Change orders are acceptable within the procurement process; however, proper procurement planning should reduce the requirement and frequency of the need for change orders. Any changes that are required shall be within the requirements of the original contract. Change orders for add-ons when there is money left over in the budget is not acceptable. For example, if the contract is for the construction of a building, a change order for the paving of a parking lot is not an acceptable change. A change order may be issued if the change is within the scope of the contract.

• A head of a public body may, within the published scope of an open or limited call for bids or a negotiated contract, authorize a change order or an aggregate value of change orders to a value of 10% of the original contract or $15,000, whichever is greater, without a reporting requirement to the CPO.
• A head of a public body may, within the published scope of an open or limited call for bids or a negotiated contract, authorize a change order or an aggregate value of change orders in excess of the limit allowed as stated above and shall report the change order to the chief procurement officer in the required form.
• Notwithstanding the limit noted above, a change order with a value of $1,000,000 or greater shall be reported to the chief procurement officer in the required form.
• The report to the CPO should include a brief description of the original contract and the purpose of the change order, total cost of the change order, the name of the supplier and the head of the public body or delegate who authorized the change order. This report is to be sent to the CPO on an annual basis, and is to be received by the CPO by June 30th for the fiscal year preceding (ie…the annual report for the period of April 1, 2018 – March 31, 2019 is to be received by June 30, 2019), unless the change order(s) relates to a project that is still ongoing, the net change orders for the entire project should be reported after the project is completed. The change order report with any and all supporting documentation shall also be maintained in the procurement file. The spreadsheet to be used for reporting change orders to the CPO may be viewed at www.ppa.gov.nl.ca. Please see the Summary of Reporting section of this Policy for further information on the process to be followed.
• When deemed necessary the CPO may review a specific contract if it appears that the change orders are excessive. Also, the CPO may investigate a public body that is continually issuing change orders and extensions above the threshold to determine the adequacy of the solicitation documents and planning process. Public bodies shall provide all records to the CPO upon request.
• The exercising of a renewal option that was identified in an original contract is not considered to be a change order.