FAQs

The Office of General Counsel has created a Standard Addendum that can be attached to any contract between third parties and the System or an Institution. By having both parties to a contract sign the Standard Addendum, the clauses contained within the Standard Addendum will be incorporated into the contract, ensuring compliance with state of Texas contracting requirements. Please see the Contracting Handbook on OGC’s website for more information. https://www.untsystem.edu/offices/general-counsel/contracts/index.php

Agreements are processed on a first-in first-out basis and can take from one day to several weeks to execute, depending on applicable contract approvals, the volume of contracts currently in process, the availability of the University staff to process and the availability of signatories to execute contracts.

OCA’s Service Level Agreement (SLA) to the UNTS contract administration process is to execute up to 80% of contracts received within 28 days. 

Requests for Rush/Priority processing will be accommodated on a case-by-case basis.

Contracts start with planning! So, when should you start? You may use the "FAQ When Should I Start My Contract" tool for general informational purposes to assist with planning. Use of this tool is optional and does not replace any deadlines communicated in policy, process or procedure related to contract timelines.

For the time being, you can check by searching Contract Requests and/or Contract Records. See our Job Aid - How do I find out the status of my contract?

You may also check the status of a UNTS/UNT/UNTD contract on the Pending Contracts report on the Contract Reporting page: https://finance.untsystem.edu/contract-administration/contract-reporting.php. The report is updated periodically. If your searches yield no results or the report does not include your contract, email the Office of Contract Administration. We are transitioning to the use of one department email address: UNTScontractadmin@untsystem.edu.

Please expect an email response from us within 24 - 48 hours. During the end of the fiscal year and the end of the calendar year, you may experience delayed responses.

The UNTS Office of General Counsel has posted State Contract Requirements on their website to assist the UNT System and institutions with review of contracts and to ensure compliance with applicable state law requirements. Their website is great resource for standard language. If however, the contract negotiations involve an issue not addressed in the Contract Management Handbook or the State Contract Requirements, contact the Office of Contract Administration to assist with the negotiations.

Also, you can point contract second parties to resources like the Vendor Guide to Doing Business with the University of North Texas System. It was prepared to assist the contract second party (vendor) with any questions they may have and is a great starting place for information and to answer questions.  

In addition, make sure to share these additional considerations.

Resource links:

• VENDOR RESOURCES: https://finance.untsystem.edu/vendor-resources/index.php
• TX RAMP: https://dir.texas.gov/information-security/texas-risk-and-authorization-management-program-tx-ramp
• VENDOR HOLD SEARCH: https://fmcpa.cpa.state.tx.us/tpis/

The contracts team will begin officially working the contract when received via a Contract Request in Total Contract Manager (TCM). If payment is going to be made via Purchase Order, the Buyer will submit the Contract Request to the contracts team. If payment is going to be made via PCARD, the Contract Liaison cans submit the contract via a Contract Request in TCM.

 

For next steps in terms of order of efforts, please see our UNTS BUSINESS CONTRACT CHECKLIST for CLs.

BOR approval is required for all contracts (including amendments, extensions, renewals or cumulative amendments) that have or will increase the total value of a contract to $5,000,000 or more in a current fiscal year. Board approval is also required if a contract exceeds $2,000,000 per year for a multi-year contract.

OCA will notify Contract Liaisons of the BOR approval requirement if the BOR approval is not included with the Contract Request documentation.  OCA sends reminders via email of the deadlines for submitting items to the BOR.

Contract Liaisons should work with their Cabinet Member to begin the process for acquiring BOR approval.

Contract Liaisons should work with their Cabinet Member to begin the process for acquiring BOR approval.

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Only a person who has been CONTRACT delegated signature authority in writing by the UNT System Board of Regents, the UNT System Chancellor, or the campus President or their designee is authorized to sign a contract.