I am writing to request access to and copies of records under the Maryland Public Information Act (Md. Code Ann., Gen. Prov. § 4-101–601).
I am requesting public records detailing financial transactions made by Howard County Public School System, specifically:
• A report (such as a check register, expenditure report, or purchase order history) reflecting all transactions from January 1, 2022 to present date, including but not limited to:
o Purchase date
o Vendor name
o Description of goods/services purchased
o Line item quantity
o Line item price/amount
• If vendor names are coded in the file, please provide a vendor list with corresponding codes.
Responsive to this request, please find the following records linked below:
• The Board of Education of Howard County awards contracts over $50,000 regularly through Bids and Contracts Reports: https://go.boarddocs.com/mabe/hcpssmd/Board.nsf/files/DD7K7H4E1CE4/$file/01%2030%2025%20Bids%20and%20Contracts%20BR.pdf - this is an example of the most recent one, and there is typically one per meeting of the Board found on Board Docs: https://go.boarddocs.com/mabe/hcpssmd/Board.nsf/Public.
• Contracts between $25,000 and $50,000 are reported quarterly: https://go.boarddocs.com/mabe/hcpssmd/Board.nsf/files/DD8KJ352088B/$file/01%2030%2025%20Procurement%20Report%20FY%2025%20Q2%20BR.pdf – this is an example of the most recent report.
• A public contracts database was also recently adopted by the school system: https://hcpss.bonfirehub.com/portal/?tab=openOpportunities.
• Outside of contracts, total yearly payments by vendor over a threshold of $25,000 are also reported on this website: https://www.hcpss.org/f/vendors/index.html