Dear UMBC Campus Community,
As of today, Procurement has introduced the new Unauthorized Procurement Justification form. The purpose of this form is to identify and document any unauthorized or “after-the-fact” purchases to ensure full compliance with university procurement policies and applicable regulations.
Unauthorized purchases occur when an individual enters into a transaction without proper delegated authority or outside established procurement procedures. This includes committing university funds or receiving goods or services without following the required purchasing processes. A common example is when a software or cloud service is purchased on a P-card prior to receiving proper approval, or when an order is placed before a Purchase Order (PO) is officially issued in the PAW Procurement System.
Please review the following important policy reminders regarding these transactions:
- Personal Obligation: Under UMBC policy, unauthorized purchases may be considered a personal obligation of the individual making the purchase.
- Payment Responsibility: The University is not obligated to assume payment for such transactions.
- Case-by-Case Review: Submission of this form constitutes a formal request for the University to review the circumstances and determine whether it will assume the payment obligation on a case-by-case basis.
- Form Requirements: The document requires the requester to provide the detailed facts of the violation, an explanation of price reasonableness, the benefit provided to the university, a corrective action plan, and required administrative approvals.
- Consequences: Repeated violations of these procurement policies may result in disciplinary action and/or personal financial liability. In addition, required training and loss of purchase privledges are possible.
The fillable form is available for immediate use when documenting non-compliant transactions. Thank you for your cooperation and commitment to upholding UMBC’s fiscal and procurement standards.
Sincerely,
Department of Procurement and Strategic Sourcing
University of Maryland, Baltimore County