Procurement Procedures - Chapter 09: Emergency Procurement

EM 1 - Emergency Procurement (Nondeclared)

A “nondeclared emergency” is defined as an immediate need for commodities and services, the lack of which would cause a disruption of essential operations where the protection or preservation of public properties would not be possible through normal procurement procedures or where there exists a threat to public health, welfare, or safety.

EM 2 - Declared Emergency Purchases

A “declared emergency” ¹ occurs when the Hillsborough County Board of County Commissioners (Board), the Emergency Management Executive Policy Group, or the state or federal government declares a state of emergency due to any disaster that severely impacts the County.

EM 3 - Requirements for Emergency Procurement

1. Emergency purchases during working hours should be made through Procurement Services.
1. (A) Requesting Departments (RD) must provide a requisition, a completed Nondeclared Emergency Request Form, and quote(s). If vendor needs to access county facilities the RD must contact Risk Management to determine insurance coverages.
2. Outside of normal business hours, the Department Director is authorized to determine and make emergency purchases, regardless of amount.
• (A) When making emergency purchases, the Department Director shall take all reasonable measures to assure the lowest attainable cost for quality commodities and services and must continue to emphasize public trust in our purchasing practices.
• (B) Departments will create their own authorization numbers using these rules:
• (1) The first two characters are always “EM”
• (2) The next two characters are your department’s two-digit code, e.g. Procurement Services is “PH”
• (3) The next two digits are the current fiscal year, e.g. “25” for 2025
• (4) The next 4 digits are tracked by each department, starting with “0001”. Example: EMPH250001
• (C) Departments are responsible for keeping track of issued numbers and for creating a requisition through Oracle Cloud listing the authorization number provided to the supplier.
3. RD shall create a funded Requisition through Oracle Cloud and list the authorization number provided to the vendor, attach the invoice, and provide detail on the steps taken to assure the lowest attainable cost for quality commodities and services.

EM 3.1 See §3-206 of the Procurement Policy for general and reporting requirements.

EM 4 - Declared Emergency PCard Program (ePCard Program)

Cardholders must ensure their cards are in their possession at all times while working in the event a purchase is required.

Prior to activating the ePCard Program, Procurement Services must receive notice from the Executive Policy Group through the Hillsborough County Emergency Operations Center (EOC) that a local state of emergency has been declared. The ePCard Program will be withdrawn on the deactivation date of the declaration. Notices are sent to PCard Department Coordinators for activations and deactivations.

1. Is the Department’s responsibility to request PCard Admin keep a card active if emergency purchases have not posted.
2. While the ePCard Program is activated, Department Directors must ensure that purchases for normal business activities must not exceed normal spending limits.
3. To comply with FEMA requirements, cardholders must document the event name and location of each purchase on the receipts and/or invoices. All receipts and/or invoices must follow requirements in PC 10.
4. Cardholders must follow up with vendors who have not processed charges to get the items promptly resolved.
5. Cardholders must reconcile transactions in accordance with PC 11 and PC 12.
6. For staff deploy during an event, the RD must provide Procurement Services with a State Mission Number ² from Emergency Management, Executive Team member approval, and a list of cardholder names. Emergency profiles may be extended upon the Director’s request from the Requesting Department until the current cycle end ³. Employees traveling outside the County must complete a Pre-Trip Authorization and Reimbursement Request form or obtain a preauthorization number in Oracle Cloud, and attach as backup to related Expense Reports.
7. Department Director Review
• (A) Request ePCard Program cards to meet department requirements. Cards can be requested that are only to be utilized during an emergency; when not in use, the card’s spend profile would be set to zero (0).
• (B) During a declared emergency, new PCards cannot be requested and issued, as cardholders must attend training prior to obtaining a card.
• (C) Departments should periodically review and adjust their emergency cardholders and their limits. PCard Department Coordinators can pull a report from WORKS®.

EM 5 - Declared Emergency Fuel Program (eFuel Program)

1. Cardholders must ensure their cards are in their procession at all times while working in the event a fuel purchase is required.
2. Prior to activating the eFuel Program, Procurement Services must receive notice from the Executive Policy Group through EOC that a local state of emergency has been declared. The eFuel Program will be withdrawn on the deactivation date of the declaration. Notices are sent to the Wex Department Coordinators for activations and deactivations.
3. Fleet Management will provide guidance as to when commercial stations should be used.
4. To comply with FEMA requirements, cardholders must document the event name and location of each purchase on the invoice and/or receipt.
5. Department Director Review
• (A) Request eFuel Program cards to meet department requirements. Card can be requested that are only to be utilized during an emergency; when not in use, the card spend profile would be set to zero (0).
• (B) During an emergency, new Wex Cards cannot be requested and issued, as cardholders must attend training prior to obtaining a card.
• (C) Departments should periodically review and adjust their emergency Wex cardholders and their limits. Department Coordinators can pull a report from Wex™.

EM Notes

1. Emergency Purchases – A purchase made during a declared local state of emergency.
2. State Mission Number: A number provided to local EOCs by the State EOC to track and manage the requests for assistance between governmental agencies.
3. Cycle End: The last day of the month.