional" implies professed
attainments in special knowledge, as distinguished from mere
skill.
External contracts for professional services may be negotiated by
the end user with a responsible contractor without competitive
bidding.


For contracts with a total amount of compensation of
$50,000 or more, the definition of professional service shall
be limited to lawyers, doctors, dentists, psychologists,
certified advanced practice nurses, veterinarians, architects,
engineers, land surveyors, landscape architects,
accountants, actuaries, claims adjusters, and any other
profession that may be added by regulations adopted by the
Procurement Contracts section of the Office of State
Procurement.
Personal Services

Personal services include work rendered by individuals that
requires use of creative or artistic skills, such as, but not
limited to, graphic artists, sculptors, musicians,
photographers, and writers, or that requires use of highly
technical or unique individual skills or talents, such as, but
not limited to, paramedicals, therapists, handwriting
analysts, foreign representatives, and expert witnesses for
adjudications or other court proceedings..


External contracts for personal services may, regardless of the
amount of compensation, be negotiated by the end user with
a responsible contractor without competitive bidding.
Consulting Services

Consulting services include work, other than professional or
personal services, rendered by either individuals or firms who
posses specialized knowledge, experience, and expertise to
investigate assigned problems or projects and to provide
counsel, review, design, development, analysis, or advise in
formulating or implementing programs or services, or
improvements in programs and services, including but not
limited to such areas as management, personnel, finance,
accounting, planning, data processing, and advertising
contracts.


External contracts for consulting services where the total
amount of compensation is less than $50,000 may be
negotiated by the end user with a responsible contractor
without competitive bidding. Contracts for $50,000 or more
must be awarded by Request for Proposals (RFP) pursuant to
the requirements of Louisiana R.S.39:1503. Failure to comply
shall result in having to re-do the entire process.
PRIOR TO THE COMMENCEMENT DATE ON ANY CONTRACT,
the contract shall have been processed and approved by the
Purchasing Department or the President’s Office. Contract
approval could take up to sixty (60) days, depending on the
dollar amount of the contract and the review and approvals
required from other University offices or from other state
agencies.
Under no circumstances should an individual sign an
agreement with any proposed contractor.
Guidelines and required contracts and form(s) may be
reviewed and downloaded from
http://www.ulm.edu/forms
If you have any questions, please call the Purchasing
Department at 318-342-5205 or fax (5218).
Professional Contracts-Checklist for the
Review of Personal, Professional, Consulting,
and Social Services Contracts.
A.
Minimum Contract Content:
1. Contains appropriate original (not a signature stamp)
signatures of agency and contractor.
2. Contains appropriate approvals; i.e. Civil Service, Attorney
General, Higher Education Boards, if applicable, etc.
3. Contains a date upon which the contract is to begin and upon
which contract will terminate.
4. Contains a description of the work to be performed including
goals and objectives, deliverables, performance measures and a
monitoring plan.
5. Contains a maximum amount and schedule of payments to be
made.
6. Contains an itemized budget if it is a cost reimbursement
contract.
.
7.Contains a description of reports or other deliverables to be
received, when applicable.
8. Contains a schedule when reports or other deliverables are
to be received, when applicable.
9. When a contract includes travel and/or other reimbursable
expenses, it contains language to effect the following:
a. Travel and other reimbursable expenses constitute
part of the total maximum payable under the
contract, or
b. No more than ($_________) of the total maximum
amount payable under this contract shall be paid as
reimbursable expenses, and
c. Travel expenses shall be reimbursed in accordance
with Division of Administration Policy and Procedure
Memorandum 49 (The State General Travel
Regulations).
10. Contains the responsibility for payment of taxes,
when applicable.
11. Contains the circumstances under which the contract
can be terminated either with or without cause and contains
remedies for default. Must contain 30 day termination at
convenience of the state unless justified and approved by
the Director of the Office of Contractual Review.
12. Contains a statement giving the Legislative Auditor and
the Division of Administration Auditors the authority to audit
records of the individual(s) or firm(s).
13. Contains an assignability clause.
14. Contains required anti-discrimination language
(ADA).
15. Appropriate language if key internal controls have
been outsourced.
B.
Additional Attachments which are required
for Contract Submittal:
1. Signed BA-22 form.
2. Certification letter, if contract is over $5,000.
3. Multi-year letter, if contract exceeds 12 months.
4. Late letter, if contract is more than 60 days late.
5. Board Resolution, if contractor is a corporation, either
profit or non-profit.
6. Disclosure of Ownership affidavit which has been filed
with the Secretary of State's Office if contractor is a for
profit corporation whose stock is not publicly traded.
7. Certificate of Authority to do business in Louisiana if
contractor is an out-of-state corporation.
8. Resume for Consultants.
9. Advance payment justification from non-profit contractor and
approval by the agency with a statement that this is the most cost
effective way of obtaining the services as well as a recoupment
schedule.
10. Information and documentation if contract was awarded through
the Request for Proposals process.
C.
Determination of Responsibility of Contractor:
If a contract for consulting services is for $50,000 or more, or for
social services for $250,000 or more per a 12 month period, the
head of the submitting agency has prepared, signed and placed in
the contract file a statement of the facts on which a
determination of responsibility was based. Factors to consider are:
1. Has adequate financial resources for performance, or has the ability to
obtain such resources as required during performance.
2. Has the necessary experience, organization, technical qualifications,
skills, and facilities, or has the ability to obtain them (including probable
sub-contractor arrangements).
3. Is able to comply with the proposed or required time of delivery or
performance schedule.
4. Has a satisfactory record of integrity, judgment and performance.
NOTE: Contractors who are seriously delinquent in current contract
performance, considering the number of contracts and the extent of
delinquencies of each, shall, be presumed to be unable to fulfill this
requirement.
5. Is otherwise qualified eligible to receive an award under applicable laws
and regulations.
6. On subcontracting, it has been established that contractor's recent
performance history indicates acceptable subcontracting systems; or,
major subcontractors have been determined by the head of the submitting
agency to satisfy standard.
AMOUNTS

< $49,999 - Signed on Campus

> $50,000 – Must be approved by Office of State
Procurement in Baton Rouge (allow 4 to 6 weeks for
approval)

< $100,000 on campus for Entertainment contract
NOTE: Maximum dollar amount MUST be stated, cannot
give amount “Plus” expenses
OTHER

NEPOTISM: CAN NOT contract with immediate
family member

PRIOR EMPLOYEES: State law
Procedures for Submitting to Purchasing
Contracts under $2,000
 Submit a requisition in Banner detailing the terms and
conditions of the contract and the contract period.
Complete the “Contracts under $2000” form and submit
to purchasing for processing.

Contracts under $2000 can be processed on a Check
Request when a check is needed for the day of the
event. The Check Request must be submitted with this
form and before services are rendered. Code the
account to 705702
Contracts $2,000 to 20,000

Contracts over $2,000 and up to $20,000 signed by the
contractor and submitted to the Purchasing Department
for further processing at least 14 days prior to the
commencement date of service. Use the
“Correspondence Form” as a cover to reference the
requisition number and forward to Purchasing. This
form can be found under forms for Purchasing.

The contract will be checked for appropriate terms. The
contract will be signed on behalf of the university by the
purchasing department. The contract is processed by
purchasing personnel. Code the account to 705701 or
the appropriate Professional Services account code.
Contracts over $20,000 - $49, 999

Contracts over $20,000 are submitted to the Purchasing
Department for review at least 60 calendar days prior to
the commencement date of services. (This does not
include sub-award contracts) The contract is reviewed
by Purchasing to ensure compliance with all statutory
and regulatory requirements. The contract is returned
to the originator to attain the Contractor’s signature, as
well as the signature of two witnesses.

The signed contract and appropriate documents along
with a Correspondence cover is returned to Purchasing
and is forwarded for the appropriate approval signature.

The contract is returned to Purchasing for processing.
The contract, if necessary is sent for approval by
appropriate state agency. Contracts between $20,000
and $49,999 are approved by the President or his designee and
processed. Code with account 705700 or the appropriate
Professional Services account code.
Contracts over $49, 999
 Contracts over $49,999 follow the same procedure as
contracts over $20,000 and are sent to Civil Service, if
necessary other state agencies and Professional
Contracts section of the Office of State Procurement
for approval.
 These contracts are coded with account 705700 or the
appropriate Professional Services account code.
Performance Evaluation

A performance evaluation is required on contracts over $2,000.
The evaluation should be completed by the Originator. The
evaluation form can be obtained from the Purchasing
Department Website. The evaluation must be completely filled
out and forward to the Controller’s Office at the end of the
contract period for final payment of invoice. A copy must also be
sent to the Purchasing Office.

For contracts over $20,000, a performance evaluation must be
submitted to the Purchasing Office within 45 days of completion
of performance and no contract may be entered into by any
using department with any contractor for which a delinquent
final evaluation report remains outstanding.

Performance Evaluations over $20,000 are sent to the Office For
contracts over $250,000, a performance evaluation is also sent
to the Legislative Auditor.
Reporting


Contracts over $2,000 are reported quarterly to the
Office of State Procurement.
Legal Contract usage is reported quarterly to
University of Louisiana System
Additional Clauses
Order of Precedence Clause

In the event of any inconsistent or incompatible provisions, this
signed agreement (excluding the RFP and Contractor's proposal)
shall take precedence, followed by the provisions of the RFP,
and then by the terms of the Contractor's proposal.
Entire Agreement Clause

This contract, together with the RFP and addenda issued
thereto by the Department, the proposal submitted by the
Contractor in response to the Department's RFP, and any
exhibits specifically incorporated herein by reference, constitute
the entire agreement between the parties with respect to the
subject matter.
Travel Reimbursements (This language may be used
in RFP documents and/or contracts)

If the Proposer will be required to travel in the
performance of the contract, and/or the State Agency
will be reimbursing the Contractor separately for travel
expenses, the RFP and/or the contract shall clearly
state that “Travel and other allowable expenses shall
be reimbursed in accordance with the Division of
Administration State General Travel Regulations, within
the limits established for State Employees as defined
in Division of Administration Policy and Procedure
Memorandum No. 49. All out of state travel will be
subject to prior approval by the Secretary of the
agency or his/her designee.”
ROUTING
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All contracts are sent to the purchasing office for review
of appropriate language prior to sending contractor for
signature.
Once received from contractor, the issuing department
will submit a requisition. The contract with the
monitoring plan and certification letter are sent to the
purchasing department referencing the requisition
number on a Campus Correspondence cover sheet.
Purchasing will obtain university signature.
The contract is processed according to contract amount
and type.
Sample Contracts and Forms can
be found under the Purchasing
Web site at
http://www.ulm.edu/purchasingof
fice/ or under ULM Online Forms.