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, 

I 

OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL.OF TEXAS 

AUSTIN 

Honorable Julian Montgomery 

State Hlghwa~ m&mar 

Autfn, Texas 

Dearslrt 

I 

wo are Fa ..n6ript of rour-lottar of my 14, 1940, 

wherein ycm aubmlt~-‘for the, oplnlon oh thin Department the 

Pag8 1 of 1 P8gos 

oonstruotion of &4+-T mkilxoad Underpass and 

Roadway Approaohee, a diatsnos 0r 0.397 ?niler, 

on state iii&way No. 78, and to be known a8 

State Projaat Control Ro. 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 

. 
Honorable Sulian Montgomrp, Peqo 2 

The bids reoeired are as follows: 

1. Ruas Xltohell, Inc., Houston, 

Texas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ..$B3.600.3!3 

2. L.R.Laoy Company, Dallas, 

Texas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87,214.45 

3. AU8t.h Bride. Co. t AUStin 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'Low Bid (Part. 8: EonPart. in Fad. Aid) Plus 

10s Engr. k Contg. la 98,004.91 

'It is reaomwnded that aontraat be awarded 

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

10~ bid of @3,600.38, aubjeat to tha oonourrsnce of the- Pub110 Roads AdminlattmtiOn.~ 

a/ c.D. wells, Conotruotlon lbnglneer 

D.C.maar 

Chier mginssr, Coastr. k Dasti&s 

signed : S, C. Mekline 

Bridge Engineer 

APPROVXD: 

Julian Xoatgol;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 

“YOU will 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 proposed to awards the 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 oonalderad null and void and their biddar*a check returned. 

*‘sill you review the above doomsate and 

feats and adriaa ma at your early ooavsnlonoe if 

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.hIa 
Honorable 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 your 6pe0iriO6ti0n6. 

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 received and opened by the 

duly constitutad Stat6 Highvmy orriciair, aonatituted an orrer on tha part or said contractor to do and prrorm tha 

work contamplated by thia projeot according to tha oubdtted 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 tharoundb2. I 

Tha only quastlon praeantad ror our oonsidaration 

in this oontrovarsy is tha 8uf'ilctanoy or the alleged award, 

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 ~hara a6 ta the mrrlaianoy 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 oonditional award has 

boon mda ror thia highaay aonstruation oontraot to ~uaa 

Yltahall, Inc., baaausa it is stated in your latter that 

the aonaurranc~ of the Public Roads Ad&,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 compiled by the Publio RoaCa AdzirAstration, 

and qoota Section 8 of Regulation 8 relating to contracts: 

90 contract ror any projaat or part 

thareot shall ba entered into or award thcrafor c;ada by any Stata rittwut prior ooncurranaa in ouch-action by the Chief of the Bureau 

ot Publfo Roads, .or hia aut~horizad regresantotlva.* 

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 project have 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 contract on any part of tha project not 6p6CiriCally araaptad haraicaftar 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 exeautlon by the Sighway Commission and'its appointed representatives, of the award 

in question. These parties aontraatlng on bahelr or the 

Stats, were fully cognizant 01 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 ambiguous language in the iaoe of 

the minute in question. this intention will be aocorded a 

aontrolling oozislderation in reaohlng our 

valid and binding oontraatual 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