Contracting FAQs

Procurement has the following bidding levels:

• Goods costing less than $10,000 may be handled by requesting agencies by any reasonable means.
• Goods with a total cost greater than $10,000 and less than a total cost of $50,000 require informal solicitations with multiple quotes.
• Goods costing $50,000 to $100,000 require written quotations from a minimum of three sources. 
• Goods costing more than $100,000 require a formal sealed bid process. Technology goods costing more than $100,000 require a formal sealed bid or proposal process.
• Professional services and technology costing more than $100,000 require a formal sealed proposal process.

Telephone quotes are allowed for items costing up to $10,000. Telephone quotes are sometimes requested by departments, who have been delegated this authority by the citywide procurement policy.

City Procurement handles procurement for all offices with the following exceptions:

• The Department of General Services (GS) handles solicitations with regard to professional architectural or engineering services and construction of capital projects included in the annually adopted Utility Capital Improvements budget.
• Charlotte Water handles utilities-related construction contracting and utilities-related services and technology contracting. 
• Charlotte Area Transit System (CATS) handles construction-related transit contracting. 
• Charlotte Douglas International Airport (Aviation) handles construction, services, and technology-related aviation contracting needs. 
• City Procurement does not handle procurement for Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools or the Charlotte Housing Authority.
• Mecklenburg County's Procurement Office supports all county departments with their purchasing needs for goods, services and technology and includes a vendor management program office to assist with vendor performance and relationship management.

The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools Purchasing Department can be reached by calling 704.343.6251 or visiting their website.

City Procurement's standard office hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. Staff is generally available for your assistance from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday.

There are several types of bonds that may be required: Bid Bonds, Performance Bonds and Payment Bonds. See information in the "City of Charlotte/Mecklenburg County Procurement Manual Policies and Procedures." <--link? Bonds are normally not required for projects. However, City Procurement may require a bond if it is believed to be in the city's best interest. Bonds may be issued by an approved surety firm or be in the form of a cashier's check.

City departments have been delegated authority for informal purchases for total single orders costing up to $10,000. For purchases greater than $10,000, appropriate procurement procedures must be followed. Departments also have the ability to make purchases on their procurement cards (p-cards) up to an assigned single purchase spending authority.

You may request information about previous contracts by calling the City Clerk’s Office at 704.336.2248. You may also contact City Procurement at 704.336.2256. The City Clerk's Office is the main repository for all city contracts; therefore, City Procurement may not have the contract you are searching for. Can the public make a public records request?

Current information may be obtained on the North Carolina Interactive Purchasing System website. Additional contracting opportunities may be sought on the city's website at Doing Business with the City.

There are several ways you can register with the City of Charlotte:

1. Visit the city's vendor registration page and submit a vendor registration form.
2. Request and complete a vendor registration form from the department(s) you're interested in doing business with
3. Contact Vendor Administration at 704.336.4777 or ssvendoradmin@charlottenc.gov. A current W-9 will need to be submitted with the vendor registration form.

Vendor registration forms

In accordance with the North Carolina Procurement Statutes, the City of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County are unable to grant preferences. We must award bids to the lowest, responsible, responsive vendor or to those vendors providing the best value solution to the city or county. That being said, Charlotte Business INClusion (CBI) is designed to promote diversity, inclusion and local business opportunities in the city’s contracting and procurement process for businesses headquartered in the Charlotte Combined Statistical Area. 

If you are interested in learning more about the program and how to participate as a Minority/Woman/Small Business Enterprise (MWSBE), visit CBI's website.

Advertisements for goods and services are solicited by Invitations to Bid and Requests for Proposals and are posted for viewing on the North Carolina Interactive Purchasing website, which is maintained by the State of North Carolina Purchasing and Contracts Division.

Solicitation results for Invitations to Bid may be given over the phone. You may call 704.336.2256 after the bid opening, and Procurement staff will provide you a bid tabulation where applicable. However, a bid tabulation will be supplied only after a final decision has been made to award the bid. 

A Request for Proposal does not result in a bid tabulation as the process of evaluation is generally longer than that of an Invitation to Bid and is not based on price.

Solicitation results for Requests for Proposals may be available after final evaluations are complete upon written request to City Procurement. <-- How does one do that? Via a public records request?

No. However, any vendor soliciting or providing business in Charlotte and/or Mecklenburg County must be registered as a vendor with the City of Charlotte and/or Mecklenburg County.

Formal advertised sealed bids/proposals will NOT be accepted by City Procurement via email or fax; however, informal quotes may be faxed or e-mailed.

A vendor may get information from City Procurement at 704.336.2256.

Typically a city or county department submits a request for services to City Procurement for a specific requirement.

Formal contracts

Formal contracts (more than $100,000) are officially awarded upon approval by the City Council or County Commissioners.  Written and signed contracts are provided for all contracts in the formal range. Purchase orders may also be issued in addition to the signed contracts.

Informal contracts

For informal contracts (less than $100,000), the official award may be given at the discretion of City Procurement staff or individuals with appropriate authority within each city and county department. Informal commodities contracts are typically further evidenced by purchase order only. Service and technology contracts in any amount are always supported by a written signed contract. 

Awarding contracts

Because the City/County relies heavily on competitive bidding, no department knows which bidder will receive an award until sealed bids are opened and evaluated or, in the case of services and technology, proposals have gone through the evaluation process. This means that no one can give assurance that a vendor will receive a particular contract.

Do not start work without an authorized contract

No service should be provided, and no goods should be delivered, before you receive a written contract from the city/county. Until the city/county executes the contract, purchase order or blanket purchase order, the city/county has no legal obligation to pay for the order.

Because of the structural nature of government contracting, the city/county has little flexibility if the bid a vendor submits does not respond to all specifications and requirements outlined in the bid. So it is critical that a vendor submit a bid that is right the first (and perhaps only) time, or else we may not be able to consider the bid. 

Here are some things for a vendor to keep in mind:

Be timely. Vendors must submit bids by the date and time specified. Late bids cannot be considered.

Read the bid conditions. Each bid contains a number of bid conditions, some applicable to all bids, and some tailored to the particular bid. Prices must be firm for the period specified, which can be from as short as 90 days to as long as five years. For a contract, which could extend over several years, prices may change yearly.

Be responsive. Bid on items and in quantities the bid requests. If a vendor adds any qualifications or reservations to their bid, the bid may be considered conditional or nonresponsive and can be rejected.

FAILURE TO ADHERE TO BID CONDITIONS MAY RESULT IN REJECTION OF THE BID.

Any question concerning the solicitation should be directed, in writing, to the person whose name and contact information is listed in the solicitation. Correspondence must include the solicitation number and reference the specific section in question. No verbal response or interpretation that constitutes a material change to the solicitation is binding, unless it is issued as a written addendum to the solicitation.

If each division has a different Federal ID # (FID), then a separate Vendor Registration Form must be submitted. If the division has the same FID, but different mailing addresses, it will be added as a Remit address on the main vendor’s account.

Most pre-bid or pre-proposal conferences and site visits are not mandatory. However, in order to offer a responsive bid or proposal, a vendor should attend these meetings. Ignorance of existing conditions is not an acceptable excuse for non-performance at a later date. Bidders should take every opportunity to get to know the project and the requirements for that project.

Written and signed contracts are provided for all contracts in the formal range. Purchase orders may also be issued in addition to the signed contracts. For informal contracts (less than $100,000), the official award may be given at the discretion of City Procurement staff or individuals with appropriate authority within each city and county department. Informal commodities contracts are typically further evidenced by purchase order only. Service and technology contracts in any amount are always supported by a written signed contract. When responding to an RFP for services or technology, the selected vendor will receive a signed contract from the city/county. After the contract is signed, the vendor may start work.

For most orders, the delivery point is the location noted in the "ship to" where the item or service will be used. A vendor should note carefully the delivery address in the bidding and order documents. The vendor is responsible for delivering to the final destination specified in the order. Deliveries to departments typically are made by common carrier, by the vendor's trucks, or through the U.S. Postal Service. Vendors should not send the order to the buyer in City Procurement whose name may be on the transaction.

The vendor must include the purchase order number on the outside of the package, packing slip, and all invoices. This will enable the city/county to identify the correct department or individual as the recipient and ensure prompt payment.

All goods are considered received by the city/county only after the requesting department inspects them to be certain all items are received and in good condition. After inspection and any necessary tests have been performed, the department will approve the invoice. 

Services are considered delivered only after the city/county "accepts" the deliverables in accordance with specific acceptance criteria that are outlined in the contract. This typically includes a letter from the vendor stating that the deliverable has been met and the city/county signing the letter to indicate acceptance of the deliverable. Technology deliverables typically involve a test phase and include test acceptance criteria. Invoices are not sent until acceptance is received and payment is not made until after acceptance.

The city or county has no formal shipping and receiving department to sort and assess shipments that are received. Thus, delays may occur when:

Short shipment/backorders

 The city/county pays for an order only after all items have been received. Partial payments can be made but must be requested at the time the order is placed. If a vendor has made several shipments to fill an order and mailed the invoice for the entire order before all shipments were received, the vendor can expect payment only after the city/county receives the complete order.

Wrong delivery address

 The shipment was sent to City Procurement. Occasionally, vendors send orders to City Procurement instead of the requesting department. This causes delays as City Procurement determines the ultimate recipient. If no purchase order number appears on the outside of the container or packing slip, City Procurement may be unable to identify the correct department and thus be forced to return the shipment.

Missing order number 

 Vendors may fail to show the order number on the package.  If there is a problem with the delivery address, knowing the order number can be a significant help to the City/County in identifying the ultimate recipient.

The requesting agency must verify that the order was received complete and in good condition. Invoices are sent directly to Accounts Payable (A/P). A/P scans the invoices and sends them electronically to the department. Once the invoice is approved by the requesting department and the invoice is routed back to A/P, payment will be initiated by A/P.

If a vendor has a question about an invoice or payments, they should contact Accounts Payable at 704-336-5141. It is important that the vendor have the purchase order number or other identifying transaction number handy, including a contract number.

If the vendor observes the following tips, things should go smoothly: 

• Vendor should ensure that the PO number provided by the city is clearly indicated on the invoice.
• Make sure shipment was sent to the correct address. They should note carefully the "Deliver To" address on the purchase order. The order number should be included on the outside of the package. 

The vendor should send an invoice for the complete order, not a partial one, and do this only after the full order has been received or the deliverables have been accepted. In general, the city/county does not pay partial invoices without prior arrangements being made. Invoices sent too early may become difficult to locate once the shipment arrives or the deliverables are met. Send the invoice to the correct address and include a city/county contact person if specified on the PO or in the contract. Include the correct PO number or contract number on the invoice. The city/county needs that identifying number to match shipments or services with the procurement documents.