Federal and state government contractor selection continues to be a hot-button political issue as public agencies grapple with the best bidding and delivery systems to maximize taxpayer dollars.
Until recently, and for more than 100 years, public agencies have been awarding construction contracts to the low bidder. Proponents of this practice point out that awarding to the low bidder protects the public fisc and avoids favoritism from creeping into the procurement process. The detractors of the low-bid process argue that low-bid contracts invariably sacrifice quality to price or attract contractors that need to assert claims to generate any profit.
