Minnesota Session Laws - 1993, Regular Session

  
    Laws of Minnesota 1993 

                         CHAPTER 38-S.F.No. 198 
           An act relating to local improvements; setting limits 
          for certain contract requirements; amending Minnesota 
          Statutes 1992, section 429.041, subdivisions 1 and 2. 
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
    Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 1992, section 429.041, 
subdivision 1, is amended to read: 
    Subdivision 1.  [PLANS AND SPECIFICATIONS, ADVERTISEMENT 
FOR BIDS.] When the council determines to make any improvement, 
it shall let the contract for all or part of the work, or order 
all or part of the work done by day labor or otherwise as 
authorized by subdivision 2, no later than one year after the 
adoption of the resolution ordering such improvement, unless a 
different time limit is specifically stated in the resolution 
ordering the improvement.  The council shall cause plans and 
specifications of the improvement to be made, or if previously 
made, to be modified, if necessary, and to be approved and filed 
with the clerk, and if the estimated cost 
exceeds $5,000 $25,000, shall advertise for bids for the 
improvement in the newspaper and such other papers and for such 
length of time as it may deem advisable.  If the estimated cost 
exceeds $100,000, publication shall be made no less than three 
weeks before the last day for submission of bids once in the 
newspaper and at least once in either a newspaper published in a 
city of the first class or a trade paper.  To be eligible as 
such a trade paper, a publication shall have all the 
qualifications of a legal newspaper except that instead of the 
requirement that it shall contain general and local news, such 
trade paper shall contain building and construction news of 
interest to contractors in this state, among whom it shall have 
a general circulation.  The advertisement shall specify the work 
to be done, shall state the time when the bids will be publicly 
opened for consideration by the council, which shall be not less 
than ten days after the first publication of the advertisement 
when the estimated cost is less than $100,000 and not less than 
three weeks after such publication in other cases, and shall 
state that no bids will be considered unless sealed and filed 
with the clerk and accompanied by a cash deposit, cashier's 
check, bid bond, or certified check payable to the clerk, for 
such percentage of the amount of the bid as the council may 
specify.  In providing for the advertisement for bids the 
council may direct that the bids shall be opened publicly by two 
or more designated officers or agents of the municipality and 
tabulated in advance of the meeting at which they are to be 
considered by the council.  Nothing herein shall prevent the 
council from advertising separately for various portions of the 
work involved in an improvement, or from itself, supplying by 
such means as may be otherwise authorized by law, all or any 
part of the materials, supplies, or equipment to be used in the 
improvement or from combining two or more improvements in a 
single set of plans and specifications or a single contract. 
    Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 1992, section 429.041, 
subdivision 2, is amended to read: 
    Subd. 2.  [CONTRACTS; DAY LABOR.] In contracting for an 
improvement, the council shall require the execution of one or 
more written contracts and bonds, conditioned as required by 
law.  The council shall award the contract to the lowest 
responsible bidder or it may reject all bids.  If any bidder to 
whom a contract is awarded fails to enter promptly into a 
written contract and to furnish the required bond, the 
defaulting bidder shall forfeit to the municipality the amount 
of the defaulter's cash deposit, cashier's check, bid bond, or 
certified check, and the council may thereupon award the 
contract to the next lowest responsible bidder.  When it appears 
to the council that the cost of the entire work projected will 
be less than $5,000 $25,000, or whenever no bid is submitted 
after proper advertisement or the only bids submitted are higher 
than the engineer's estimate, the council may advertise for new 
bids or, without advertising for bids, directly purchase the 
materials for the work and do it by the employment of day labor 
or in any other manner the council considers proper.  The 
council may have the work supervised by the city engineer or 
other qualified person but shall have the work supervised by a 
registered engineer if done by day labor and it appears to the 
council that the entire cost of all work and materials for the 
improvement will be more than $2,000 $10,000.  In case of 
improper construction or unreasonable delay in the prosecution 
of the work by the contractor, the council may order and cause 
the suspension of the work at any time and relet the contract, 
or order a reconstruction of any portion of the work improperly 
done, and where the cost of completion or reconstruction 
necessary will be less than $10,000 $25,000, the council may do 
it by the employment of day labor. 
    Presented to the governor April 21, 1993 
    Signed by the governor April 21, 1993, 3:42 p.m.