Cedar Rapids City Council member: Does saving $59 justify out-of-state purchase?

CEDAR RAPIDS - Sending $75,500 out of state for a John Deere tractor saved Cedar Rapids a few dollars, but drew questions from city leaders who thought the city should have spent $59 more to buy locally.

Cross Implement, a company based in Minier, Illinois, submitted the low bid to sell Cedar Rapids a used 2014 John Deere 6115m. Bodensteiner Implement, which is based in Rowley, about 30 miles north of Cedar Rapids, offered the tractor for $75,559.31, only $59.31 more. It was passed over in favor of the Illinois dealer.

'Our overall policy is to take whoever meets the specifications for the lowest bid unless there's other things that would impede it such as a service delivery date,” Casey Drew, Cedar Rapids finance director, told Cedar Rapids City Council on Tuesday. 'If all those things are the same, we usually take the low bid.”

City staff recommended buying from Cross Implement noting the purchase didn't conflict with the city's buy local policy, which was established in 2010 to give preference to vendors from Linn County. Rowley is in Buchanan County.

Under the 'buy local” policy, with a few exceptions, the city must accept local bids not more than 10 percent higher than the low bid for amounts less than $25,000, no more than 5 percent higher for amounts equal or greater than $25,000 but less than $200,000, and no more than 1 percent higher for bids equal to or greater than $200,000.

The City Council ultimately authorized the purchase by a 6-3 vote, but not before several questions and a call to review the purchasing policy. Ron Corbett, Susie Weinacht, Pat Shey, Scott Olson, Scott Overland and Kris Gulick voted in favor and Ralph Russell, Ann Poe and Justin Shields opposed.

'We have a bid from essentially a local company in Rowley, Iowa, that's only $59 higher on a $75,000 purchase,” Russell noted in questioning whether the city was obligated to take the lowest possible price.

Shields added, 'To go out of state for a product like this for the amount of money that's a difference, it ought to be looked at as helping this area of the state out.”

Drew noted the recommendation was guided by city policy, which also follows national procurement policy standards to accept the 'lowest acceptable bid.”

'If the City Council doesn't want to take it, they don't have to, but the policy that is in place says that is our protocol of how we are going to do stuff,” Drew said. 'There is nothing that officially binds you, but I'd recommend we follow our policy.”

Cedar Rapids Mayor Ron Corbett requested a review of the procurement policy by the city's finance committee in the next few months.

Gulick, who heads up the finance committee, agreed to the review. He said the question is whether the City Council wants to extend a preference policy beyond Linn County.

'This happens to be $50, but what is the parameter you want to use for business located in Iowa,” Gulick said. 'We don't have a preference policy in place for that kind of thing.”

l Comments: (319) 339-3177; brian.morelli@thegazette.com