 |
If you purchase technology products and services for a public agency,
FOCUS is your ticket to streamlining the procurement process.
FOCUS -- Fast Open Contracts Utilization Services -- is California's
only nationwide, local government-to-government purchasing program.
It allows cities, counties, schools, special districts and other
public entities to acquire technology products and services -- quickly,
easily, and at competitive rates.
Background
FOCUS is the result of five years of work in attempting to bring
technology choices from multiple sources to our own and other public
agencies.
Originally formed as a result of dire budgetary constraints in
the early 1990s, FOCUS has emerged as a tool to procure technology
goods and services, quickly and from multiple sources.
Competitively bid nationally, all contract awards required at least
two vendors be selected. Merced County's objective was to infuse
economical technology, immediately, into a shrinking workforce situation.
In one form or another, Merced has been administering technology
procurement programs since 1992, and administering FOCUS since 1997.
Over the life of the program, more than $50,000,000 in technology
purchases have been made by numerous local jurisdictions, schools
and special districts, as well as state and federal agencies.
back to top
Benefits
FOCUS gives you access to pre-screened, competitively bid vendors
in the technology industry, so that you can avoid the expense and
delay of a protracted government RFP process. Fully compliant with
public and state procurement law, FOCUS is:
- Efficient: Pre-qualified, pre-quoted, legally compliant products
and services eliminate the need for a formal vendor bid process
-- saving you work-hours and calendar days.
- Economical: Competitive bidding and the power of volume purchasing
yield more product and service for less cost.
- Reliable: With a proven record of accountability since its inception
in 1997, FOCUS ensures value and quality through constant monitoring
of its vendor-partners' pricing, quality and service.
- Flexible: Our pool of vendor-partners offers a broad spectrum
of information technology products and services to meet a wide
range of needs.
There is no charge for you to take advantage of the benefits of
FOCUS -- no associations to join or administrative fees to be paid.
Costs for program management are borne by our vendor-partners.
back to top
Legal Compliance
We are in full compliance with California Government Code Sections
6500 and 6502.
6500: "As used in this article, 'public agency' includes, but is
not limited to, the federal government or any federal department
or agency, this state, another state or any state department or
agency, a county, county board of education, county superintendent
of schools, city, public corporation, public district, regional
transportation commission of this state or another state, or any
joint powers authority formed pursuant to this article by any of
these agencies."
6502: "If authorized by their legislative or other governing bodies,
two or more public agencies by agreement may jointly exercise any
power common to the contracting parties, even though one or more
of the contracting agencies may be located outside this state."
FOCUS ensures participation in minority-based programs.
back to top
|
