A "Political Subdivision" is defined as any county, township, municipal corporation, port authority, regional transit authority, or county transit board.  Cooperative purchasing allows the Political Subdivisions to forego the competitive bidding process and assures them of the Department's contract pricing.   Therefore, vendors may receive purchase orders from a political subdivision that wishes to participate in a contract awarded pursuant to an ODOT Invitation for Bid.

A Political Subdivision desiring to participate in an ODOT contract is required to pass a resolution/ordinance authorizing the purchase.  The ODOT Administrator of Purchasing must then notify the successful vendor, under the contract, of the names of those political subdivisions that have been authorized by the Director of Transportation to participate in the contract.  The responsibilities and obligations of the Ohio Department of Transportation stop at this point.

The vendors must then deal directly with the Political Subdivision that has been authorized to participate in this contract.  All orders placed by a Political Subdivision shall then be filled in accordance with the terms and conditions of the contract.

All invoices must be sent directly to the Political Subdivision's billing address.  Invoices for these Political Subdivisions which are sent to the State of Ohio shall be considered defective invoices and will be returned to the vendor.

Pursuant to the terms of the contract, the Ohio Department of Transportation will not be liable for any claim or dispute arising out of the participation of a political subdivision in the contract.