Mount Clemens commission introduces ordinance to align purchasing rules with charter, raising informal bid threshold to $15,000

The Mount Clemens City Commission voted to introduce an ordinance that amends the city's purchasing rules to match a 2021 charter amendment increasing the informal bid threshold to $15,000.

City Manager Shipman told commissioners the ordinance corrects an inconsistency between the city charter – which voters amended in 2021 – and the language still in the purchasing ordinance, explaining that the previous $1,500 figure dated from the 1950s and had become cost-prohibitive for routine purchases.

Commissioners questioned the size of the increase, with one noting it felt like “a quantum leap” from $1,500 to $15,000 and expressing concern smaller vendors might strategically bid just below the new limit. Shipman and other commissioners said the $15,000 figure was reached after reviewing peer communities and considering the paperwork burden that had discouraged some vendors under the lower threshold.

The commission moved and approved introduction of the ordinance and set March 16, 2026, as the adoption date. The ordinance was described as a technical alignment with the charter, not a new purchasing policy.

What happens next: the ordinance is scheduled for adoption consideration on March 16, 2026; staff said the ordinance was prepared by the city attorney and will return for further review and final action.