Published in D.R. number 151 (Series I) of 6 August 2008

Ministério das Finanças e da Administração Pública (Ministry of Finance and Public Administration)

Administrative Rule

Within the scope of the Public Administration’s reform process foreseen by the Programme of the XVII Constitutional Government, the National Procurement Agency, hereafter designated ANCP, was created by Decree-Law no. 37/2007, of 19 of February, in order to organise the National Procurement System (SNCP) and to manage the State’s Vehicle Fleet (PVE).

Organizing the SNCP aims to accomplish several public interest purposes, in particular rationalizing the State’s expenditure, reducing bureaucracy in public procurement processes, and using technological means to support public procurement.
Besides the ANCP itself, SNCP includes the ministerial procurement units (UMC), the tied procurement entities and the voluntary procurement entities. Under the above-mentioned decreelaw, the procurement of goods and services is preferably made by ANCP or the UMC, which scope is defined according to categories of goods and services to be defined by administrative rules. Procurement under these terms is mandatory for tied procurement entities, while for voluntary procurement entities the rules only apply to goods and services that have joined the SNCP and according to the conditions defined in the corresponding contracts.

The current administrative rule defines the categories of goods and services for which ANCP is entitled to establish framework agreements, and establishes the terms under which the procurement of goods and services will be made. It is ANCP’s responsibility to conduct the procurement procedures under the above-mentioned framework agreements, which it will establish in due time and according to the conditions that will be publicized through an order from the Government’s member responsible for finance, to be published on the 2nd series of Diário da República (official journal). Until ANCP takes over the function of establishing procurement contracts, procurement entities may purchase each one of the categories of goods and services defined on the annexed list, through the UMC, should these entities have such powers, or directly, when that is not the case.

Under these terms, and under no. 3 of article 5 of Decree-Law 37/2007, of 19 February, the Government, through the Minister of State and Finance, establishes the following:

Article 1
Object

1 - The current administrative rule defines the categories of goods and services which framework agreements and procurement procedures are signed and conducted by the ANCP, under the terms foreseen on paragraphs a) and b) of article 5 of Decree-Law 37/2007, of 19 February.

2 - The conduction of the procurement procedures defined above includes, namely, to award contracts on behalf of the procurement entities.

Article 2
Scope

1 - The categories of goods and services mentioned on the previous article are those listed on the list annexed to this administrative rule, of which they are part of.

2 - The list mentioned on the previous paragraph will be updated or reviewed, and re-published whenever justified, namely depending on the analysis of aggregated procurement needs, of changes to the procurement entities’ organization or operation, or of technological evolution.

Article 3
Procurement entities

Procurement within the scope of the framework agreements mentioned on article 1 for the procurement of goods and services included in the categories foreseen in those agreements applies to:

a) Mandatorily tied procurement entities, not precluding the provisions on the next article;
b) Voluntary procurement entities, only regarding the goods and services that have joined SNCP
and under the terms defined on the corresponding contracts.

Article 4
Succession regime

1 - After the entry into force of the framework agreements mentioned on no. 1 of article 1, tied procurement entities are not allowed to open procurement procedures and make contract renovations not in compliance with the framework agreements and resulting in the procurement of goods and services included in those agreements.

2 - ANCP’s conduction of the procurement procedures mentioned in article 1 will apply on the dates and under the terms that will be established by an order from the Government’s member responsible for finance, to be published on the 2nd series of Diário da República (official journal) at least 10 working days in advance.

3 - Until the dates mentioned on the previous paragraph, procurement entities may establish procurement contracts, within the scope of the framework agreements foreseen on article 1, through the UMC, should these entities have such powers, or directly, when that is not the case.

4 - The dates on which the UMC will take the responsibility, according to the terms of the previous paragraph, of conducting procurement contracts, as well as defining the corresponding conditions, must be publicized through joint orders from the Government’s member responsible for finance and the relevant Government’s member, published according to the terms foreseen in no. 2.

5 - Not precluding the provisions of no. 1, the procurement procedures which public announcement or call for tenders, or formal purchase manifestation, depending on the modalities, were proved to have taken place before the dates mentioned on no. 2 and no. 4 of the current article will proceed to conclusion.

Article 5
Entry into force and appointed day

The current Administrative Rule enters into force 30 days after its publication.

The Minister of State and of Finance, Fernando Teixeira dos Santos, on 23 July 2008.

Consult:

 Annex Administrative Rule no. 772/ 2008 of 6 of August