OFFICE OF TNE ATYORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
AUSTIN
honorable D. C. Greer
State Highway Engineer
Austin, Texaco
Deer Sir:
We aokuowlebgs
31, 1941, In whlah you
prrtnsnt upon the
tion of the project ana requested the !1ig,;;S*~
Depeirtment to assume the coqlatlon In any minner
it saw fit, as Is orovlded by the oontraot sgecl-
flcations. Luring the conference, the Aondlng
Company repreeentatlve bequested that he be DEr-
Honorable b. C. Grew, Page 2
Bitted to seoure lnfomal bl&dr fr o ml number
of ooatrdotor8 theretofore appmrd by the Iii&a-
way Dspartasnt for the oompfetloa of the pro-
Jeot, wlth the understandlog that the Xlghwy
Departoent would enter lnto agreement with the
lowest blddrr for the oompletlorr of the proJsot
as orlglnally planned. Under thlr plan, the
contrsotor, whose bid may be seleoted for the
oomplrtlon at the projsot, would furnish bond
ln the amount of hie bid.
a. . . .
Proolalon tar the submlsrlon to oompetltlve bids
of all oontraotr proposed to bA madoby the 6tate Riqhway
Cepartaent 1s nade in hrtiole 6674h, Vernonca Revisad Civil
statutes of Texas. Artlole 68743, red&s as tollorsi
*The suooessful bldler or bidders shall
enter Into writton oontrsota wltb eald depart-
. msnt, and shall lV3 bond la such amount as la
now provided b;t !Iax, oonditlonsd tor the. falth-
ful oozplisnoe with hle bid and performnor of
the contract and payable to the State alghway
Departiant for the use and benefit ot the State
IiIghra;r Fund.’
Item 8.7 of tine oontraot apsolfleatlons provldee
trat in the event ot abanSonnent of work or default of the
2ontraot by the oontraotor thrt the State Highway Departsent
6%~ ta’re over ths proseoutlon of work, appropriate or use any
or all material and equipmant on the ground as msy be sulta-
ble, and enter lnto an agrsersnt for the oorrlJ~etion of the
contract aocordlng to the terra sad wovlslons thereof or
usa such other .methods as In the oglnlon of the Sn+ne& may
be required for the oou@etion of the contract In aoce?tabls
smnner.
Analysis of the lnatsnt situation reveals that ths
contra& ~$8 orIglnsllp let end entered into Un.ter tk8 au-
thority of and In oompllscce with the ap?licsble stiitutory I)?(
rLsions, bond in the mount of tks contract being furnlshs3
bJ the &erican &main3 Company. Althou:L the contrsctor
haa a~faulted the State Is P~lly proteoted by the ‘bon3 and
F!imorablO D. C. Grwr, Paqe 3
thare 1s ao ooaaaIon for the suboIsslon OS aoapetltlve bide
as rsqulred under hrtlale 6674h, supra, bsfore arrangersnts
are entared Into for the ooapletlon of the projeot. The
Hlqhnejy Department Is authorlted by ftem 6;7 05 the oontraot
opcolf~catlans to assuas comoletlon o? the oontraot In what-
ever mnnsr is oaosptsble un3rr the oxlstlng olrowastanoes.
No contrary provlsloa a?psars in the statutes and no method
of procedure Is Were eug;Jeete& Artlala 66?4h hsvlng al-
ready been oola?lIed with end the ssftguards provided in that
and the suoceedlng artloles having already been brought lnto
exlstenoe them would appear to be no neceesIty for the re-
subnleelon of oompetltIvs bids.
It la, therefore, the opinion of this departmnt
that the Highway Department may legally aocspt lnforaal bids
taken from qusllfled and apCuW@d oontreotora by the bond-
lnz ooznpany wlthout advertising for such bids as provided
by Artlole 667411 and enter Into agreeaent with the low bidder
ror tha cowletlon of the Lea1 contraot. We note that this
procedure was requested and lnstlqsted by tS% bonding congany,
and ve sqgest that the racpeat bs redwed ta wrltlng, and
tlaf all subsequent tranerotlons be refleot%d by urltten In-
strum9nts. The apglIoatIon of tbls oglnlon, of course, 1s
llnlted to the s~eolflo faot elt~atlon presented In your lettsr.
foure very truly
. .-.m-
ATTOXNZY ,GEIlEtAL02’ TE;%AS
, RC:Lx’