A. General Guidelines

1. Delegation is to an individual who holds a designated position

2. Delegation is permanent until revoked (n.b., some circumstances may dictate otherwise)

3. Re-delegations may occur (to be considered on a case-by-case basis)

a. Those officials receiving a re-delegation may not re-delegate further unless the delegation specifically allows for further re-delegation

b. Multiple delegations of the same authority are acceptable (e.g., from a Dean to all Department Chairpersons)

c. The Treasurer is to be informed of all re-delegations

d. In all cases of delegation or re-delegation of signature authority, ultimate responsibility for transactions entered into is retained by the position having original signature authority

4. All delegations are to be reviewed on an annual basis, but will not be re-written unless there is a compelling necessity (e.g., title change, etc.)

B. Delegation of Purchasing Authority (Purchase Orders, only)

1. The purchase of goods and services, the sale of surplus/salvage goods and the disposal of any items of value other than real property for the USNH is delegated by the Treasurer to the USNH Director of Purchasing. (See Procedure 6-001: Purchasing Policy). This delegation has no dollar limits.

2. With approval from the Treasurer, the USNH Director of Purchasing may further re-delegate to all purchasing assistants, agents, managers and directors throughout USNH.

C. Delegation for Research and Sponsored Programs (at the University of New Hampshire) Contracts/Agreements

1. The Treasurer will delegate the authority to execute contracts, agreements and other legal documents related to the provision of research or consulting services, or other sponsored programs to the Senior Vice Provost for Research and the Director of Sponsored Programs Administration. These delegations have no dollar limits.

2. These Officers may re-delegate this authority only as specifically noted on the University of New Hampshire Sponsored Programs Administration Institutional Signature Authority Form. See Research - Get Approvals

D. All Other Delegations

1. The Treasurer will delegate authority (subject to dollar limits) to each institution's chief financial officer for the following:

a. student affiliation, internship and/or clinical agreements

b. exchange programs

c. sponsored programs (at UNH the CFO will sign only in the event that neither of the named officials in Section 3.1, above is available)

d. leases and rentals -- revenue

e. leases and rentals expense

f. independent contractor(s) (e.g., consultants; service providers)

g. artistic performances

h. tuition compacts

i. construction and renovation work (some exceptions may apply)

2. CFOs may re-delegate some or all of the authority granted to them

3. The following items are not under the purview of the CFOs, and specific, separate delegations may be made by the Treasurer to those officials who are responsible for these areas:

a. purchase or sale of real property

b. acceptance of gifts of any type (e.g., Board of Trustee policy restricts this to the Chancellor, the Presidents and in the case of real property, to the Financial Affairs Committee of the Board; See BOT VI.B.3: Gifts of Real Property, Equipment, Supplies and Materials; at UNH the UNH Foundation may also accept gifts of any type, see UNH III.C.1: Policy on the Receipt of Gifts.

c. hiring outside legal counsel

d. hiring auditors and/or accountants

e. personnel benefits

f. banking services

g. insurance

h. acquiring an equity interest in start-up companies in exchange for the transfer of technology and other intellectual property (See UNH IV.D: Management of Equity Interests in Start-up Companies).

i. federal, state and local tax returns and other tax-related documents

Definition of a Contract

A "contract" is an agreement between two or more entities which creates a legal obligation to do or not do a particular thing. A legally enforceable contract must have (i) a subject, (ii) consideration, and (iii) two or more competent parties.

i. The subject of a contact defines the terms and conditions of the agreement between the parties, and may be anything legal and permitted by policy.

ii. Consideration is the cause, motive, price, reason, material benefit, right, interest, forgiveness, or whatever it is that is the reason for having an agreement. Each entity must receive some valuable consideration or the transaction is a gift rather than an enforceable agreement. The consideration has to be something one can identify or describe. Typically it is money; however, the consideration may be an acceptance of liability or a promise not to do something one is otherwise entitled to do.

iii. The laws of each state define who is competent to form a contract. Generally, competency requires a minimum age and mental ability to understand the contract. Corporations have the power to enter into contracts, but only by the actions of particular employees who have the power to bind the corporation to a contract. The USNH Board of Trustees is the ultimate competent party to a contract between any USNH institution and another entity. New Hampshire RSA 187-A established the State College and University System. Subsection 187-a:2-a notes that the university system shall be governed by a single board of trustees and subsection 187-A:2-b states that the general court has delegated broad authority to the board of trustees who shall be responsible for managing the university system. In addition, Subsection 187-A:16, Authority of the Trustees, states as follows:

The trustees shall have the management and control of all the property and affairs of the University System of New Hampshire, the University of New Hampshire (including the New Hampshire College of Agriculture and the Mechanic Arts), and all its divisions and departments, the Keene State College, the Plymouth State University, and the Granite State College.

To allow for business to be conducted in a timely manner, the Board has delegated its authority (USNH BOT.I.C.1) to the Treasurer of the University System of New Hampshire to execute all contracts, leases, grants, deeds, negotiable instruments, and any other legal documents whatsoever on behalf of the USNH and each of its component institutions. In turn the USNH Treasurer has delegated limited authority to specific administrators at each USNH institution. See USNH Signature Authority Matrix.

Note: Some contracts may be oral; others must be written to be enforceable. A court will enforce the terms of a written contract and will generally not consider prior oral agreements that conflict with the written terms. USNH employees are strongly encouraged to ensure that all contracts are committed to writing.

Examples of contracts include agreements for the purchase or rental of goods or services; non-disclosure agreements; agreements that set terms or restrictions on the acceptance of "gifts"; a sale or lease of USNH goods or services; liability waivers, settlement of disputes; licenses, student or faculty exchange agreements; memoranda of understanding or cooperation; hotel reservations that require a written agreement (e.g., conferences, meetings, etc.); the right to use USNH's name or the name of a USNH institution. The concept of a "contract" is quite broad. To be on the safe side, one should assume that any agreement or understanding with another party could be a contract.

For a list of definitions of the basic contract formats used throughout USNH, see Procedure 12-006 for Purchasing Contracts and Procedure 12-007 for Non-Purchasing Contracts.

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   The official version of this information will only be maintained in an on-line web format. Any and all printed copies of this material are dated as of the print date. Please make certain to review the material on-line prior to placing reliance on a dated printed version.

Types of Contracts at USNH

There are three basic purchasing contract types in use throughout the University System of New Hampshire. These definitions (and informational instructions) are to be used as a guide to help everyone to understand what is meant by the terms used by the staff in the campus purchasing offices.

Vendor Pricing Agreements
A vendor pricing agreement (VPA) is for a specific period of time which may be more than one year. There is no guarantee to the vendor that any USNH institution or department will use the agreement, nor is there any guarantee of exclusivity. In addition, there are no minimum usage requirements; however, there may be minimum order requirements. VPAs can be offered by a vendor (e.g., resale agreements); initiated by the state; developed by a campus purchasing office through a competitive process or provided to USNH via its membership in a buying consortium. Examples of buying consortiums include E&I Cooperative Services (E&I), The Cooperative Purchasing Network (TCPN), and Western States Contracting Alliance (WSCA). Either a P-card or purchase order may be used to make purchases from a VPA.

Term Agreement
A term agreement may be established by USNH or a campus purchasing department. Vendors are chosen through a quality based selection process conducted by a selection committee, and there may be more than one vendor/service provider listed for the same term agreement. Term agreements are typically for a three to five year period. The vendor or service provider will provide pricing when presented with a statement of work (SOW). There is no guarantee to the vendor that any USNH campus or department will use the agreement, but departments are encouraged to do so. For some term agreements (e.g., architectural or engineering services) there are maximum amounts that can be spent per SOW and per vendor per year and per campus. A purchase order must be used when buying services from a term agreement vendor.

Purchase Agreement
A Purchase Agreement is usually for a one-time buy. Unless a request for an exception to bid is approved, or a VPA is utilized, the acquisition will require a competitive bid or proposal process. An agreement involving the acquisition of goods will have quality standards specified and there will be specific quantities for each item. An agreement for the acquisition of services will have performance standards specified and a timeframe in which the services are to be delivered. There is always a purchase order associated with the buy. Examples of purchase agreements include obtaining furniture for a new building; equipment acquisitions and obtaining contracted services such as custodial or dining.