ACP Pubs

Big Wyoming Contract
May 29, 2008

The Wyoming Highway Commission appears to be on the verge of awarding by far the biggest single highway improvement contract in the Cowboy State’s history. The project is the third phase of reconstruction of US-26/287 over Togwotee Pass between Dubois and Moran Junction, and bids on the 16.3-mile job were opened May 8. The contract award date for projects opened that day was May 15, but the award of a contract for this project has been delayed “pending further review of one of the bids,” according to a Wyoming Department of Transportation news release.

The official estimate for this major project is $63,397,636.15, and only one of the three bids received was within the acceptable range: Fisher Sand & Gravel Co. of Dickinson, N.D., at $63,765,788.50, just 0.6 percent over the estimate. E.H. Oftedal Construction of Miles City, Mont., which is completing the first phase of this same project, submitted the second low bid at $65,299,681.27. And Simon Contractors of Cheyenne made the third offer at $76,238,064.22. Since Fisher’s bid is the only one that comes close enough to the engineer’s estimate to receive consideration, it is presumably that bid that is being reviewed.

Currently, the largest highway contract in Wyoming history is under construction: a $45.9-million project to reconstruct the five miles of Interstate 80 that loop around Rock Springs. That contract is held by Upper Plains Contracting of Aberdeen, S.D.

The fact that three of the four contractors we’ve named here are from outside Wyoming emphasizes why contracts that are huge in the Cowboy State aren’t all that large in surrounding states. Wyoming simply doesn’t have many contractors that can handle huge projects, or bond for them. And thus WYDOT has always broken most projects down into manageable chunks for in-state firms. The Togwotee Pass reconstruction (actually the Togwotee Trail reconstruction, since the work extends well beyond the limits of the pass itself) is such a project, broken down into five separate contracts covering the 38 miles of work. And still, with three of the five phases now bid, the work thus far has gone – or presumably will go – to contractors from outside Wyoming. It’s a situation that’s all but impossible to overcome in a state with a population of just half a million.

Arizona’s Undocumented Worker Law Modified

            According to the American Subcontractors Association, the sting of Arizona’s new employer sanctions law (that can literally force companies out of business) may be slightly lessened by still newer law stipulating that employers in the state will not be required to re-verify the work authorization status of all existing employees through the federal E-Verify database. Signed May 1 by Gov. Janet Napolitano, the new measure (HB 2745) amends the highly publicized law that took effect earlier this year, which revokes or suspends the licenses of Arizona businesses that knowingly employ undocumented workers, by clarifying that it only applies to workers hired on or after Jan. 1, 2008. The new law also mandates stronger penalties for employers that pay in cash and do not withhold taxes, requires businesses that contract with state or local governments to use E-Verify, and adds a “good faith” defense for businesses found to be in substantial compliance with the law. It also repeals a requirement that anonymous complaints be investigated.

Posted by Hol Wagner on May 29, 2008 | Comments (0)