The Monmouth inquirer., 1923-11-01

The Republican platform Of 1922
promised two Things, first an aine..d-
ment of the state and county acts to
permit the state and counties to recei
bids on seve al Spes OF pavement in
the same Ii amer that muuicip aiifies
10 under the municipal h me rule Act,
and SO oiSdly it pledged US to the pas. =
Of All ACT ,,roviding for open
Inpetitive specifications in road work
that is to say. whenever u governing
DO advertises t., bids OH u patent
pavement il must also adyer Use for
bids o1x ii non pate pted pavement IL
must also advertise for bids on a
nonpatented pavement OF equivalent
lnert, and mas award the c ntract
to the lowest bidder inthe coiupetiti ~
The il exactly what the new law does.
NV friend krea4er cries fraud. ID e.
lie not known Of Sec. h
alta KS, and VIII eli provides that the
board or DO having charge OF such
NO kt a. ndop plansS& specifications
calling for NOR than one type OF ma
Ieiia and Instruction, and if more
then one tlpe is specified bids snail
be asked for in the alter alive, but
indi idual bidders shallnot berequired
to bInI bids on more thar one t. pc
of material 0 construction and does not
apply ut all to patent pave
ment2
THAT this section simply extends
to the county and the sta e, the same
right which municipalities have had
for six wears of calling for bids for
more than one T. pc Of pavement, and
then leaving. it to the governing
10 aFf In hi1u "a
ceive,I, just which ype is the more
years have been able to call for bids
warrenite, for example. Tue bids
bidding, nevertheless, if the municipal
selected Warrenite even tho it WIS
higher
with the new law criticized b.
nv fir end, that condition viii no |
longer prevail in mu icipal work in
work. for the open specification lay,
specifically provides in section four
different rm OF procedure whene er
any patented, proprietar pavell, at
or paving material, or III Rodents
used in paving is included in the
specificati ns Then the body in
contr must also place in the spec
ifioat .n ne or more equivalent types1
Of construction not patented; and bids
sh all be asked for on the various t, pes
so specified, and the award shall be
made to the lowest responsible bidder
on the types of contructi n so placed
in competition by the governing
board"
1t is no mandatory to call for bids
on more than one type of pavement
when unpatented types of pavement
are desired. 1t is merely permissi. g
under section two I the county and
state to do what municipalities have
had the right to d for years under the
home rule act. 1t is on the other hand
under section four of the new act
to include an equivalent
unpatented pavement type or type
whenever bids are asked for on a
patented ype OF pavement, and it
is then also mandatory to award the
contract to the lowest bidder in that
on, whether called for by a
the coun y or state.
That simply meals the widest com
petition whenever patent paving is
one of the types inclu ed in the speci-
ficati ms. That is what the I'eople
have been promised TO years: That
iswhat. / voted for That is what
you have Senat Stevens than to
up the night work bill, the Governors
criticism of his action in voting TO
pass bill over his vet He justified
h stand in voting to override those
vetoes which he was recorded aye
upon