Personal Services Agreement

The following section reviews the procedures for contracting services on a Personal Service Agreement (PSA).

A. Purpose

A Personal Service Agreement should be used in the following situations:

1. To contract for services to be performed by an independent contractor. An independent contractor can be an individual, corporation, or partnership. According to Board of Trustee purchasing policies: "If the contractor is an individual, the test is that the contractor is expected to complete the job by his/her own methods without being subject to control as to the means of doing the work. Key considerations are:

• The absence of a supervisory relationship as indicated, for example, by a performance evaluation system or the establishment of work rules and regulations;
• The existence of an independently established trade or business; and
• Compensation which is based on the completion of specified obligations as opposed to hourly or bi-weekly compensation.

2. To meet temporary employment needs. Temporary means no longer than the equivalent of one semester and normally non-renewable. This includes credit-free instruction services, honoraria and related expenses, and professional services (e.g., medical and dental).

3. To provide for non-personnel vendor services; and

4. To provide for specialized facilities not otherwise available.

B. Competitive Process

The contracting of personal services should, whenever possible, be based on competitive bids or quotations. Specialized or unique services that limit or preclude competition should be thoroughly documented by the department representative with review authority.

C. Processing

An approved purchase requisition must be received along with the PSA to the Business Office no later than ten (10) business days prior to the start of the contract period. An agreement equal to or exceeding $3,000 also requires the approval of the Attorney General and, therefore, must be received at least thirty (30) business days prior to the start of the contract period. The issuance of a PSA to a corporation requires a letter of resolution of the corporate authority for the signature as well as a corporate seal.

D. Contracting State Employees

Special consideration must be given when contracting a state employee. According to Board policy "no state employee may be offered a personal service agreement as an independent contractor, for non-personnel vendor services or to provide specialized facilities unless the contract has been awarded pursuant to an appropriate bidding process." A record of the bidding process should be maintained. Additionally, the Comptroller's Office requires the issuance of a Dual Employment Request form (Per-DE-1 Rev. 7-99). This form, available in the Personnel Office, is submitted along with the PSA and purchase requisition. Before contracting a State employee, it is important to review the differences between and employment relationship and an independent contractor relationship.

E. Additional Late PSA Requirements

As a result of an audit finding by the Auditors of Public Accounts and a management recommendation by the Internal Audit Department at the BOR, all Community Colleges are now required to document late PSA contract requests using a PSA LATE JUSTIFICATION Form. Effective 10/24/14, all PSA contract requests that are not submitted to the Purchasing Department in accordance with the deadlines listed below will be considered late and will require a PSA LATE JUSTIFICATION Form to be attached. Late requests received without the form will be returned to the requesting employee without processing. Please plan accordingly.

IMPORTANT NOTICES

• A fully authorized requisition is required PRIOR to the purchase of goods and services; and
• A fully executed service agreement is required before any contractor is allowed to BEGIN performance of any service.
• The purchasing department requires a minimum one-week lead time to procure goods and a minimum 4-week lead time of ten (10) business days to procure contracted services on your behalf. A minimum lead time of thirty (30) business days is required for contracts valued at $3,000 to obtain approval of the Connecticut Attorney General. Additional lead time, which can be substantial, may also be required when bidding and/or other authorization thresholds are exceeded. As purchase requisitions are processed by the Purchasing Department in the order in which they are received, it is important for you to plan accordingly.
• Complete purchasing policies and procedures are included in the College’s Employee Manual.