B-131127, MAR. 26, 1957

B-131127, MAR. 26, 1957

TO MR. DONNELL F. WEBB, CONTRACTING OFFICER, SOIL CONSERVATION SERVICE:

REFERENCE IS MADE TO YOUR LETTER OF MARCH 15, 1957, WITH ENCLOSURES, REQUESTING A DECISION AS TO THE ACTION TO BE TAKEN CONCERNING AN ERROR ALLEGED BY GRADDY BROS. AND LEONARD MACK, JOINT VENTURERS, PIGGETT, ARKANSAS, TO HAVE BEEN MADE IN THEIR BID OPENED ON MARCH 11, 1957.

BY INVITATION NO. SCS-5-AK-57, BIDS WERE REQUESTED FOR FURNISHING LABOR AND MATERIALS, AND PERFORMING ALL WORK REQUIRED FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OF A WATER FLOW RETARDING STRUCTURE ON SIX MILE CREEK, PARIS, ARKANSAS. THE WORK TO BE PERFORMED WAS DIVIDED INTO 11 ITEMS FOR THE PURPOSES OF SUBMITTING BIDS AND MAKING PAYMENT FOR THE WORK. IN RESPONSE GRADDY BROS. AND LEONARD MACK, AS JOINT VENTURERS, SUBMITTED A BID DATED MARCH 11, 1957, IN PART, AS FOLLOWS:

TABLE

"ITEM UNIT

NO. WORK OR MATERIAL QUANTITY UNIT PRICE AMOUNT

1. TIMBER CLEARING 1 JOB $175.00 $7,770.00"

(SEE SPECIAL

SPECIFICATIONS

PAGE 8 (B)

THE TOTAL OF THE VARIOUS UNIT AND JOB PRICES WAS SHOWN IN THE BID AS BEING $43,504.44, WHICH TOTAL INCLUDES THE EXTENDED AMOUNT OF $7,770 FOR ITEM 1. THE THREE OTHER BIDDERS ON THE PROJECT QUOTED AGGREGATE BID PRICES OF $43,844.70, $52,808.77, AND $68,010.70 FOR ITEMS 1 TO 11, INCLUSIVE.

YOU STATE THAT AT THE TIME THE BIDS WERE ABSTRACTED, IT APPEARED THAT GRADDY BROS. AND LEONARD MACK PROBABLY HAD MADE AN ERROR ON ITEM 1 OF THEIR BID AS SUBMITTED, SINCE A UNIT PRICE OF $175 WAS SHOWN FOR THE "1 JOB" AND THE TOTAL WAS EXTENDED AS $7,770 ON THIS ITEM; THAT MR. GRADDY AND MR. MACK WERE BOTH PRESENT AT THE OPENING OF BIDS; AND THAT WHEN THE JOINT VENTURERS WERE ADVISED OF THIS DISCREPANCY, THEY STATED THAT THE NOTICE APPEARING IN THE CONSTRUCTION NEWS LISTED "44.4 ACRE CLEAR" AND THAT THEY WERE USING THE BASE OF $175 PER ACRE FOR CLEARING ON THE 44.4 ACRES TO COMPUTE THE COST OF THE ENTIRE CLEARING JOB AND THAT THEY FIGURED THE TOTAL AS $7,770. IN THIS REGARD, PAGE ONE OF THE INVITATION FOR BIDS LISTS THE NUMBER OF ACRES TO BE CLEARED AT 44.4.

BY LETTER DATED MARCH 14, 1957, THE JOINT VENTURERS CONFIRMED THEIR PREVIOUS ALLEGATION OF ERROR AND ENCLOSED A COPY OF THE CLIPPING FROM THE CONSTRUCTION NEWS, IN WHICH A REQUEST FOR BIDS WAS ADVERTISED. IN ITS LETTER THE JOINT VENTURERS REQUESTED THAT THE UNIT PRICE FOR ITEM 1 BE CHANGED TO READ $7,770 AND STATED THAT THEY WERE WILLING TO PERFORM THE WORK COVERED BY ITEMS 1 TO 11, INCLUSIVE, FOR THEIR ORIGINAL AGGREGATE BID PRICE OF $43,504.44.

ON THE BASIS OF THE FACTS AND EVIDENCE OF RECORD, IT IS APPARENT THAT THE UNIT PRICE QUOTED BY THE JOINT VENTURERS FOR ITEM 1 WAS INTENDED AS A PRICE PER ACRE RATHER THAN A JOB PRICE. ACCORDINGLY, SINCE IT WAS BELIEVED THAT THE BID AS TO ITEM 1 WAS ERRONEOUS, AND SUCH BELIEF WAS CONFIRMED AND THE ERROR WAS EXPLAINED BY GRADDY BROS. AND LEONARD MACK, JOINT VENTURERS, PRIOR TO AWARD, THE BID MAY BE CORRECTED TO PROVIDE FOR A UNIT (JOB) PRICE OF $7,770 FOR ITEM 1, WHICH WILL MAKE NO CHANGE IN THE TOTAL PRICE SPECIFIED FOR THAT ITEM AND IN THE AGGREGATE BID PRICE FOR ITEMS 1 TO 11, INCLUSIVE.

IN THE EVENT OF AWARD TO GRADDY BROS. AND LEONARD MACK, JOINT VENTURERS, A REFERENCE TO THIS DECISION SHOULD BE MADE ON THE CONTRACT.