All
Purchasing Cooperatives Are Not the Same
For
many years, cooperative purchasing options in Arizona were very limited.
The success of the few established statewide cooperative purchasing
programs led to the establishment of additional Arizona-based purchasing
cooperatives
and consortiums. The latest trend is various forms of national purchasing
cooperatives.
As one
of the long-time established Arizona purchasing cooperatives, Mohave
has watched this phenomenon with interest. Additional
cooperative
purchasing programs present opportunity for Arizona government agencies.
However, they also require careful consideration and review prior
to their use as an appropriate purchasing solution.
The decision
to use cooperative purchasing rests solely with the buying entity.
The
same is true when determining which cooperative
contract
to use. As the field broadens, I thought I would provide some factual
information about Mohave and its cooperative purchasing program.
In
1988, Mohave entered the cooperative purchasing arena to provide
a viable solution to Arizona school district requirements for Apple
Computer
products. We expanded our program because we were asked to provide
similar solutions for other government entities and a broad range
of products
and services.
Mohave
exists solely to administer a quality cooperative purchasing program
for Arizona government agencies. We have no other
business
or service
activities.
Mohave
procurement solicitations and contracts are based solely on the Arizona
State Procurement Code and the Arizona
State
Board of
Education
School District Procurement Rules. Because we contract solely
for Arizona entities, we follow Arizona codes and regulations.
Our
contracts result from member requests. We do not contract for our
needs, and then make the contract available for piggybacking.
Mohave
is a funded through a one-percent administrative fee. We do not
receive budget allocations from our members.
We enter each
year
with
no guaranteed funding. Because of this, we must generate
enough administrative fee to cover the entire cost of
operations.
Mohave
states openly that members pay the administrative fee. For most contracts,
the fee is included in the contract
price
and is
remitted
to Mohave by the vendor. Because
the administrative fee is included in contract prices, Mohave could
state that vendors pay
the fee. However, we
believe such statements
to be nothing more than marketing programs. In reality,
the buyer always pays the cost of doing business. Administrative
fees are
a cost of doing
business. Therefore, the buyer pays the fees, even when
they are included in contract prices.
Mohave’s
administrative fee pays for our facilities, equipment and operations.
It is never
used to pay rebates to partners or lead agencies.
We respect
each member’s desire and responsibility to make purchasing
decisions that are in the agency’s best interests.
We recognize that other cooperative contracts will
be reviewed and used. However,
with the rapid growth in purchasing cooperatives, we
thought it important to remind people that all purchasing
cooperative are not the same. The
rest is up to you.
Thank
you for supporting Mohave’s
cooperative purchasing program for the past twenty
years. We look forward to providing you with a viable
cooperative purchasing program for many years to come. 3/10/08,
JTP
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