Western Australian Procurement Rules FAQs

All State agencies must involve Finance in activities as specified Rule C1. The extent of involving Finance differs for various activities. To ensure compliance with this Rule, State agencies are to liaise with their relevant Customer Team representative.

Exceptions to Rule C1 include State agencies who are procuring in accordance with an Agency Specific Procurement Direction (ASPD) which enables them to undertake procurement independently from Finance.

The criteria that should be demonstrated to obtain Finance’s approval are contained within Section 3: Justification of the Request for Approval template. These bullet points highlight the circumstances and factors that should be considered in justifying the need to establish or vary a co-operative procurement arrangement.

What is the best procurement approach for a multi-user buyer arrangement?

The best approach would need to be considered and determined on a case-by-case basis. Ultimately a State agency will need to make a business decision on which approach is likely to best deliver the desired outcomes. State agencies should contact their Customer Team representative to discuss this further when required.

Exceptions

Rule C4.2 sets out three circumstances when the minimum competitive requirements in Rule C4.1 do not apply. 

The Authorised Officer (as determined by a State agency’s Delegation and Authorisation Register) is responsible for making a determination to use an exception.

To proceed with exceptions (as distinct from exemptions), State agencies do not require written advice from Finance.

However, if a State agency uses an exception specified under Rule C4.2, the requirement to involve Finance to facilitate the procurement (where a State agency is required to do so per Rule C1(1)) remains.

Exemptions

If a State agency wishes to exempt itself from a Rule (where the Rule makes provision to do so), advice or approval from Finance may be required. The Rule will specify if, and in what circumstances, advice or approval from Finance is required.  

If an exemption is approved, that decision must be recorded in the State agency’s exemption register. Exemption decisions must be justified and recorded in writing.

With respect to Rule C5.2, the Authorised Officer (as determined by a State agency’s Delegation and Authorisation Register) is responsible for:

• making the exemption determination; and
• seeking Finance involvement when necessary.

The Request for Exemption template provides further information and guidance.  

Rule C5.2 comprises two categories: C5.2A General Rule and C5.2B Covered Procurement.  This is due to Australia’s commitment to various international procurement agreements commonly referred to as Free Trade Agreements (FTAs).

Covered Procurement is a term that arises from the FTAs and is defined at Appendix 1 of the Rules. FTAs contain legally binding requirements relating to Covered Procurements, which are reflected in the additional or replacement Covered Procurement rules.

For additional guidance and information, please refer to the Free Trade Agreement Guidelines.

The table contained within Rule D1.2 sets out the minimum requirements for the form of contract (i.e. the relevant terms and conditions) to be used for various types of procurement. Minimum requirements are based on procurement type and monetary threshold. 

Agencies must use the minimum form of contract prescribed in Rule D1.2. Whether to apply a more complex form of contract is a business decision for the State agency to make based on a case-by-case assessment of the procurement type, value, risk and/or complexity.

Example: If a goods and services procurement valued less than $50,000 requires the goods or services to be provided over a fixed term (e.g. 3 years, with possible extension options), then using the minimum form of contract, the Very Simple Contract Terms (VSCT), would not be appropriate as the VSCT does not provide for period contracts. However, the Simple Contract Terms (SCT) and the associated approach to market template (the Written Quote Template Suite) allow for period contracts, making the SCT more appropriate in this case.

To assist with conducting negotiations, guidance can be found in the negotiations section of the Evaluations of Offers guideline. Finance has also developed a Negotiation Plan and guidance that should be used when undertaking negotiations in low to medium value/risk procurements. For high value/risk procurements or negotiation items, State agencies should contact their Customer Team representative or seek independent legal advice.

In addition, Finance offers an Introduction to Contract Negotiations training module.

Evaluation reports must be prepared for all procurements valued at $50,000 and above. The form of contract used for the procurement informs which evaluation report template is suitable. For example, if using the Written Quote Template Suite, use the associated evaluation report template.

Guidance can also be found in the ‘Prepare Evaluation Report’ section of the Evaluations of Offers guideline.

Yes, the contract value under Rule D8 is cumulative, i.e. where variations take a contract’s value over $50,000, then the original contract award information must be published on Tenders WA, as well as the updated expenditure information pursuant to Rule E3.1.

State agencies must establish and maintain an exemption register, to contain details of all relevant exemptions approved pursuant to the Rules.

An Exemption Register Template is available on wa.gov.au to assist State agencies to establish and maintain their exemption registers. The template can be adapted to meet a State agency’s specific needs, if required. 

State agencies must establish and maintain a contract register, to contain at minimum, the information listed at Rule F5(5).

A Contracts Register template is available on wa.gov.au to assist State agencies to establish and maintain a contract register. The template can be adapted to meet a State agency’s specific needs, if required.   

The original value as published on Tenders WA upon award of the standing offer.