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Text of Document: March 7, 1997
You have the following question: Can the city accept a bid for a garbage truck from the low bidder if the garbage truck does not meet the specifications contained in the bid proposal? The answer is clearly no.
In State ex rel. Wright v. Leech, 622 S.W.2d 807 (Tenn. 1981), the Tennessee Supreme Court defined the term "competitive bidding" within the meaning of statutes that require competitive bidding on the part of governments. Among the things the Court said was:
- "It is essential that the bidders, so far as possible, be put on terms of perfect equality so that they may bid on substantially the same proposition and on the same terms." [My emphasis.]
- "In order to attain competitive bidding in its true sense, proposals for bids must be invited under fair circumstances which afford a fair and reasonable opportunity for competition."
- Among the things the advertisement for bids should include is, "[s]pecification of the supplies or equipment to be purchased and the quantity thereof." [My emphasis.]
The competitive bidding standards in Leech were not optional, continued the Court, they must be followed.
The fundamental principle of Leech is that all bidders must be put on a level playing field. If the city requests bids for a garbage truck that must meet certain specifications, then accepts the bid on a garbage truck that does not meet those specifications, it is impossible for all the bidders to have been on a level playing field. It does not remotely matter that the truck that does not meet specifications was cheaper and could have done the job. The specifications in a bid are what put the players on a level playing field. If the city called for bids on a garbage truck meeting certain specifications then accepts a bid that failed to meet those specifications, it will undoubtedly have violated Leech, and the dissatisfied bidder would have all the remedies available to them under the law.
Sincerely,
Sidney D. Hemsley
Senior Law Consultant
SDH/ |