No-bid contracts

Rapid City Journal keeps the pressure on Rounds and Pierre

l3wis December 30, 2008 0Comments

Just another bogus SD politician

I’m glad to see the RCJ is continuing on this story right before the legislative session. Hopefully some of the legislators will have the gonads to change the law and go a step further and censure or impeach our governor for his ‘bogus’ practices.

Sometimes governments will put contracts for these services out for a bid, but they’re not bound to go with the lowest bidder.

Often they’re not bid, and they’re called “no-bid” or “sole-source” contracts.

While the arguments against bidding in these two cases make sense, Stewart said, the problem is “it’s exploited like crazy.”

It’s exploited because without a bidding process, government officials can award contracts to anyone -  whether they’re the most qualified firm, or a friend, or a big political donor, he said.

It’s exploited? Get out!

“Public procurement, the whole cornerstone of the profession is competition,” Gallt said.

“It keeps prices down, it opens up the marketplace to new and innovative companies. It’s a win-win for everyone. It’s prudent, acting in the public interest, to get the lowest possible price.”

Since when are politicians in SD interested in helping out the little guy? Is there something I’m missing here?

To limit corruption, states that ban “pay to play” practices also are opening up their records to the public.

The public expects it, Stewart said, in an age when so much information is available online.

And he said it’s not something that should be expensive or burdensome to states.

“They’re already writing things on electronic documents,” he said.

“Converting it and slapping it up on the Internet is not that big of a deal.”

That is if you don’t use the same programming brain surgeons behind the vehicle registration software.