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Guidelines for Departmental Buyers

Delegation of Authority

The Purchasing Director has the ultimate authority to purchase goods and services for UCLA. The Director can delegate to departments the authority to buy certain goods and services. Within departments, this responsibility falls on departmental buyers.

NOTE: All contracts must be signed by a UCLA Campus Purchasing buyer or someone with delegated authority. Please contact a Campus Purchasing buyer if you have any questions regarding this issue.

Purchases Without Delegated Authority

These are orders placed by UCLA employees without delegated purchasing authority and submitted to the Campus Purchasing Department after the fact of purchase. Federal and state law and University policy limit the authority to place these orders to Campus Purchasing buyers and contract administrators.

To become an online buyer for your department and have access to BruinBuy Plus to establish department orders, you must:

Violations of UCLA Policy


Departmental buyers who violate policy may be subject to disciplinary action including written warnings, mandatory training, loss of purchasing authority, probation, termination and criminal prosecution.

  • An individual without delegated purchasing authority who makes an unauthorized purchase of goods or services shall be responsible for payment of the charges incurred (BUS-43, Part 3, Section 8).
  • Any attempt to avoid the purchase order process by artificially dividing purchases into individual orders of less than $5,000 is prohibited and subject to withdrawal of low-value purchase authority.

Examples of purchases that violate policy are those that:

  • Are fraudulent transactions.
  • Are made by unauthorized employees.
  • Use unauthorized buying methods.
  • Exceed the buyer's authorization.
  • Consist of restricted goods or services.
  • Are for personal use or benefit.
  • Violate policy on employee-vendor relationships.
  • Involve signing a contract that commits funds for purchase.

Low-Value Purchase Authorization

This process enables authorized departmental buyers to order directly from vendors. These orders must be for supplies and services that do not exceed established limits.

Departments are authorized to place low-value orders for up to $5,000 per vendor per account per day in BruinBuy Plus, UCLA’s procure-to-pay system.

Restricted Items

Certain restrictions and guidelines apply to department orders. Examples of restricted items include:

  • Alcohol (ethyl alcohol).
  • Agreements/contracts that require signatures.
  • Consultants.
  • Communications (e.g., a phone system).
  • Employee/vendor relationships.
  • Firearms, explosives and ammunition.
  • Fume hoods.
  • Installation requiring a contractor's license.
  • Lasers, X-ray and safety equipment.
  • Lease purchases.
  • Narcotics, controlled substances, and DEA-controlled chemicals.
  • Personal purchases.
  • Postage.
  • Radioactive isotopes and materials.
  • Real property leases.
  • Subcontracts, sub-awards or agreements involving sponsored projects.

Buying From Internal Campus Sources

Departments are encouraged to use campus sources of goods and services whenever possible. Campus sources include:

  • UCLA Store and Restaurants.
  • Catering and Conference Services.
  • Document Services.
  • Housing and Hospitality Services.
  • Media Center.
  • Events Office.
  • Central Ticket Office.
  • Photography Services.
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