SANTA CRUZ METROPOLITAN TRANSIT DISTRICT

UNITED BROTHERHOOD OF CARPENTERS AND JOINERS OF AMERICA
Local Union 505
County of Santa Cruz
(831) 688-5025
225 Searidge Road
Aptos, CA 95003
F(831) 688-5027
December 3, 2012
Santa Cruz Metropolitan Transit District
110 Vernon Street
SANTA CRUZ, CA 95060
Attn: Members of the Board of Directors
Re:
Contract proposal for Judy K Souza Operations & Bus Park Facility
1200 River Street
Santa Cruz, CA 95060
Bid Date: September 12, 2012
Subject: Consideration of Bids from Lewis C Nelson & Sons, Inc. and C Overaa
and Company, Inc.
Dear Members of the Board;
I am writing on behalf of the Carpenters Union Local 505 of Santa Cruz County.
We have reviewed the bids on the above-named project and request that the Board
reject the bid from Lewis C Nelson & Sons, Inc. (“LCN”) because it fails to meet the
requirements of the California Public Contract Code “Subletting and Subcontracting Fair
Practices Act” Section 4101, et seq. (“PCC4100”).
The fundamental intent of the competitive bidding laws (PCC 4100, et. seq.), in
requiring the listing of subcontractors, is to prevent bid shopping and bid peddling of
subcontracted portions of public projects and it applies to those portions of work valued
above the threshold amount (1/2 % of the total base bid amount). Further if a prime
contractor fails to list a subcontractor for a portion of work valued over that threshold
amount, the law requires that the prime contractor be qualified and actually do that
portion of the work. If a prime contractor lists more than two subcontractors to do the
same portion of work the prime contractor again must be qualified and actually do that
portion of the work, instead of the listed subcontractor.
From this, I believe that the case law supports the assertion that the subcontractor list
together with any information contained in the bid submittal, i.e., only those documents
presented at the time of the bid opening, 2 pm on September 12, 2012, and Bid Form
Documents #6, #7, and #8 (#8 relative only to the subcontractor's workforce), submitted
within 2 business days thereafter, must contain sufficient information so that the
awarding body can determine, without ambiguity and without additional information from
the bidder, the identity of each subcontractor listed on the Subcontractor List, Doc 9. If
an examination of the entire bid submittal does not remove an ambiguity as to the
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