Oklahoma Administrative Code › Title 260 - Office of Management and Enterprise Services › Chapter 115 - Procurement › Subchapter 5 - State Agency Provisions › Section 260:115-5-3 - Certified Procurement Officers (CPO)

Current through Vol. 41, No. 20, July 1, 2024
(a)
Training.
The State
				Purchasing Director shall provide training for state agency purchasing
				officials and other purchasing staff pursuant to 74 O.S. §85.5. For the
				purposes of this section, "State Purchasing Director" does not include
				personnel of state agencies to whom the State Purchasing Director has delegated
				authority.
(b)
Certification.
The State Purchasing Director shall certify state
				agency purchasing officials and other purchasing staff who demonstrate
				proficiency in principles of state procurement practices, basic contracting,
				provisions of the Oklahoma Central Purchasing Act, provisions of State Use
				Committee and other matters which relate to procurement practices.
(c)
Authority.
A CPO shall be
				authorized to make acquisitions for state agencies.
(d)
Duties.
A CPO shall provide
				assistance and oversight to a state agency to ensure acquisition processes meet
				the requirements of the Oklahoma Central Purchasing Act, the Central Purchasing
				rules, other statutory provisions and the state agency's internal purchasing
				procedures.
(e)
Decertification.
The State Purchasing Director may revoke
				certification of a CPO if the State Purchasing Director reasonably believes the
				CPO did not make state agency acquisitions pursuant to the Oklahoma Central
				Purchasing Act, the Central Purchasing rules, other statutory provisions, or
				the state agency's internal purchasing procedures.
(f)
Continuing education.
To
				maintain certification, a CPO shall attend continuing education as required by
				the CPO Procurement Training Program established by the State Purchasing
				Director. Continuing education courses must be related to procurement practices
				and approved in advance for CPO education credit by the State Purchasing
				Director. The State Purchasing Director shall establish a policy relating to
				how often courses may be repeated to qualify for continuing education credit.
(1) A CPO shall submit documentation
				verifying continuing education course attendance to the State Purchasing
				Director as required by the CPO Procurement Training Program. The burden of
				proof rests solely upon the CPO to demonstrate, in advance of taking a course
				and to the satisfaction of the State Purchasing Director, that all continuing
				education courses reported meet all of the requirements as to content and
				subject matter related to procurement practices.
(2) A CPO may claim continuing education
				credit only for the compliance period in which the course was completed and
				credit granted.
(3) Failure by a
				CPO to complete required continuing education within the allowed time period
				will result in suspension of the CPO's purchasing authority.
(4) A suspended CPO must repeat the CPO
				certification course and demonstrate proficiency in procurement practices by
				passing the CPO prescribed certification examination in order to be reinstated
				and restore purchasing authority.
(5) In the event of extenuating
				circumstances, a CPO may submit a written request to the State Purchasing
				Director for reinstatement and an extension of time to allow the CPO to fulfill
				required continuing education credits. The State Purchasing Director may
				approve the request for a reinstatement period not to exceed three (3) months
				to provide time to fulfill education credits.