16.71 Purchasing; powers.

(1) Except as otherwise required under this section and s. 16.78 or as authorized in s. 16.74, the department shall purchase and may delegate to special designated agents the authority to purchase all necessary materials, supplies, equipment, all other permanent personal property and miscellaneous capital, and contractual services and all other expense of a consumable nature for all agencies. In making any delegation, the department shall require the agent to adhere to all requirements imposed upon the department in making purchases under this subchapter. All materials, services and other things and expense furnished to any agency and interest paid under s. 16.528 shall be charged to the proper appropriation of the agency to which furnished.

(1m) The department shall not delegate to any executive branch agency, other than the board of regents of the University of Wisconsin System, the authority to enter into any contract for materials, supplies, equipment, or contractual services relating to information technology or telecommunications prior to review and approval of the contract by the department. The department may delegate this authority to the University of Wisconsin-Madison. No executive branch agency, other than the board of regents of the University of Wisconsin System, may enter into any such contract without review and approval of the contract by the department. The University of Wisconsin-Madison may enter into any such contract without review and approval by the department. Any executive branch agency that enters into a contract relating to information technology under this section shall comply with the requirements of s. 16.973 (13). Any delegation to the board of regents of the University of Wisconsin System or to the University of Wisconsin-Madison is subject to the limitations prescribed in s. 36.585.

(2) The department of administration shall delegate authority to make all purchases for prison industries to the department of corrections. This delegation may be withdrawn by the department of administration only with the consent of, and in accordance with the terms specified by, the joint committee on finance, for failure to comply with applicable purchasing rules, procedures or statutory requirements.

(3) If the department makes or delegates to the department of revenue or to any other designated purchasing agent under sub. (1) the authority to make a major procurement, as defined in s. 565.01 (4), for the department of revenue, the department, department of revenue or designated purchasing agent shall comply with the requirements under s. 565.25.

(4) The department shall delegate to the Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System and to the University of Wisconsin-Madison the authority to enter into contracts for materials, supplies, equipment, or services that relate to higher education and that agencies other than the University of Wisconsin-System do not commonly purchase.

(5m) The department shall delegate authority to the department of corrections to enter into contracts for global positioning system tracking equipment, implementation, and tracking services under ss. 301.48 (3) and 301.49.

(5r) The department shall delegate authority to the department of financial institutions to enter into vendor contracts under s. 224.51.

(6) The department may assess any agency or municipality to which it provides services under this subchapter for the cost of the services provided to the agency or municipality. The department may also identify savings that the department determines to have been realized by an agency to which it provides services under this subchapter and may assess the agency for not more than the amount of the savings identified by the department.

History: 1977 c. 418; 1983 a. 333; 1985 a. 29, 300; 1987 a. 119; 1989 a. 31; 1991 a. 39, 269; 1995 a. 27; 1997 a. 27; 1999 a. 105; 2001 a. 16; 2003 a. 33; 2005 a. 25, 142, 431; 2007 a. 20; 2011 a. 32, 266; 2013 a. 20 ss. 2365m, 9448; 2015 a. 55; 2017 a. 59.

The applicability of ch. 16, subch. IV is determined by the purpose for the purchase, not the source of funds. 64 Atty. Gen. 4.