*

, I

OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL.OF TEXAS **AUSTIN**



### HonorableJulian Montgomery State Hlghwa~ m&mar Autfn, Texas



### Dearslrt

I



### wo are Fa ..n6ript

of rour-lottarof my 14, 1940, whereinycm aubmlt~-‘for the, **oplnlon** 

### oh thin Departmentthe

Pag8 1 of 1 P8gos

oonstruotion of &4+-T mkilxoad Underpass 

### and RoadwayApproaohee, a diatsnos 

## 0r 0.397 ?niler, 

### on state 

### iii&wayNo. 78, and to be known a8 State ProjaatControlRo. 980 Motion 1 Job 5 (lmdoral Project W&J%! No. 803-B Part Unit (1)) 18 awarded to Rum Xitohsll, 1~0.. Houston, ;i;;sbfodr $.t33,600.3B, whioh is the lowest and

.

### HonorableSulianMontgomrp, Peqo 2

The bids reoeiredare as follows: 1. RuasXltohell,Inc., Houston, Texas

...................$B3.600.3!3 2. L.R.LaoyCompany, 

### Dallas, Texas



### .................... 87,214.45 3. **AU8t.h** 

### Bride. Co. t **AUS** 

### tin Road Co., Dallas.....91.900.35 4. W. B. **west, Fort**  

### worth, Tare8*............*....,. 9*,161.69 5. 3an Blra & Company,Dallss, TOXal

.................... 94.293.57 6. Cage **Broa. 6;**  **F, L8.**  

### Rearas & Sons, Ino.,Bishop, Texas

....................104.252.73 The **Progmm Allotinent**  **is ao,ooo.oo**  

### Tha Total **xngineer*s** 

### kcstinate (Part.& NonPart. in Pad. Aid) 1~01. **itugr.** 

### k co&g. io 100,890.00 The'LowBid (Part.8:**Eon** 

### Part. in Fad. Aid) 

### Plus 10s Engr. **k** 

### Contg. la 98,004.91
'It is reaomwnded that aontraatbe awarded 

### Buss xitohe11,mo., Houston,Taxes, on their 

### 10~ **bid** 

### of @3,600.38, aubjeat to tha **oonour** 

### rsnce **of** 

### the-

Pub110Roads AdminlattmtiOn.~ a/ c.D.wells, Conotruotlonlbnglneer

D.C.maar Chier mginssr, 

### Coastr.k Dasti&s signed: S, C. Mekline

Bridge Engineer


### APPROVXD: JulianXoatgol;sry,iXste zighway n;lglneer Zoobert Lee aobbltt, Combaimar ;3radp Oentry, Commissionor



### R. J. lank :Uperlnt.endent of A id Troject.s*Honorable Julian Xontgomery, page 3

“YOUwill note that the minute awarding the contract to Rum A’itohell, Inc., 

### has been conditioned upon ooncurrenoe in 

### the award by the Public Roads Adsinistratlon. This concurrence haa Dot been secured at thla time. *Under the general requIran.enta and cove-. hshts section of our s~oIficatloas, under whioh the proposal waa submitted by Russ ?!ltchell, Ino., Item 3.2 provides;

‘3.2 Award or Coatraat. The award of the oontraot, I? It be awarded, will be to the loweat responsible bidder. **The** award, **ii -de,**  

### will be within thirty (30) days after the opening ot the proposal, blat IE ho oass will an award be made until the responrIbIlIty of the bidder to whoa 

### it la proposedto awardsthe contra& has been Inveatlgated.* -On May 13, 1940, Busa Iditohell. Ino. wrote a letter to the State UQhwey Engineer stating that since thirty daJra had OlapIled sines the proposala on the project wers oj%&ed and they kad not been notified of the award, that their g-opoaal be 

### oonalderadnull and void and their bid

### dar*a check 

### returned.

*‘sill you review the above doomsate and 

### feats and adriaama at your early ooavsnlonoeif the nfnute of the Highway C%htiaissfon, aa set out above W

aonatitutea an award of the contract to Russ Ltltahell, Inc., aa provided **ror** in Item 3.2 of the SpaclflcatIona.w Refers It map be dotsmined whether or not the aontraat in question wae properly awarded in aocordanoo with the requirementa and time lf3litatIons embodied In Item 3.2 of your a~ctiicat~iona, under 

### whioh the proposal WBB aub!aItted by Rum Yitchell, Ina., It must first be established that the nlnutr described in your letter resulted ia the oonatmzation or e oontract For the desorlbed construction Rrojeot between the State of Texas md the said Rues LZItohell, Inc., as contractor. Thi8 **iS** so **becaUSe if**  no valid and binding contractual obligation was created between the State and the contractor In question by t.hIaHonorable Julian xontgomary, ??age 4

minute avldaacinq the award, than it become immaterial whether or not notice thereof was timely given, under Itam 3.2 

## or your6pe0iriO6ti0n6.

bpplyleg the law or aontraat8 to the instant 0866, it may be said that the 

### bid of' RUM &itahall, Ina., on tha stated project, when 

### duly receivedand opened by the duly constitutad **Stat6 Highvmy**  orriciair, **aonatituted** 

### an **or rer**  on tha part or **said** contractor 

### to do and **prrorm** tha 

### work contamplated by thia projeot according to tha **oubdt** ted spaoiriaatlona. On tha other hand, the award of this oontraot to tha said Russ ~ltchell, Inc., es tha lowest 

### and baat bidder on this projact, when mada in accordance with tha formnlitiar **and** raquirenunts of tha rtatute, and by tha Hlghuay oiiiaial~'obargad with 

### this duty **under** the statute, constitutes and ia en aaaaptanaa or ma oommunicatad 

## Orrer of tha aald Rues Xltahell, Ino., 60 as to oo&plata tha oontraot, and gfva rise to legal right6 and obligations tharo**undb2.** I

Tha only quastlon praeantad ror **our** oonsidaration in this oontrovarsy is tha 8uf'ilctanoy or the 

### allegedaward, daaoribed fn your lettar', and rarlaatad In the minute 

## 0r the Highway commlsaion or data b?ay 9, 1945, to constitute an accaptanoa or the oontraotor'a offer, ao ao to giva rtaa to a valid and binding highway conatruotion oontraat. Aa we lnterprat your latter, no quaation is mad6~haraa6 ta the **mr** rlaianoy or tha aontraotor@a offer or bid, because it 

### appaara that all statutory and adminiatsativa nquiraments have bean fully oompliad with.

**tfa** 

### rind in the &nita~ of the Highway Commioalon 

## 0r Idai 0, 1940, **p666d** 

### and antarad in **conaaotion** 

### with tha deearlbed Highway projaet, and reproduced in 

### your latter, a patant ambiguity, in that an lrraconcllabla ConillOt lies in the language amployad therein. The 

## rirst paragraph 

## or the award atatae 

### unequivooal~lp and by word6 of ?reaent and lmmadlate operation, that the 

### oontnot for aonsrtruation of the daaaribed **projeot** “ia azardad to 2~~66 Mitchell, Ioo.~ Far aontra, the laet para@aph or the award stated ES 

## r0ii0w6~

“‘It la recommended that contract be 

### awarded %ms xltohall, Ina., Bmaton, T6xe6, on their low bid of g83,000.38, 6ubjaOt to the cormurrenc8 oi the ?ubllo Toads .%&ainiatrati.on.r* @ndersooring ours) Thw, it Is readily seen that if tfla last paragraph quoted abova controls the iirat paragraph or thia award,Honorable Julian bzontgomary, Paga 6

no final but ohly a provisional or 

### oonditionalaward has boon mda ror thia highaay aonstruation oontraot to ~uaa Yltahall, Inc., 

### baaausait is stated in your latter that the 

### aonaurranc~

of the Public 

### RoadsAd&,hiat.ration haa hot at this writing been obtainad. biguity, 

### wa are, III 

### view of t.hia petant amunder the authorltlaa, required to reaort to axtranaow raota, oiraumetancaa, ragulationa, ato., to datanaine the intent of tha Highway Commission in.the prwl.ieeo * To this and, wa point to pega 71 of vyadaral Lagialation and Rules and Regulation8 Rglatlng to sighway Conatruatlonw 

### compiledby the Publio RoaCaAdzirAstration, and qoota Section 8 of Regulation 8 relating to contracts:

90 contract 

### ror any projaat**or** 

### part thareotshall ba entered into **or** award thcra

### for c;ada

by any Stata rittwut prior ooncurranaa in ouch-action by the Chief of the 

### Bureau ot Publfo Roads, .or hia aut~horizad regresanto

### tlva.* In this oonnaction, there haa bean aubnitted.to w copy 

## or a letter to you rr0a 63. a. A. Rlliott, Diatriat Xnginaer, for the Publio Roade A6miaiatration of the Federal Iporhs Aganoy, of data t;aroh 29, 1940, Fittan in connection with the Federal projaot involved hare, ahd ooilttnihing, in part, 

## the ro~ioa~g language:

‘Plans l apaciriaatlona, 

### and aatimts **for** 

### thie projecthave bean reviewed **and** raoomandad 

### ror approval. You an authorized to 

### advertise ror the raoaipt 

### or bfda and to 

### bagin **pork** after t.ha 

### award of a contracton any part of tha project not 6p6CiriCally araaptadharaicaftar with the understanding that this authorization is @van subject to 

## 8UCh ahahgaa being -da ic tha plans and apacirleationa aa may be ihdiastad balow or required 

### by tha Chiaf Tginaar. It is understood that no contract for any work on this project will ba entered into or award tharaor **aada** without grlor concurvance in such nation by tha Xstrlct Ragineur of tha Tublio Aoads Adsinistratibn. It is slso uhderstond that 30 :>syaont on any work dam ~rioi to the sxacutlm of 5?0 project. agreazmt dil he 

### mda until !x& unless tha aqraemmt la linally exsautad.*Honorable Julian Xontgomry, Page 6

The above quoted regulation of the Fublio Roads ddsinistration of the Federal Sorks Agency 

### and the letter written **pursuant** thereto **and** in aonneotlon therewith were existant and In the riles or the Highway Com~&sslon at the 

### time of and long before the 

### exeautlonby the Sighway Commission and'its appointed representatives, of the award in question. These parties aontraatlng on bahelr or the **Stats,** were fully 

### cognizant01 these matters and **&ust** ha~e entered the &nute in qneation in keeping with the rsgulations and requirement8 or the Public Roads Administration, nhiah appeared to be aonditions **prsrequielte** to aonaruronae **by that**  agenop In the aontomplated projeat.

It is thereiors our opinion, irora the attending faata and airoumstanaes outlined above, that It was not the intention of tha Highway Conmieslon, 

### by the deaaribed **adnute,** to enter an award or acceptance of the 

### offor of Russ E.itohell, Ina., so as to oaraplete a valid a&d **binding** aotitzaat between the parties. In rlew of the existing doubt and the aoniliating~and 

### ambiguouslanguage in the iaoe of the 

### minute in question. this intention will **be** aocorded a 

### aontrollingoozislderation in reaohlngour valid and 

### bindingoontraatual obligations thereby areated between ths State and the DO. aonalusion that hats **not** been said Russ hiitahell,

are Trusting we have rally answered your inquiry, we

ATTORfIslcGE#BRAL

GFTTBXAS