Editorials

Search Results

Close Previous Now showing: of Next

Previous Next Close

Related Photos

• 

Discussion

Welcome to our online comments feature. We welcome your thoughts and your opinions, including unpopular ones. We ask only that you keep the conversation civil and clean. We reserve the right to remove comments that are obscene, racist or abusive and statements that are false or unverifiable as well as posts that are attacking other users. Repeat offenders will be blocked. You may flag objectionable comments for review by a moderator.

comments powered by Disqus

March 10, 2010

TRIBUNE-STAR EDITORIAL: What does ‘bidder’ ordinance resolve?

More info needed for labor proposal

Anonymous The Tribune-Star The Tribune Star Wed Mar 10, 2010, 11:01 PM EST

TERRE HAUTE — The already complex process of bidding out public works contracts could get a whole lot more complicated under an ordinance being considered by the Terre Haute City Council. But that may be the only point on which anyone involved in this debate is willing to agree.

Will the proposal, if adopted, protect the City of Terre Haute from unscrupulous contractors who submit low bids but do not follow local, state and federal laws?

Or will it have an adverse impact on the ability of local companies to bid and win contracts with the City of Terre Haute?

The rhetoric is flying hot and heavy, with local labor unions promoting the ordinance and the Terre Haute Chamber of Commerce opposing it.

Called the “Responsible Bidder Ordinance,” the proposal would establish qualification criteria for contractors and subcontractors bidding on city projects. It consists of five pages of regulations, but the primary purpose of the law is contained in a section that states this about the ordinance: “Confirms that all apprentices to be used on the project are registered with an apprenticeship and training program approved and registered with the United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Apprenticeship and Training (or any state or federal successor agency).”

The ordinance is being driven by organized labor. One union leader who addressed the City Council at a meeting last week said its aim is “to level the playing field” and ensure substandard contractors don’t win contracts simply by submitting lower bids.

The Chamber of Commerce opposes the ordinance, not because it doesn’t favor the city getting what it pays for, but because it believes most of the what the ordinance calls for is already part of state law. What’s more, it believes the ordinance would actually have a detrimental effect on local contractors who have been getting bids and doing excellent work for the city.

For example, Chamber representatives claim the registered apprenticeship program section could make those local contractors ineligible to win city bids. The ordinance, they say, also will mandate burdensome affirmative action requirements already covered by existing law. (See Wednesday’s Opinion Page Flashpoint essay.)

Bill Lower is president of the Terre Haute Board of Public Works and Safety and has had considerable experience dealing with contract bidding issues. He believes the ordinance would negatively impact the number of bids received for public projects.

But proponents say the ordinance will actually increase competition between qualified and responsible contractors. (See today’s Flashpoint essay on this page.)

The City Council must now sift through all the rhetoric. What they will find is that there are lots of questions to be answered before a reasonable decision can be made. For example, in what specific situations will this help the city? Who specifically will this ordinance harm? Does the city really have a problem that requires this solution? How is this ordinance working in the dozens of cities that have adopted it?

The ordinance could come to a vote at tonight’s City Council meeting. In the absence of answers, the council would be wise to resist this ordinance. That leaves it with two choices. Either table it and seek more information, or vote it down.

Text Only | Photo Reprints

Editorials

• EDITORIAL: Indiana 641 — slow but sure

  One could state that observing the construction of Indiana 641 through southeastern Vigo County is like watching paint dry. But that would not be accurate. Paint dries more quickly. Much more quickly.

  February 14, 2012  

• EDITORIAL: Drug-testing bill lacks fairness and decency

  The current session of the Indiana Legislature has produced plenty of initiatives that play well to the majority party’s base.

  February 12, 2012  

• EDITORIAL: Keep religion out of science class

  An uncertain fate remains for an Indiana Senate bill that would, if it were to become law, allow public schools to teach creationism and other origin-of-life theories in their classes. But this fight may have already been grounded.

  February 10, 2012  

• EDITORIAL: Delivering on infrastructure

  With national, state and local economies showing distinct signs of recovery from the Great Recession of 2008, it is good to hear Mayor Duke Bennett sounding optimistic about Terre Haute and its immediate future.

  February 9, 2012  

• EDITORIAL: Volunteer ‘army’ serving the needs of children

  You know, of course, that casa means house. But do you also know that its all-capitals cousin, CASA, means home?

  February 6, 2012  

• EDITORIAL: Big dreams do come true

  Consider this Super Bowl Sunday to be proof that anything is possible.

  February 5, 2012  

• EDITORIAL: Big ‘kick’ from a native son

  Every player in Sunday’s Super Bowl is from somewhere. But not every player remembers where he’s from and reaches out to consistently help those back home. Not like Steve Weatherford. Make that not like Terre Haute’s Steve Weatherford.
   

  February 3, 2012  

• EDITORIAL: Smoking ban good enough

  When it comes to getting things done in the Indiana General Assembly, progress is often measured in baby steps. Indeed, it can take years to achieve even meager accomplishments.

  February 2, 2012  

• EDITORIAL: United Way’s strong reputation helps sustain community trust

  It would be foolish in any community to take “positives” for granted, but it’s easy to understand how a casual observer would assume that United Way of the Wabash Valley will always come through with flying colors.

  February 1, 2012  

• EDITORIAL: Nothing sexy about human trafficking

  When kickoff comes at the 2012 Super Bowl, expectations will be high for a fun, competitive, fanatical contest between the two survivors of the NFL’s regular season.

  January 29, 2012  

• EDITORIAL: The law’s good ‘Shepard’

  Under the radar and against the backdrop of the fractious right-to-work battle going on in Indianapolis, one of state’s leading public servants delivered his valedictory in typical understated, even quiet, style two weeks ago. And before Indiana Supreme Court Chief Justice Randall T. Shepard slips away into retirement, his work needs to be acknowledged and praised.

  January 26, 2012  

• EDITORIAL: Cops at risk

  Indiana lawmakers are playing with a loaded gun in a bill that passed the Indiana Senate Monday, 45-5.

  January 25, 2012  

• TRIBUNE-STAR EDITORIAL: Helping your community, a few mouse clicks at a time

  When you type WabashValleyGives.org into your web browser, hundreds of opportunities to help your local community will open on the screen before you.
   

  January 24, 2012  

• EDITORIAL: Raves around the town

  To begin the week, we are raving about these recent pieces of local news:

  January 23, 2012  

• EDITORIAL: Let Hoosiers have a say on right-to-work bill

  Indiana legislators, both Republican and Democrat, may claim to know the will of the people on right-to-work.

  January 22, 2012  

• EDITORIAL: Thin ice winter’s deadly scourge

  Six-year-old Trevor Wayne Young of Nashville, Ind., and 50-year-old Allen D. Johnson of Galva, Ill., probably had little in common — except the way they died.
   

  January 20, 2012  

• EDITORIAL: Meeting needs at St. Ann's

  The caliber of a community often is revealed by its efforts to help its least fortunate citizens.

  January 18, 2012  

• EDITORIAL: A sweet deal for Amazon.com

  That loud lip-smack on the cheek you heard echoing from Indianapolis last week was the sound of Gov. Mitch Daniels kissing off on what amounts to another sweetheart deal between Indiana and Amazon.com, the online retailing giant.

  January 16, 2012  

• EDITORIAL: A new era for growth

  The promised announcement of a major new industry for the former Pfizer property in southern Vigo County turned out to be well worth the wait.

  January 15, 2012  

• EDITORIAL: Transparency a worthy goal

  Do taxpayers have the right to know specific details of contracts between elected school boards and superintendents they hire to run their operations?
   

  January 13, 2012  

• EDITORIAL: Shakir Bell’s success gives boost to Sycamore football

  Hope inspires progress. It’s the fuel for a better future.

  January 12, 2012  

• EDITORIAL: Inspiration for the future

  Hope inspires progress. It’s the fuel for a better future.

  January 12, 2012  

• EDITORIAL: Put teeth in public access laws

  Indiana’s laws governing public access, as good as they are, lack something important — teeth. There are no significant consequences for agencies or employees who intentionally violate them.

  January 11, 2012  

• EDITORIAL: Time for teamwork in Sullivan

  The beginning of a new mayoral term in any community is — or should be — a time when the talk of the town is rife with ideas, improvements and changes.

  January 9, 2012  

• EDITORIAL: Lawmakers should leave IHSAA, high school basketball alone

  In an idyllic world, Indiana could restore its fabled single-class high school basketball state tournament, and thousands of fans would pour into gymnasiums from Angola to Corydon in hopes of witnessing another “Milan Miracle” year after year after year.

  January 8, 2012  

• EDITORIAL: ‘Anthem’ proposal way off key

  Remember Faith Hill’s impassioned rendition of “The Star Spangled Banner” at the Super Bowl in 2000?
   

  January 6, 2012  

• EDITORIAL: Back from the access brink

  It took almost a week, but Gov. Daniels finally stepped up and did the right thing on Wednesday, rescinding new rules aimed at restricting the number of people allowed in the Statehouse during this session of the General Assembly.

  January 5, 2012  

• EDITORIAL: Poor decision by local Dems

  By a little after 4 this afternoon, Terre Haute Mayor Duke Bennett will have been sworn in for a second term and City Councilman-elect Robert All will have taken the oath of office for the first time.

  January 2, 2012  

• EDITORIAL: Be it resolved …

  Resolutions for 2012 are top-of-mind today.

  January 1, 2012  

• EDITORIAL: Another slice of Classic history

  Baseball is the so-called American pastime, but to Hoosiers and to our Illinois neighbors, it’s basketball that gets a community’s blood pumping. And no form of roundball does that any more intimately than high school basketball, whether boys or girls. College hoops is great, but nothing quite beats the packed, overheated confines of a high school gym when a tight game turns on every possession, every shot, every rebound, every pass, every defensive position. The sing-song of cheerleaders, the shrillness of a ref’s whistle, the squeak of gym shoes on hardwood, the shouted instructions from the benches, the aroma of popcorn — those form a Midwestern tableau unlike any other.
   

  December 30, 2011  

• More Editorials Headlines

© 2012 Community Newspaper Holdings, Inc. · CNHI Classified Advertising Network · CNHI News Service
Associated Press content © 2012. All rights reserved. AP content may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Our site is powered by Zope. Some parts of our site may require you to download the Flash Player Plugin.
Privacy Policy | AP News Registry privacy policy
Terms and Conditions
Advertiser Index

Events by eviesays.com

News From Terre Haute, Indiana 222 S 7th St Terre Haute, IN 47807