Cooperative Purchasing
A number of publicly and privately sponsored buying cooperatives offer special pricing for members. Purchasing from a cooperative or taking advantage of a state contract may exempt the purchase from normal bidding requirements.
Effective 8/18/2021, purchasing cooperatives are allocated to tiers in accordance with the practices of the hosting organization and their use of State of Texas procurement methods. These tiers will determine the additional quote/bid requirements associated with using these cooperative agreements. Cooperatives may be reassigned between tiers periodically as they modify their solicitation processes. Additionally, different contracts within the same cooperative purchasing agency may be upgraded to a higher tier if appropriate.
Tier 1:
- Issued by the State of Texas
- Requires 1 quote & contract verification
- Additional price negotiation preferred
Tier 2:
- Issued by a public agency in Texas following state guidelines
- Requires 1 quote & contract verification
- Price reasonableness confirmation and/or negotiation by Procurement Office*
Tier 3:
- Issued by a company or agency outside the State of Texas but may follow State guidelines
- Requires 3 quotes & contract verification
- Price reasonableness confirmation and/or negotiation by Procurement Office*
Cooperative Purchasing Agencies of which we are members:
Texas Department of Information Resources - Department of Information Resources, source for state negotiated contracts for technology solutions.
TIBH - TIBH Industries provides employment for Texans with blindness and other disabilities. They sell office supplies and other products at a deep discount.
TPASS/State Term Contracts - Term contracts that have been awarded by the State. Purchasing under a state contract exempts the bidding requirements.
TXMAS - Texas Multiple Award Schedule mirrors federal GSA and some other cooperative contracts that have been competitively awarded.
GSA - Hosted by the US Federal Govt. May be used unless prohibited by the State Comptroller. Most eligible contracts have been incorporated into TXMAS. Prohibited purchases include: Information Technology (use DIR instead); Job Order Contracts; Engineering Services; Consulting Services; any product or service available on an SPD Term contract; Other professional services in accordance with Government Code, Chapter 2254.
Tier 2:
791 - 791 Purchasing Cooperative is a leading national governmental purchasing cooperative, we are here to help public sector agencies successfully complete the compliant & competitive purchasing process. A dedicated team of industry leaders have been helping K12 school districts, cities, counties, colleges, universities and other public agencies be compliant, competitive and easily save time and money by leveraging the best cooperative contracts on the market. We are transforming cooperative purchasing for agencies and vendors.
BuyBoard - Cooperative Purchasing Agreement for a wide range of products and services. A username and/or password is required.
Choice Partners - Choice Partners specializes in: Construction: Job Order Contracting, Energy Conservation and Management, Disaster Restoration and Recovery, Furniture, Fixtures and Equipment (FFE), Building Infrastructure and Building Exterior and Grounds. No bidding required.
First Choice Cooperative - Member owned cooperative that has over 600 supply and equipment agreements for healthcare providers.
Houston-Galveston Area Council - The buying coop http://www.hgacbuy.org/home/ offers competitive pricing for vehicles, communications equipment and services, grounds facilities & parks equipment, public works equipment, emergency equipment & supplies, consulting leasing & staffing services and energy purchasing.
Tarrant County Cooperative - Link to Tarrant County Cooperative purchasing information page.
Texas Interlocal Purchasing System - Texas Interlocal Purchasing System - a statewide co-op for use government entities.
University of Texas System Supply Chain Alliance - The University of Texas System Supply Chain Alliance was created to expand the use of joint purchasing and explore new opportunities to leverage the collective size and strength of the UT System institutions through cooperative purchasing.
OMNIA Tier 2 - OMNIA Partners is the largest and most experienced organization in procurement and supply chain management. Covering both the private and public sectors, OMNIA Partners unites industry-leading buying power and world-class suppliers to offer an extensive portfolio of sourcing solutions and partnerships. Through economies of scale, OMNIA Partners is able to deliver more contracts, in more verticals, with transparent, value-driven pricing. To view the current list of Tier 2 OMNIA contracts, please click this link.(Some contracts may fall into Tier 3 based on whether the lead agency is a agency subject to the laws of the State of Texas. Please see above or contact your Campus Procurement Liaison for more information.*)
Tier 3:
Educational and Institutional Cooperative Service (E&I) - Educational and Institutional Cooperative Service - a co-op buying group for higher education covering a wide range of products and services.
National IPA - National IPA - a nationwide co-op for public agencies. No minimum volume requirements.
National Joint Powers Alliance - NJPA is a public agency serving as a national purchasing cooperative satisfying your bidding requirements with 170+ competitively awarded contracts & 50,000 member agencies. No cost, no obligation membership. Technology, MRO, Facilities, Scientific/Laboratory, Construction, Heavy Equipment, Transportation, Waste & Recycling, Appliances, Electronics, Logistics and MORE!
MMCAP - Established by Minn. Stat. § 16C.03, subd.10, allows eligible entities to purchase goods, certain services and utilities from contracts established by the Office of State Procurement (OSP) for Minnesota state agencies. OSP contracts with vendors to provide goods, services and utilities to state agencies. This program creates a legal relationship so that eligible governmental entities can use these contracts just like state agencies. Minnesota Statutes § 471.59, subd. 1, known as the Joint Powers Act, defines the governmental entities that may join the CPV program. They include counties, cities, towns, townships, and school districts, as well as other entities. Minn. Stat. § 16C.105 adds certain tax-exempt, non-profit entities and charitable organizations to the list of entities eligible to use these contracts.
OMNIA Tier 3 - OMNIA Partners is the largest and most experienced organization in procurement and supply chain management. Covering both the private and public sectors, OMNIA Partners unites industry-leading buying power and world-class suppliers to offer an extensive portfolio of sourcing solutions and partnerships. Through economies of scale, OMNIA Partners is able to deliver more contracts, in more verticals, with transparent, value-driven pricing. (Some contracts may fall into Tier 2 based on whether the lead agency is a agency subject to the laws of the State of Texas. Please see above or contact your Campus Procurement Liaison for more information.*)
PEPPM National Contract Program - Audio-Visual Products, General Hardware and Software, Refurbished Computers Systems and Parts, Laser Toner and Ink Cartridges, and End of Life Computer Systems and Parts.
Provista - Scientific, medical, food service, and janitorial supplies.
Sourcewell - A self-sustaining government organization (Minnesota), Sourcewell has over 40 years of dedicated service helping government, education, and nonprofit agencies operate more efficiently through a variety of solutions.
U.S. Communities - National Purchasing Cooperative - U.S. Communities Government Purchasing Alliance is a government purchasing cooperative that reduces the cost of goods and services by aggregating the purchasing power of public agencies nationwide. Communities provides world class procurement resources and solutions to local and state government agencies, school districts (K-12), higher education, and nonprofits. Our participants have access to a broad line of competitively solicited contracts with best in class national suppliers. Suppliers include facilities, office & school supplies, specialty items, and technology. Also offered are cloud computing solutions, IT, outdoor recreation, safety and solar solutions.