Certified Business Quote Requirements

It is the goal of the University, per an annually filed SWaM Plan, to spend at least 42% of its discretionary funds with DSBSD-certified Small (includes Micro) and otherwise Diverse Businesses. To support this goal, Departmental Buyers are responsible for selecting appropriate vendors for all small purchases regardless of procurement method (i.e. eVA, over-the-counter).

Micro Business Quote Requirement

Individual purchases valued up to $10,000¹ (the University’s Single Quote Limit), that are not made with an existing contract and are not listed as an exemption per the University’s Small Purchase Procedures, require only ONE quote prior to purchasing and have the following vendor selection requirements:

If the quoted price from the SBSD-certified micro business is fair and reasonable based on market research and does not exceed the quoted price from a non-certified business by more than 5%, the purchase must be made with the certified micro business.

If the quote from the certified micro business does not meet the required specifications (not the exact items requested, cannot meet the required delivery schedule, etc.) or exceeds the lowest responsive and responsible non-certified business quote by more than 5%, you must document your record to that effect, including stating your basis for the determination not to award your purchase to a micro business. This justification must be kept in your payment card file.

¹For purchases valued over $10,000, see the University’s Small Purchase Procedures or contact Procurement Services.

There are several ways you can search for certified-Micro businesses.

Checking a Vendor’s Certified Status

If you have a vendor in mind and you want to check if they are a registered micro business, log into eVA then hover over the Supplier menu and select Browse Suppliers. Search for the vendor name you are looking for using the keyword search box.

DSBSD-certified micro businesses will be easy to identify in eVA because they will have a designation in one or more of the following columns in the eVA Vendor List: Micro, Small, Minority-Owned, or Woman-Owned. What you are looking for is that the vendor has a Micro Business designation.

If the vendor you are looking for is not certified-micro, you will need to find one who is prior to making your purchase.

Searching for Certified-Micro Businesses

Searching in eVA

Log into eVA, hover over the Suppliers menu and select Browse Suppliers. Then use the filter funnel icon on the left to access the filter menu. Scroll down to the SWaM Categories section and use the drop down to select Micro Business. Once selected, hit the blue Search button and the results will return with all eVA registered micro businesses.

Searching in DSBSD

1. First, you’ll want to find an NIGP code that most closely corresponds to the item(s) you are buying. To do this, go to the eVA Homepage, scroll to the bottom to the NIGP Code Lookup. Use this page to find an NIGP code that most closely matches what you need. TIP: Use the most general keyword you can think of to search for what you need. For example, if you need to buy a Special 2001 Edition Book ABC, you would want to search for “book” or “books.” Use the populated tables to find the NIGP code or codes to use for the next steps.

2. Next, click on the provided link to navigate to the Directory Listing on the DSBSD website and skip to step #6, or follow these steps to get to the Directory Listing:

Go to the SBSD Home Page by searching https://www.sbsd.virginia.gov/ or clicking on the SBSD/SWaM link under Site Resources at the bottom right of the eVA Homepage.

Scroll to the “What’s Hot” section of the SBSD page and select SWaM and DBE Directory.

Scroll down and select the link to the Small Business & Supplier Diversity SWaM and DBE Directory.

On the left under the green Certification Type filter button, select Micro and click Apply.

Search the Directory Listing by NIGP code, keyword, or vendor name by using the other filter buttons and keyword search bar.

I Found Certified-Micro Vendors, Now What Do I Do?

Once you have a list of certified-Micro vendors, contact any one of them to request a quote for the goods or services you need. A micro business quote or justification that satisfies the micro preference requirement can take several forms, including but not limited to the following examples:

A registered micro business submitting a quote to you for the item(s) you need with pricing that is fair and reasonable and meets all of your specifications, so you award the order to them.

A registered micro business submitting a note to you that they are not able to supply the item(s) requested.

A registered micro business quote with an accompanying non-certified business quote showing the micro business prices are higher than 5% of the non-certified business OR that the micro business cannot provide the specifications required:

Example 1 (NOT a real scenario!): A quote from micro vendor ABC for 5 gallon water containers shows a total of $53.75 for your requested items and a quote from XYZ (Registered Small but not Micro), quoted your requested items at $50.00. You write on the quote or document in some other way that the quote from ABC price is more than 5% of XYZ and you proceed to purchase from vendor XYZ.

Example 2 (NOT a real scenario!): The quote from micro vendor ABC shows that they only supply 3 gallon water containers, not the 5 gallon one you requested. You document your record to show that the micro vendor cannot meet your specifications and proceed to order your items from another vendor.

DSBSD search on the DSBSD website showing that micro-certified vendors for a certain commodity (NIGP) code are not available at all or within a certain area*.

*area searches should only be performed if you need to physically pick up the item from the store or perform an over-the-counter transaction

A handwritten or typed note of a call to a registered micro business with the name of the vendor you contacted, the person you spoke to, the item(s) requested, the date you called, the pricing given or reason they are not able to supply (note must answer who, what, where, when, and why)

One of the examples above must be included in the Cardholder payment card file if a micro business quote is needed for that transaction.

Documentation in eVA

Proper documentation within eVA in the entire order INTERNAL comments section can include any of the following that meet your situation if a micro-business is not used for the purchase:

“Micro business could not supply all items requested. See file”

“Micro business quote more than 5% of non-micro business. $53.75 vs $50. See file”

“Micro business could not deliver items in required time. See file.”

If you do not document your eVA requisition properly, someone from Procurement will reach out to you to provide more information.