The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1907-05-21
FERNSTROM n|PS
LOADED MEASURE
Brands New Improvement Or
dInance a Grating Prop
OSiti0n.
PIE FOR OFFICIAL ORGAN
DOESN'T PERMIT CITY TO AD-
VERTIsE FOR PRINTING BIDS.

The American" party tried to sneak
an ordinance through the council last
night which would have made it pos
sible for the city to pay double the
amount it is paying for advertis-
ing. The "woodchuck'' was discovered
by Councilman Fernstrom and the at
tempt blocked for the time being.
The ordinance was one proposed by
Councilman Fernstrom in a resolution in
troduced three weeks ago and specified
the procedure which the council AMI
board of public works must follow in
letting contracts for public improve
ments, making the tax levy and col
1ectlng from property owners. 1t was
drawn by the city attorney and follows
closely the line of the FernstrOm reso-
luton. with the exception that the at
torney neglected to insert the provision
that the city should let its advertising
contracts to the lowest bidder. Instead,
the following provision was Incorporated:
The board OF public works shall fur
nish each bidder for the contract to make
such Improvement the estimate of cost
and expense of the engineering. inspec-
ton, publishing notices and making the
tax levy with instructions to each of said
bidders to include the amount thereof
In his bid for the work contemplated
by said improvement"
All Kinds of Graft.
councilman F6FnSITOm explained that
this would allow the board of public
works to put in all kinds of grating
charges -
Il would like to know" he said, how
you can let a contractor put ALI these
things in his bid without paying him for
them. After he is paid you cannot force
him to pay the advertisers, and the city
will still be liable. If he does pay the
advertisers, then the city can pay them
again. making the graft they have now
just double.
- 1t will allow newspaper grating to
be much worse than it has been In the
past, he explained, and the board can
make grating deals with any sort of a
grating newspaper it wants TO, and the
property owners will have to stand for
1t. There would be more grating even
by TINS reform newspaper which gets
all the graft if the new law was obeyed
but there does not seem to be a ten
dency among the council to pay any at
tentiOn to that feature of the act. All
YOU fellows want is graft for your news
paper But you can't stick the property
owners for a double assessment like that
They VIII go into court and beat you
at every turn. | know what I am talk
ing about And just see what a chance
it gives the board of works to graft by
adding large estimates for engineering
and inspection work. The field is unIim-
tied
THE board of public works can say"
he Numbered, " You must include in
your bid just so much for us After
the bid is in and the work done the con-
tractor must be paid the full amount
of his bid and no power on earth can
make him turn any of it back to the
city
MuIVey Makes Reply.
The expose of the Administrations
methods was not relished by Councilman
Mulvey, who said:
Has not the attorney passed upon this
and what good will il do US to do as
Mr. Fernstrom suggests-to refer it to
committee? Does Fernstrom think he
knows better than the attorney or is an
authority on law?'
well. / have stood the test several
times" replied Fernstrom.
H j. Dinniny, assistant city attorney
was then called upon to explain the
''woodchuck." He tried to show that this
was the only alternative under the new
laws and then launched into a rather
violent attack on Fernstrom, alleging that
he was making his talk for political rea-
sons
This talk about advertising is all po-
litical buncOmbe." he said. ''and he knows
well enough that is true There is
city TO advertise for bids for printing.
1t never has been done and there is no
necessity for doing il now"
The attorney did not mention the fact
lowest bidder property owners would be
saved over half the amount now charged
by the official organ.
While he was talking Councilman Wells
called him TO order. but President Da-
Wis paid no attention to the request that
the attorney confine his remarks to a
judicial Interpretation of the ordinance
AS there was no possibility of passing
the ordinance in its present form, it
was finally decided to refer it TO the mu-
nicipal laws committee with the attor-
ney associated, to report at the next
meeting.