Memorandum #213 Contract Procedures and Authorized Signatures

Contract Procedures and Authorized Signatures Policy Revised: September 17, 2019
Contract Procedures and Authorized Signature Policy: Date of Issue: August 27, 2017
Original Policy - Contract Liabilities – Date of Issue:  July 1, 2000

Scope of this Policy:

Community College of Philadelphia (the “College”) enters into a wide variety of contracts including but not limited to contracts for the purchase of goods and services, construction contracts, software license agreements, rental agreements, lease agreements, clinical and other student placement agreements, transfer and articulation agreements, event contracts, contracts to provide educational training, programs, and services to third parties, grant agreements, scholarship agreements, and numerous other forms of agreements.

For purposes of this policy, a contract is any document that contains an agreement between the College and an outside party which imposes any kind of obligation on the College, entitles the College to a benefit, or otherwise affects the College’s rights, whether or not there is an exchange of funds between the College and the outside party.  A contract which meets this definition is subject to this policy regardless of how it is titled (e.g., a contract may also be called an agreement, memorandum of understanding, memorandum of agreement, letter of intent, letter of agreement, license, lease, etc.)  This policy also applies to any amendment, addendum, modification, correction, renewal, or extension of a contract.  

Contract Review Procedures:

All contracts should be initiated well in advance of the date the contract will start to allow time to follow the College's contract procedures and negotiate the best terms and conditions for the College. Because contracts can create various forms of liability for the College and may create other obligations for the College or impose limitations on the College, it is essential to ensure that all contracts follow and comply with the following procedures to the extent applicable:

• Contracts related to the purchase of goods and services and construction contracts must comply with the College’s Open Market Purchasing Policy Memorandum #201, the College’s other Financial Policies, and must be coordinated with the College’s Purchasing Department;
• All contracts must comply with the College’s Conflicts of Interest Policy, Memorandum #212;
• All contracts must be reviewed by the Vice President of the Division in which they originate or his or her designee. Contracts should be coordinated with the Vice President(s) of other Divisions that may be implicated by the terms of the contract;
• All contracts must be reviewed by the Office of General Counsel;
• Contracts for software licenses and other information technology services must be reviewed by the Associate Vice President of Information and Technology or his or her designee;
• Contracts which involve the purchase of goods or services of $10,000 or more must be reviewed by the Vice President of the Division of Business and Finance or his or her designee; and
• Contracts covered by the College’s Purchase and Contracts Requiring Specific Board Authorization Policy, Memorandum #202, must be authorized by the Board of Trustees.

Contract Approval and Authorized Signatures:

Contracts which are reviewed by the appropriate individuals in accordance with this policy and which otherwise comply with applicable College policies may be approved and executed only as follows:

• Contracts of $15,000 or more (in cost or revenue) must be approved and executed by the President of the College or the Vice President designated in his or her absence
• Contracts of less than $15,000 (in cost or revenue) must be approved and executed by the Vice President for the Division responsible for implementation of the contract (the originating Division) or his or her designee.
• All dual admission/articulation agreements and federal or Commonwealth of Pennsylvania grant contracts must be signed by the President or the Vice President designated in his or her absence

Approval and Signature Procedure:

Contracts should be submitted for approval using the College's electronic contract management system. Employees may commence the electronic contract approval process by submitting any contracts to the designated contract administrator for their respective division with a completed Contract Information Form. If it is not possible to submit a contract for approval through the College's electronic contract management system, the contract must be submitted to the designated contract administrator for the employee's division with a Contract Approval Form.

Final Contracts:

All fully executed contracts must be saved into the College's electronic contract management system. Each division will be responsible for maintaining executed copies of contracts for that division in accordance with the College's Records Management and Retention policy.