Purchasing Rules and Regulations

Texas A&M-San Antonio departments have delegated authority to make purchases of equipment, supplies, and services within specified dollar limits (including freight and/or postage), regardless of the funding source. This limited authority is delegated to allow departments to expedite the purchase of items needed immediately without having to prepare a purchase requisition. The dollar limit is currently restricted to not exceed $25,000.00.  Purchases may not be separated in order to remain within the delegated dollar limit. Anything over $25,000 will route to TAMU Procurement Service.

Departments are encouraged to purchase equipment supplies and services from Historically Underutilized Businesses (HUBs). An online HUB Directory is available to assist you in identifying HUBs. Please contact A&M-SA Hub Coordinator Cynthia “Cindy” Gillar for any questions.

For purchases exceeding the delegated departmental spending limits, requisitions, bids and purchase orders processed through the TAMU Procurement Services are usually required. The following guidelines apply:

• Freight costs must be included in all dollar limits listed above.
• Large purchases may not be divided into small lot purchases in order to meet the specified dollar limits. (University Rule 25.07.03.M0.01 Section 2.1.3)

Departments are advised to carefully evaluate and plan their goods and services requirements on a monthly/yearly basis whenever possible.

Sole Source and/or Proprietary Purchases

If the specifications restrict the purchase of goods or services to only one product or manufacturer, enter an AggieBuy Purchase Requisition and include a completed Sole Source Form.

This questionnaire should be completed by the subject matter expert familiar with the technical requirements of the purchase. After completion, please attach to AggieBuy.  If more space is required, feel free to attach additional pages. Note: The price of the product or service is not a consideration for sole source, as pricing can be determined only by competitive solicitation.

Emergency Purchases

An emergency purchase is defined as a purchase of goods or services that if not secured immediately, the university will suffer financial or operational damage.

When possible, contact the Purchasing Office prior to acquiring the goods or services. If the situation allows, informal bids will be taken. The department should place the order, then enter an AggieBuy Purchase Requisition and include a completed Justification of Emergency Purchases form.

The form must completely describe:

• The reason for the emergency purchase by explaining what the emergency is and/or what caused the emergency situation;
• The financial and/or operational damage that will occur if needs are not satisfied immediately; and
• Why the needs were not or could not be anticipated, so that the items could have been purchased through regular procurement procedures.”

Non-compliant Purchase Requisitions

Departments do not have the authority to make purchases in excess of $25,000 that have not been approved prior to the goods being delivered or services being rendered. Non-compliant purchase requisitions include, but are not limited to, confirming requisitions and requisitions that split large purchases into smaller purchases to circumvent purchasing procedures. Purchasing Services encourages questions and will assist requisitioners in determining the best method available for acquiring goods and services.

At A&M-SA, our eProcurement system is called AggieBuy, which is an e-commerce platform developed by Texas A&M University in collaboration with Jaggaer. The “Requisition/P.O. Cycle at A&M-SA" outlines the process from identifying a need to accounts payable at Texas A&M University-San Antonio (A&M-SA). The flowchart provides a clear and structured overview of the requisition and purchase order cycle at A&M-SA, ensuring that each step is accounted for and properly managed.

The flowchart is divided into five main sections: Department, Procurement, Suppliers, Receiving, and Accounts Payable. Each section contains specific steps in the process: