Purpose
The purpose of this Policy Notification (PN) is to notify all Acquisitions Program (AP) contracting officers that the Canadian Collaborative Procurement Initiative (CCPI) is now available for inclusion in Public Works and Government Services Canada (PWGSC) Standing Offers (SO). The CCPI will impact primarily goods in the low-to-medium complexity, non-military and commercial domain (i.e., Standing Offers for goods).
Effective date
This PN is effective immediately.
Context
In 2015, the Government of Canada (GC) extended the use of its procurement instruments to the Provinces and Territories (PTs), Canadian municipalities, Canadian aid/public health agencies and intergovernmental organization. The basis for this action was a February 2015 Order in Council (OIC). A separate OIC was published to provide Shared Services Canada (SSC) with the same authority.
Following the launch of this initiative, this PN provides greater clarity and precision on the public sector entities covered by the OIC. Specifically, this reflects the inclusion of MASH sector entities (municipalities, academic institutions, schools and hospitals) as part of the Master User Agreements (MUA) signed between PWGSC and each of the provinces and territories.
The CCPI enables PTs, and by extension their MASH sectors, to benefit from access to potentially favourable pricing, quality, socio-economic benefits and terms and conditions on goods secured by PWGSC through its procurement instruments. At this time, only selected Standing Offers (SOs) are available through the CCPI. Supply Arrangements (SAs), due to their added complexity, will be addressed later through a separate PN.
The CCPI may provide further benefits for PTs and their MASH sectors in the form of reduced need for legal, administration and human resources since SOs will be prepared by PWGSC. In addition, the wider use of PWGSC instruments may also be of benefit to the Government of Canada, because higher purchase volumes may enable PWGSC to secure better pricing, terms and conditions.
This initiative is part of the broader procurement modernization effort being undertaken by PWGSC in response to the mandate letter from the Prime Minister who requested that the Minister of Public Services and Procurement "modernize procurement practices so that they are simpler, less administratively burdensome, deploy modern comptrollership, encourage greater competition, and include practices that support our economic policy goals, including innovation, as well as green and social procurement."
Legal aspects
PTs which participate in the CCPI are required to sign a MUA, which is a legal agreement between the Province or Territory and PWGSC.
Key terms in the MUA
The MUA applies two terms to the Provinces and Territories: Identified Users and Authorized Users. An Identified User has the right to use PWGSC’s SOs. An Authorized User is an Identified User who is named in a specific SO and may therefore submit a call-up against it. Therefore, for an Identified User to purchase from an SO they must be named as an Authorized User therein.
All Provincial and Territorial governments participate in the CCPI first as Identified Users, and second as Authorized Users on SOs. This also means they have access to the SOSA App, in which they are named as Authorized Users of selected PWGSC SOs.
MASH sector participation
There are two different types of MUAs used for MASH sector entities that participate in the CCPI, depending on how the home Province or Territory choses to relate to its MASH sector. This means each Province or Territory’s MUA specifies its relationship to the MASH sector in one of two ways:
Type 1: Holds legal accountability for the MASH sector
This category of MUA enables MASH sectors organizations to be both Identified Users and Authorized Users of selected PWGSC SOs. Because these PTs accept legal responsibility for their MASH sectors, organizations within this sector have direct access to PWGSC’s SOSA App. Using this tool they can view SOs on which they are named as an Authorized User. Use of the instruments, including payments, are managed directly between the MASH organization and the supplier (i.e., independent of PWGSC). As of June 2018 the following provinces have this arrangement with their MASH sector: Newfoundland & Labrador, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island. Territories: Yukon, Northwest Territories and Nunavut.
Contracting officers that are contacted by a member of the MASH sector from one of these PTs regarding use of a PWGSC SO should first confirm that the MASH entity is an Authorized User of the SO. If they are, the contracting officer should then direct them to the SOSA App where they can review the SO in full. They may then chose to submit a call-up by sending Form GC 942-3
to the supplier. If they do not have access to the SOSA App, direct them to submit a request for access to: TPSGC.fptcollaboratif-fptcollaborative.PWGSC@tpsgc-pwgsc.gc.ca
PWGSC is not required to approve or validate a call-up issued by authorized users, nor is it involved in the administrative aspects of the call-up (e.g., payment to the vendor). This is the responsibility of the authorized user who is issuing the call-up, and the vendor processing it. PWGSC does however maintain the right to monitor the use of the procurement instrument to ensure that transactions are in accordance with the terms and conditions specified therein.
Type 2: Does not hold legal accountability for the MASH sector
This category of MUA does not permit MASH sector organizations to become Identified or Authorized Users of PWGSC’s SOs. This is because these provinces have chosen not to accept legal responsibility for their MASH sector organizations. On account of this restriction, a separate category of user was created for these MASH organizations: Optional User. When one of these MASH sector organization wishes to use a PWGSC SO, it is identified as an Optional User in the instrument. Because an Optional User is not authorized to view the full details of the SO, they are provided with the contact information of suppliers qualified on the SO by their home province. It is the responsibility of the MASH sector organization to approach the supplier and request the pricing, terms and conditions of the SO, and to request the supplier honor these terms. Use of the instruments, including payments, are managed directly between the MASH organization and the supplier (i.e., independent of PWGSC).
The suppliers named in the SO are not required to extend their pricing, terms and conditions to an Optional User (i.e., the MASH organization), but are nevertheless asked to use commercially reasonable efforts to negotiate with the optional user.
Note that the term Optional User is not used or defined in the Type 2 MUA. Rather, it is only defined in the SO itself when an Optional User is actually named. As of May 2018, the following provinces have this arrangement with their MASH sectors: Ontario, Manitoba and Alberta.
Contracting officers that are contacted by a member of the MASH sector from one of these provinces regarding use of a PWGSC SO should direct the individual to his or her province’s procurement webpage where information on the CCPI can be found at the following pages:
The successful suppliers’ contact information from the SO will be posted on the provincial website. The MASH sector organization is required to contact the named supplier(s) and request that the terms and conditions be granted to his or her organization on account of their position as an Optional User.
PWGSC is not required to approve or validate a call-up issued by optional users, nor is it involved in the administrative aspects of the call-up (e.g., payment to the vendor). This is the responsibility of the optional user who is issuing the call-up, and the vendor processing it. PWGSC does however maintain the right to monitor the use of the procurement instrument to ensure that transactions are in accordance with the terms and conditions specified therein.
Key points regarding Canadian Collaborative Procurement MUAs
- All PTs that have signed an MUA are Identified Users of PWGSC Standing Offers.
- MASH sector organizations in a Province or Territory that signed a Type 1 MUA are also Identified Users of PWGSC SOs.
- An Identified User may opt to be named as an Authorized User on a PWGSC SO.
- MASH sector organizations in a province that signed a Type 2 MUA are not considered Identified Users, and therefore cannot be named as Authorized Users. These MASH organizations are considered Optional Users. Their participation in the CCPI is managed at the provincial and supplier level.
Obligations of Authorized or Optional Users
The use of PWGSC SOs by PTs and MASH sector organizations is voluntary. The PTs and their respective MASH sectors do not have any obligation to use the SO even if they are named as an Authorized User on it. However, organizations should not request Authorized or Optional User status if they have no reasonable expectation to submit a call-up against the SO.
CCPI participants are required to comply with the terms and conditions of the applicable SO, and must maintain the confidentiality of all information. Any dispute regarding interpretation or implementation will be resolved according to the process documented in Sections 8 and 15 of each MUA.
Procedures for procurement officers
Should an instrument be identified as having potential for CCPI inclusion, the Contracting Officer is asked to contact the Federal-Provincial-Territorial & International Relations (FPTIR) Team at this email link: TPSGC.fptcollaboratif-fptcollaborative.PWGSC@tpsgc-pwgsc.gc.ca. The Canadian Collaborative Procurement User Guide is available for guidance to the Contracting Officers and can be accessed on GCdocs. The FPTIR team will assist any Contracting Officer with the steps once a good(s) that could be offered to CCPI participants has been identified.
When preparing SOs, whether new or renewals, Contracting Officers should evaluate the potential of including their instrument in the PWGSC offerings to the PTs and their MASH sectors through the CCPI. Factors to consider include, but are not limited to:
- Would this instrument be of use to a wide range of users, or is the item highly specialized or customized?
- Is this a Regional or National instrument? (i.e., consider the influence of potential volumes)
- What is the lifetime of instrument? (i.e., a longer period could enable greater usage)
- Are there challenges related to delivery? (i.e., remote locations within the PTs)
- Would Industry support extending GC terms and conditions to other jurisdictions?
- Would procurement officers conduct supplier engagement through various means, including industry days, RFIs and bilateral meetings?
For further information on the CCPI, including further detail on how to apply this PN, please refer to The Canadian Collaborative Procurement User Guide.
Summary of changes
CCPI-related content has now been added to the SACC Manual and Supply Manual. For more details, refer to the Affected Supply Manual sections or Affected SACC Manual items listed below.
The CCPI RFSO Standard Procurement Template is now published on the Standard Procurement Templates page on GCpedia.
Contact information
Questions related to Policy Notification PN-131, CCPI RFSO Procurement Template, SACC clauses, and the Supply Manual can be sent by email to the following address: TPSGC.PolPrograpprovisionnements-AcquisitionsProgramPolicy. PWGSC@tpsgc-pwgsc.gc.ca
Questions related to the Canadian Collaborative Procurement Initiative can be sent by email to the following address: TPSGC.fptcollaboratif-fptcollaborative.PWGSC@tpsgc-pwgsc.gc.ca
Definitions
- Canadian Collaborative Procurement Initiative (CCPI)
- The Government of Canada initiative through which the PTs and their MASH sector organizations obtain authorized or optional user access to PWGSC procurement instruments.
- Canadian Collaborative Procurement Team
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- Acquisition Program experts, including senior leaders and contracting officers;
- Office of Small and Medium Enterprise and Stakeholder Engagement (OSME-SE) for supplier engagement and regional support;
- OSME-SE Federal, Provincial, Territorial and International Relations (FPTIR) Team; and
- Provincial and Territorial Procurement Teams.
- MASH Sector
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Organizations that form the broader public sector which operate independently from Federal, Provincial or Territorial government control. The acronym MASH stands for Municipalities, Academic Institutions, Schools and Hospitals.
(Note that MASH participation in the CCPI is facilitated by the home province or territory as per the Master User Agreement.)
- Identified User
- Federal, Provincial, Territorial or MASH sector entities who may use PWGSC’s Standing Offers. The Identified User has the option to act as an Authorized User on a specific Standing Offer developed by PWGSC.
- Authorized User
- Federal, Provincial, Territorial or MASH sector entities who are authorized to submit a call-up against a specific SO in which they are named.
- Optional User
- MASH sector organizations who have not been authorized through their Province’s MUA to act as an Authorized User of PWGSC’s SOs. The Optional User must directly approach a supplier(s) named in a SO and request the instruments terms and conditions be granted to them.