Historical Note
The Division of Purchases within the Department of Finance was
established in 1936 by Charter amendment, and the position of City Purchasing
Agent was established in 1937 through Ordinance 67976 to act as the central
purchasing agent for the City. (A Purchasing Department had formerly existed
within the Department of Public Works.) The City Purchasing Agent, appointed by
the Comptroller, dealt with purchase of and contracts for materials and
equipment required by the various City departments. Depending on the price of
the item required, the Purchasing Agent received bids from vendors (for
purchases of more than $1000) or purchased items in the open market. The
Division of Purchases was also responsible for inspection of the purchased
goods.
The division was transferred to and established as a division of the
Executive Department in 1973 with Ordinance 102151.
Content Description
The bulk of the annual reports date from 1937 to 1950; there is a report
for 1972. The 1922 report, which appears to be a draft, is from the Department
of Public Works' Purchasing Department. The reports provide a narrative summary
of the year's activities and include information about savings, lists of
requisitions and purchase amounts by department, and sales from surplus, junk,
or obsolete material. Information about inspections is included in some
reports. Annual reports from 1941 to 1946 (many in the form of brief letters,
due to the necessity of saving paper) discuss the division's wartime
difficulties. The 1972 report is a brief narrative and contains no savings,
purchase, or sales figures.