It should be remembered that the SUNYCard contract is not a contract for all goods and/or services which might be supported by the card itself. It is, therefore, necessary to distinguish between those covered by the contract and those requiring independent competitive selection. The following is provided in order to assist in determining the proper manner of selecting those goods and services desired by a campus.

For Telecommunication services:

Several telecommunication services are available from MCI, the SUNYCard telecommunication vendor. It should be understood that by "exercising an option," the campus is merely authorizing MCI to market a particular service, and is not committing itself to purchase that service directly from MCI for its own benefit. In order to simplify these services, several options have been described, as follows:

Option 1: On-campus residential (dormitory) long distance service
Option 2: Calling Card
Option 3: Off-campus residential long distance service

While all of the above services are offered under the SUNYCard contract, different procedures will be required in order to exercise these options, as described below:

For On-Campus Long Distance Service (Option 1): This service will require conducting a comparative selection process before it can be exercised.

To meet these requirements, a request for written proposals should be sent to those vendors capable of providing long distance services from the dormitories. The request should describe, as completely as possible, all of the services and benefits offered by MCI under its SUNYCard Option 1, in order to allow for as fair a comparison as possible among all proposals.

Within a reasonable time, all proposals should be reviewed, and an objective determination of the most favorable one should be made.

While the financial benefits are likely to be most important in any evaluation, all factors, such as the scope of services, should be considered.

In the event all other factors are equal, the convenience to the campus of having a single provider for all non-administrative telecommunication services may be considered as well.

A written description of the selection process, specifying the basis on which the determination was made, should be produced and kept on file.

If MCI is selected, the SUNYCard contract may be used, and Option 1 may be selected as part of that contract offering. If any other provider is selected, a separate contract should be used. Only MCI may provide telecommunication services under the SUNYCard contract or have its name appear on the SUNYCard itself.

There is no need to publish in the New York State Contract Reporter when selecting Option 1 services. Such publication is generally necessary only when paying for goods or services, and not when receiving royalties from a vendor, as is proposed under this Option.

For Calling Card (Option 2): The Calling Card service was clearly included in the SUNYCard RFP and Contract. All proposals were required to include this service when submitted. All vendors had an opportunity to offer such services with the SUNYCard. Selecting MCI service must be done through the procurement document process.

For Off-Campus Long Distance (Option 3): This option requires no commitment by the University, is not exclusive, and does not keep other providers from offering similar services to off-campus residences. While somewhat less clear than Option 2, a campus desiring this Option can likely exercise it by notifying MCI without a separate competitive selection process.

For Banking services:

There is no need to solicit separate comparative proposals. Banking services were included in the SUNYCard RFP, and other vendors had an opportunity to make proposals for such services when responding to the RFP.

For all other services (new security systems, additional vending equipment, etc.):

For other goods or services based on the SUNYCard platform, it is necessary to conduct the same competitive bid procedure ordinarily followed by the campus for its procurements.

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