Procurement

The County of Essex is committed to providing equal treatment to people with disabilities with respect to the use and benefit of County services, programs, and goods in a manner that respects their dignity and that is equitable in relation to the broader public. All contractors with the County must comply with all laws applicable to the performance of the work.

Third party Contractors who deal with the public or other third parties on behalf of the County, as well as contractors who participate in developing County policies, practices or procedures governing the provision of goods and services to members of the public or other third parties, must conform with the Accessibility for Ontarians With Disabilities Act, 2005 (“AODA”), in particular the Accessibility Standards for Customer Service, O. Reg. 429/07 as well as the Integrated Accessibility Standards, O. Reg. 191/11.

Pursuant to section 6 of Ontario Regulation 429/07, Accessibility Standards for Customer Service (the "Customer Service Regulation"), made under the AODA, Contractors who deal with the public or other third parties on behalf of the County, as well as Contractors who participate in developing County policies, practices or procedures governing the provision of goods and services to members of the public or other third parties shall ensure that all of its employees, agents, volunteers, or others for whom it is responsible, receive training about the provision of goods and services provided to people with disabilities. The Accessible Customer Service Training shall be provided in accordance with section 6 of the Customer Service Regulation and shall include, without limitation, a review of the purposes of the AODA and the requirements of the Customer Service Regulation, as well as instruction regarding all matters set out in section 6 of the Customer Service Regulation.

Pursuant to section 7 of Ontario Regulation 191/11, Integrated Accessibility Standard (the "Integrated Regulation"), made under the AODA, Contractors who provide goods, services or facilities on behalf of the County shall ensure that all of its employees, agents, volunteers, or others for whom it is responsible, receive training on the requirements of the accessibility standards referred to in the Integrated Regulation and on the Human Rights Code as it pertains to persons with disabilities.

The Contractor shall submit to the County or Ministry, if requested, documentation describing its accessibility training policies, practices and procedures, and a summary of the contents of training, together with a record of the dates on which training is provided and the number of attendees. The County reserves the right to require the Contractor, at the Contractor’s expense, to amend its accessibility policies, practices and procedures if the County deems them not to be in compliance with the requirements of the Customer Service Regulation and/or the Integrated Regulation. The Contractor shall only assign those employees who have successfully completed training in accordance with such Regulations to provide services to, or on behalf of, the County.

The Contractor shall ensure that any information, products, deliverables and/or communication (as defined in the Integrated Regulation) produced pursuant to the Contract shall be in conformity with World Wide Web Consortium Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 Level AA and shall be provided in accessible Word, Excel, PowerPoint, PDF/UA, etc.

Please see the County's accessibility policies for more information.

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The County of Essex will exclude “U.S. businesses” from procurements for goods and/or services with a dollar value under $353,300.00 or for construction projects under $8,800,000.00, unless U.S. businesses are the only viable source for the goods and/or services and the procurement cannot be delayed. An entity will be seen to be a “U.S. business” if it is a supplier, manufacturer or distributor of any business structure that has its headquarters or main office located in the U.S. and has fewer than 250 full-time employees in Canada at the time of the procurement process.

• Ontario Public Buyers Association (OPBA)
• Ontario Education Collaborative Marketplace (OECM)
• Southern Ontario Library Services (SOLA)
• Public Services Procurement Canada (PSPC)
• Local Authority Services (LAS) Canoe
• Canadian Collaborative Procurement Initiative (CCPI)
• Supply Chain Ontario (SCO)
• Consolidated Fleet Solutions
• Ministry of Government Services (MGS)
• Kinetic GPO Ltd.
• HealthPRO
• Sourcewell

The Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act establishes a general right of access to records held by municipal governments and local agencies, boards and commissions. For more information see our Privacy Policy and Freedom of Information page.

When procuring goods and/or services that may be subject to new tariffs, taxes, duties or customs (“new tariffs”) after the bid closing, the County of Essex may at its sole discretion include in the contract an escalation clause providing that, if the supplier intends to request additional funds for the procurement of goods and/or services due to New Tariffs:

a. The supplier must notify the county of any price impact related to new tariffs that have been imposed after the effective date of the contract including a detailed description of the new tariffs (i.e. the rates, amounts and specific products affected) as well as supporting documentation demonstrating the direct impact of the new tariffs on the contract.

b. The supplier must identify for the county all reasonable measures that have been taken or may be taken to mitigate the impact of the new tariffs on the contract including but not limited to cost-effective alternatives, procuring the goods and/or services before the enactment of the new tariffs, delaying the procurement of the goods and/or services or other reasonable measures.

c. The supplier must submit a proposal to the county, with supporting documentation, containing one or more recommendations for procuring the goods and/or services affected by the new tariffs, including a cost-benefit analysis, and specifying the direct costs reasonably incurred solely due to the new tariffs and the proposed adjustment to the contract price associated with the proposal. The supplier will provide the county with any additional information or documentation reasonably requested by the county to consider the proposal.

d. Upon receiving the supplier’s proposal, the county will provide written direction to the supplier which could include procuring the goods and/or services subject to the tariff, either early or as planned, procuring the goods and/or services from an alternative source, and/or delaying the procurement. The supplier shall issue any change orders or documentation requested by the county to complete or delay the procurement.

These are some of our planned procurements for 2026:

• B-42-42 Big Creek Bridge
• B-12-03 River Canard Bridge
• RC-50-165 Lonberry Drain Culvert
• C-12-070 Adams Sweet Drain
• C-14-186 East Olge Drain Culvert
• C-27-256 Seventh Concession Drain Culvert
• Hot mix resurfacing over CIREAM 
• Hot mix overlay and mill, and pave
• CIREAM

Tenders and proposals will be called, received, evaluated, accepted and processed in accordance with the county's Procurement By-law and policy. Vendors retained by the County of Essex will enter a contract and agree to Standard Terms and Conditions

The Procurement Restriction Policy was established to restrict public sector buyers from procuring goods and services from U.S. businesses. The policy was established as part of an Ontario government response to U.S. tariffs on Canadian products and services. If the relevant tariffs are removed, the policy may be adjusted or rescinded. For any clarification or questions regarding the applicability of the policy contact doingbusiness@supplyontario.ca

County of Essex 2020 Vendors of Record Roster Categories