The Purchasing Division, is a centralized agency, responsible for all City purchases and contractual activities. This entails the determination of service needs, research of available products and services, development of City standards and specifications, acquisition of informal and formal bid quotations, and inspection of delivered goods and services prior to payment. This activity is responsible for the sale of obsolete equipment and the pursuit of used equipment and furniture via auctions.

PURCHASING DIVISION ACHIEVES ANNUAL EXCELLENCE IN PROCUREMENT AWARD In 1995, the National Purchasing Institute established a program designed to recognize the achievement of organizational excellence in public procurement. The award is achieved by those organizations that demonstrate excellence in procurement by obtaining a high score on a rating of standardized criteria. The criteria is designed to measure innovation, professionalism, productivity and leadership attributes of the procurement organization. NPI represents purchasing officials employed by national, state and local governments, educational institutions, tax-supported and public entities throughout the country. It is one of the 181 Associations in the United States affiliated with the Institute of Supply Management - a 50,000 member educational and research organization dedicated to providing national and international leadership in purchasing and materials management. The Achievement of Excellence in Procurement award is sponsored by the National Purchasing Institute (NPI), the California Associations of Public Purchasing Officers (CAPPO), the Florida Association of Public Purchasing Officers (FAPPO), the Institute for Supply Management (ISM), the National Institute of Governmental Purchasing (NIGP), the National Association of State Procurement Officials (NASPO) and the National Association of Educational Buyers (NAEB). The City of Mesquite Procurement Division is one of only 143 organizations that achieved this national award. Moreover, the City of Mesquite is only one of 43 to receive this award at least five times.