Commission that oversees U.S. Space & Rocket Center adopts policy to handle contracts

blog.al.com: Commission that oversees U.S. Space & Rocket Center adopts policy to handle contracts
HUNTSVILLE, Alabama -- The commission that oversees the U.S. Space & Rocket Center has agreed to changes in a policy for managing contracts, with committee approval required for certain contracts.

The center's CEO will review and approve all contracts, agreements or purchase orders, according to an amended contract management policy approved Monday by the Alabama Space Science Exhibit Commission. However, contracts that must be approved by the commission's business committee in order to be binding on the commission are:

Any contract, agreement or purchase order with a cumulative cost of $75,000 or more, including options;

Any contract that is a renewal or extension of a previously approved contract with a cumulative cost of $75,000 or more, including options;

Any contract with a single party in which the total value of all contracts exceeds $75,000; or

Any contract of longer than 60 months.

In addition, contracts in any of those categories that exceed $150,000 and license agreements for any Space Camp or Aviation Challenge license must also be approved by the commission's executive committee.

When the business or executive committee approves a contract, then the CEO and the commission's chair or vice chair is authorized to execute it.

"The (business) committee has been working (on policy changes) for quite some time," said Daniel Wilson, a committee member and former committee chair, at the commission's meeting. The amended policy gives the CEO some authority in dealing with contracts, he said, while providing oversight from commission members.

"If it's too cumbersome, we can always revisit the issue," Wilson said.

"I think it's a good, protective measure," said Dr. Deborah Barnhart, who was named the center's CEO in December. "I don't think it will be cumbersome."

Previously, for contracts with cumulative costs of $100,000 or more, only the approval by the CEO and the commission's chair or vice chair was required, and contracts with cumulative costs under $100,000 required only the CEO's approval.

The execution of a number of contracts by former CEO Larry Capps became a major issue with some commission members. Under an involuntary termination agreement reached last November, Capps remained as a consultant through February and retired.

Barnhart reported to commission members that, to date, funding has been received to send 73 children to Space Camp programs as part of the "Summer of Fun" campaign. Local businesses have been asked to sponsor scholarships for area children.

More than 200 scholarship applications have been received, Barnhart said.

Michael Flachbart, the center's vice president of operations, said that registration for this year's weeklong camps is 3 percent higher than at the same time last year.

Attendance for the center's traveling exhibit, "CSI: The Experience," reached 12,256 as of last Thursday, compared to projections of 14,056 guests, Barnhart said. That brings attendance of the exhibit, which opened in late January, to about 78 percent of projections, she said. About 1,800 more children with school groups are scheduled to attend the exhibit before it closes May 1, she said.

The commission on Monday also amended its by-laws, changing the name of its finance committee to business committee and its aerospace programs committee to education committee, to reflect the restructuring earlier this year of Space Center departments. The development committee and visions and plans committee were included in the by-laws as standing committees.