Duties of the Chief Procurement Officer.

The Chief Procurement Officer shall be the chief procurement official of the District. The CPO shall have the following authority and responsibility: To serve as the central procurement and contracting officer for the District; To identify gaps, omissions, or inconsistencies in procurement laws, rules, and policies, or in laws, rules and policies affecting procurement-related activities, and to recommend changes to laws, rules, and procedures; To provide overall leadership in the implementation of procurement rules, coordinate all procurement activities of the District government in accordance with the provisions of this chapter, and develop a system of unified and simplified procurement procedures and forms. To prepare and issue standard specifications for goods, services, and construction required by the District government; To establish a standardization program for goods and services when it is determined to be in the best interests of the District; To review, monitor, and audit the procurement activities of the District; To prepare, establish, and implement a periodic review process for the evaluation of contractors who provide goods or services to the District; To identify and assess trends and developments in the field of government contracting, including identifying best practices and innovation opportunities for the District; To operate and maintain an electronic procurement system; To sell, trade, or otherwise dispose of surplus goods belonging to the District government; To establish procedures for the inspection, testing, and acceptance of goods, services, and construction; To develop guidelines for the recruitment, training, career development, and performance evaluation of all procurement personnel; To staff OCP with procurement professionals, including attorneys, dedicated to the formation and administration of contracts on behalf of the entities covered by this chapter; To create and maintain a transparent Internet site, accessible to the public, providing information on solicitations, contracts, and related laws, rules, and policies; To promote to the purchase of environmentally preferable products and services; and To establish certification requirements for contracting personnel.