Do You Have to Take the Low Bid?

I will be giving a brief talk on "Bidder Responsibility: Balancing the Interests of Owners and Contractors" on April 1, 2010 in Bellingham, Washington, at the Spring Workshop of the Pacific Northwest Public Purchasing Association (PNPPA).  

I will discuss how public agencies are using the Supplemental Bidder Responsibility Criteria permitted by RCW 39.04.350, and how some contractors are concerned that some of the criteria are overly restrictive of the bidding pool and limit competition.  

I will also update the group on the March 24, 2010 meeting of a task force established recently by the Capital Projects Advisory Review Board (CPARB) to address the issue of bidder responsibility.