One-time purchases $20,000 or less for commodities and general services

Through Delegated Departmental Purchasing Authority (also known as "Prop Q" Purchasing), departments may make one-time purchases of commodities or general services under $20,000 without going through the Office of Contract Administration. This threshold increased from $10,000 to $20,000 on July 1, 2024.

Only City staff who have taken Prop Q training and filed Form 700 are eligible to issue Prop Q POs. When issuing a Prop Q PO, make sure to use the CL-600 Prop Q checklist to help you through the process and make sure to include as many LBEs as possible by using CMD's directory of certified LBEs.

Departments are responsible for making sure that purchases comply with all legal requirements.

The $20,000 includes any:

• Taxes
• Delivery fees
• Installation fees
• Change orders

Departments may not split bids or orders to meet the $20,000 limit. 

Departments cannot purchase the following items on their own through Prop Q:

• Unbudgeted equipment
• Commodities and services available for purchase on contracts established by OCA (also known as Term Contracts), unless you receive prior approval from OCA
• Equipment for lease purchase
• Tropical hardwoods, virgin redwood, and related wood products (See Environment Code Section 801)
• Information Technology and related products such as video display terminals, computer equipment and supplies, cloud hosting services and telecommunication equipment and wiring
• Cars, trucks, and vehicles
• Gift cards
• Professional Services
• Sugar sweetened beverages
• Drones
• Goods procured from e-marketplaces (for the purpose of this exception, an e-marketplace is an online platform that processes commercial transactions in which customers purchase goods, at least some of which are sold by third-party retailers to consumers through the platform.)

Key documents:

• CL-600 (10-24) Prop Q checklist
• Prop Q Training Slides (July 2024)
• Prop Q FAQs (August 2024)