§5A-3-1. Division created; purpose; director; applicability of article; continuation.

(a) The Purchasing Division within the Department of Administration is continued. The underlying purposes and policies of the Purchasing Division are:

(1) To serve as a source of expertise in procurement methods and practices for the various state agencies, and to assist and facilitate state agencies in procurement matters, including for travel services;

(2) To simplify, clarify and modernize the law governing procurement by this state;

(3) To permit the continued development of procurement policies and practices;

(4) To make as consistent as possible the procurement rules and practices among the various spending units;

(5) To provide for increased public confidence in the procedures followed in public procurement;

(6) To ensure the fair and equitable treatment of all persons who deal with the procurement system of this state;

(7) To provide increased economy in procurement activities and to maximize to the fullest extent practicable the purchasing value of public funds;

(8) To foster effective broad-based competition within the free enterprise system;

(9) To provide safeguards for the maintenance of a procurement system of quality and integrity; and

(10) To obtain in a cost-effective and responsive manner the commodities and services required by spending units for those spending units to better serve this state’s businesses and residents.

(b) The provisions of this article apply to all of the spending units of state government, except as otherwise provided by this article or by law.

(c) The provisions of this article do not apply to the judicial branch, the West Virginia State Police, the West Virginia Office of Laboratory Services, the legislative branch, to purchases of stock made by the Alcohol Beverage Control Commissioner and to purchases of textbooks, instructional materials, digital content resources, instructional technology, hardware, software, telecommunications and technical services by the State Board of Education for use in and in support of the public schools.

(d) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this article, commodities and services may be purchased by a spending unit in the open market for immediate delivery in emergencies: Provided, That the purchase and a description of the circumstances warranting such emergency purchase are timely reported by the agency head or other authorized agent of the spending unit under the provisions of § 5A-3-4(a)(2) of this code.

(e) The provisions of this article apply to every expenditure of public funds by a spending unit for commodities and services irrespective of the source of the funds, except as otherwise provided by this article or by law.