VR FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

• General Questions
• Online Registration Questions

GENERAL QUESTIONS

Does my company have to be registered in order to bid?

• No, it is not necessary for a vendor to be registered with the Central Purchasing Division of the Office of Management and Enterprise Services (OMES) in order to bid. However, Vendor Registration is required of any vendor that desires to automatically receive bid notifications via email or fax. All vendors who are not registered on the State of Oklahoma Vendor Registration list must complete the W-9 (Non-US persons or entities are required to submit form W-8BEN) and submit with their bid response. Failure to do so may delay contract award.

Does my company have to be registered to receive an award?

• Yes (REF: Mandatory Vendor Registration for Contract Award ) If the contract value is greater than $5,000 and falls under Title 74, then the vendor is required to be registered.  There are limited circumstances where an exemption may be granted such as Fair and Reasonable acquisitions – less than $5,000, Fixed Rate acquisitions, Professional Service acquisitions, and Interagency or other Governmental entity acquisitions.

Who must sign the required substitute W-9 form?

• The person signing the W-9 must be an individual authorized to sign for the company and execute the CERTIFICATION: Under penalties of perjury, I certify.......(1) The number shown on this form is my correct taxpayer identification number....(2). I am not subject to backup withholding......etc.

What are the tax numbers requested for registration?

• The business Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) or Social Security Number (SSN). The Sales Tax Permit number is the sales tax number issued by the Oklahoma Tax Commission.

What do I put under Bidders Comments?

• Bidders comments can be used for the additional information required for companies who have been in business for less than 2 years and/or to tell us anything about your company that you would like us to know.

Is there a registration fee? 

• There is a registration fee of $25.00 for each Family code a supplier chooses to register for.
• Any sub-category that falls under that Family code is included within that fee (the commodity structure consists of four levels and the charge is applied to second level).
• The fee is due at the time of registration and during yearly renewal.

Is it a one time fee or is it annual?

• The fee is due at the time of registration and upon annual renewal.

What is Online registration?

• Online registration
  • is a 12 step process
  • is based on the date of registration and renewal notices will be sent via email to expiring or expired vendors on a periodic basis.
  • allows any changes in the original application 24/7

What do NIGP and UNSPSC stand for?

• NIGP: National Institute of Governmental Purchasing - www.nigp.org
• UNSPSC: United Nations Standard Products and Services Code - www.unspsc.org

What is the UNSPSC code structure?

Vendor Registration code structure is tiered and organized by the following: Segment > Family > Class > Commodity

Vendors pay the $25 fee per family code.  The fee includes all class and commodity codes that fall under that family code.

Vendors will begin their selection at the family level.  Vendors are required to select the class and commodity level codes.

How can I find out more information about the UNSPSC coding structure?

• Please visit their website at http://www.unspsc.org.

I am having difficulty finding applicable codes to my business.

• It is recommended for vendors to search UNSPSC Website Code Posting for applicable Commodity Codes prior the registration. This will provide the current code listing that is in our system.  When registering online, vendors have the possibility to select and deselect Family, Class and Commodity before finalizing their registration.

How do I find out if I am required to have an Oklahoma Sales Tax Permit, be registered with the Secretary of State, or have a Worker’s Compensation certificate?

• It is the policy of the Central Purchasing Division not to provide legal advice to vendors with regards to the requirements of the Oklahoma Sales Tax Permit, registration with the Secretary of State, or Worker’s Compensation Certificate.  State law requires that buyers/contracting officers verify this information prior to a contract award.  Please contact the respective agency to find out the requirements.  Their contact information is located on the Vendor Registration home page.

To whom do I make my Worker’s Compensation certificate out?

• Please make your certificate out to:

State of Oklahoma
Office of Management and Enterprise Services
2300 N Lincoln Blvd.,  Room 106
Oklahoma City, OK 73105

What is the PeopleSoft log in and why do I have to complete it?

• The PeopleSoft log in allows a vendor access to the same system as the state uses to issues purchase orders and payments.  By creating a PeopleSoft log in, vendors may review purchase orders and payments that have been issued based on the PeopleSoft vendor ID.

I established my user name and password for the PeopleSoft log in, but it still does not work.  What do I do?

• Please allow 3-5 business days to process the PeopleSoft log in request.  If the problem persists, please contact the OMES Help Desk at (405) 521-2444 or toll free at (866) 521-2444.

ONLINE REGISTRATION QUESTIONS

How do I create an account when I have never registered online before?

• Select the 'First Time User?' link above and follow the instructions on each screen to activate your account. Once your account has been activated, you may go through the process to register with OMES Central Purchasing to become a state vendor.
• To complete the vendor portion of registration, you must complete 12 steps, which require business information about your company; a substitute W-9 form (for US entities); and, Family/Class/Commodity Codes for which your company is interested. Upon completion of these steps, you can submit your registration along with the applicable payment using EFT or a credit card. All payments are made through an encrypted secure server and payment information is not stored after a transaction. You will receive confirmation after your registration is validated and approved by the Central Purchasing Division.

I forgot my login/password.

• If you are an existing user and you DO NOT remember your login/password information, select the 'Forgot Login' or 'Forgot Password' link and follow the instructions on the upcoming screens.

While registering online, can I save information and come back later?

• Yes, but your registration will not be effective until completing all 12 steps including payment process and being approved by VR Officer. 

I am getting an error message while selecting commodities.

• Commodities are structured similar to a parent - child relationship: Family > Class > Commodity. For each Family code there must be at least one Class selected; and, for each Class at least one Commodity. Selection of  several Families can increase the possibility of missing a Commodity during the selection process, and the system is designed to trigger an alert because of the omitted information.

The login process to the account is different from what I remember when I registered for the first time.

• Before in order to login you were required to provide an email address associated with the registration. Click "Forgot Password" and follow the steps There can only be one account associated with the FEI number. Registration was attempted or even completed for this FEI number but under a different user name and e-mail address.

I have created and account but could not proceed beyond page 1 because of an error message that the FEI number has already been used

• There can only be one account associated with the FEI number. Registration was attempted or even completed for this FEI number but under different user name and email address.

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