Dictionary of Procurement Terms

The lowest rate of unemployment compatible with price stability, variously estimated to be between 4% and 6%.

A warranty as to full performance covering both labor and material; the warrantor must remedy the product within a reasonable time and without charge after notice of a defect or malfunction.

The baseline of an FTE is a full-time position. All part-time positions are converted to the decimal equivalent of a full-time position based on 2,080 hours per year.

Functional descriptions are commonly used for technology-related commodities, and they focus on observations or experiences during system usage (e.g., the program, computer peripherals, or other computers).

An independent legal fiscal entity with assets, liabilities, reserves, a residual balance, equity, and revenues and expenditures for undertaking activities. Funds may be expendable, meaning the authorization for spending expires at the end of the fiscal period; they may also be non-expendable or revolving, meaning that spending beyond the fiscal year is allowed without reauthorization. Governmental funds generally finance the activities most citizens associate with generalpurpose governments, (e.g., police, fire, public works, and procurement). Governmental funds may be subdivided into four categories: general fund, special revenue funds, capital project funds, and debt service funds.

1. For categorization purposes in procurement, moveable items that are not permanently connected to a building (e.g., partitions, shelving, desks, computers, tables, and bookcases). 2. For property law purposes, real property consists of land, facilities, and fixtures. Furniture and equipment are personal property.

A contract term that allows for the buying or selling of a commodity, currency, or security at a fixed price at an undetermined future date as long as the option remains valid.

Contracts for immediate purchase or the sale of something to be delivered at a definite time in the future at a specified price. Used as a hedging device against market price fluctuations or unforeseen supply shortages. See also: Spot Price, Forward (Supply) Contract.

CANADIAN See Governments Incorporating Procurement Policies to Eliminate Refuse.