Committee accepts BLA adjustments and forwards routine contract amendments for industrial and electrical supplies

The Budget and Finance Committee on Nov. 3 considered two Office of Contract Administration catalog-contract amendments and voted to forward each to the full Board with positive recommendations after accepting Budget and Legislative Analyst (BLA) adjustments.

The first item involved MSC Industrial Supply Co., an industrial-supplies catalog contract originally awarded in 2017. OCA said the contract had been heavily used during the COVID period and projected the remaining balance would be exhausted; OCA requested an amendment to extend term to June 30, 2023 and increase the not-to-exceed amount. The BLA reviewed historical monthly spending (showing $190,000/month average over two fiscal years) and recommended amending the not-to-exceed amount to roughly $14.3 million; the committee accepted that recommendation and forwarded the item.

The second item was a similar amendment to a catalog contract with Buckle Smith Electric Company for electrical supplies and fixtures. OCA requested an amendment to extend the term and increase spending authority; the BLA again recommended a lower amendment consistent with recent monthly averages. The committee accepted the BLA recommendation and forwarded the amendment with a positive recommendation.

Why it matters: both items are operational contract amendments intended to ensure departments can continue purchasing widely used supplies; the BLA's review reduced the requested not-to-exceed amounts based on observed spending patterns.

Outcome: both contract amendments were approved by the committee as amended and forwarded to the full Board with positive recommendations.