Municipal bidding procedure waiver proposed

Cities and villages in Nebraska would be able to waive municipal bidding procedures when required to comply with a federal grant, loan or program under a bill heard Jan. 25 by the Urban Affairs Committee.

Lincoln Sen. Amanda McGill said she introduced LB335 in the wake of possible conflicts between municipal bidding procedures and bidding procedures for federal stimulus grants under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) program.

For example, McGill said, concerns were raised that the ARRA “buy American” bidding requirement would conflict with a lowest responsible bidder requirement in municipal procedures. LB335 would allow cities and villages to waive state bidding requirements when they conflict with federal bidding requirements, she said.

Gary Krumland of the League of Nebraska Municipalities testified in support of the bill saying it would clarify the bidding process for the state’s towns and cities.

No opposition testimony was offered and the committee took no immediate action on the bill.