Evening star., 1937-01-10
OAv1NGs Of more than 100000 a

AVlNSJ0 OF more C1dH &lUU,VUU u
year to the taxpayers of Gin
cinnati, Ohio, have resulted
- from the Cincinnati plan OF
cooperative purchasing for all local
governmental units. The plan is
unique in the administration Of Amer
ican municipalities. 1t is said to be
the only set-up of the kind in the
United States.
Four separate governmental units
get the benefit of the plan. One is the
city of Cincinnati. with almost half
a million people, comprising about &C
per cent of the total population of
Hamilton County. Ohio. The second
unit is the county, which has its own
government entirely independent from
that of the city.
The third unit is the Cincinnati
school district, which Is almost CO.
extensive in area with the city, but
entirely independent of the city gov
ernment. The school district is gov
erned by a board of education elected
by the people. This board maintains
and operates about 80 public schools
with total enrolment Of more than
$4,000 pupils.
The fourth unit is the University of
Cincinnati. a municipal institution,
supported by public taxes and endow-
ments. 1t has an enrolment of more
than 10000 students and is governed
by an independent board of trustees
First Started in 1881.
The possibility of co-ordinating the
purchases for the first three units was
first suggested by the Cincinnati Bu-
reau of Governmental Research in
1881. In June of that year the three
governmental units combined their
coal purchases for a contract period
of one year. The purchasing agents
of the city, county and school board
and other officials co-operated in
standardizing the coal specifications
to insure the fairest and broadest COM
petition possible. The bids we're based
on the total quantity of coal to be
used by all three governmental units.
On a total of 100000 tons, a gross
saving Of more than 100000 was made
in comparison with the prices paid
the preceding year. Allowing for gen.
eral decline in market price, COM
pared with the preceding year, saw
ing Of at least S50,000 was attributed
to the cooperative purchasing
The success of this attempt, to-
gether with results from a limited
amount of joint purchasing by the city
and school board. led to further CO.
ordination in the field of governmental
buying.
Under financial grant from the
Spellman fund of New York, a Com
mittee on Coordination and Co.
operation of Governmental Agencies
in Hamilton County was formed. This
committee was composed of the city
manager Of Cincinnati. the president
of the Board of Education and the
president of the Board of County Com
missioners. The director of the Gin
cinnati Bureau of Governmental Re-
search Is the secretary and treasurer
Of the committee and is in charge of
the work authorized by that body.
1t has been the purpose Of this CO.
! ordinating committee to consider, sur
vey and recommend to the legislative
branches of the local governments
such changes in organization, proce-
dure and technique as would permit
closer cooperation among the three
subdivisions and to coordinate, con-
solidate or correlate all possible func-
tions inherent in these governments.
Without legal recognition or status.
this voluntary action on the part of
these representatives of the govern
mental units in Hamilton County is
unique in the annals of public ad-
ministration.
The development of the plan of CO.
operative buying has been a ma jor
| achievement of this co-ordinating
committee. 1t organized a subcom-
mittee of purchasing agents of the
governmental units for the purpose of
developing on large and scientific
scale the Standardization and CO.