by Mindy Aguon

Guam - With more than a dozen road construction projects in the works and another dozen in the planning and design phase, the Department of Public Works is reviewing the current procurement process to identify necessary changes. Agency director Joanne Brown says after reviewing a number of the ongoing projects, it appears that the government's awarding of contracts to companies submitting the lowest bid, is not resulting in the government receiving the best product.

The director adding the agency's expectations are higher, telling KUAM News, "But as I mentioned simply the low bid, then they'll come back and say we have a change order. And we say, 'No, no that's in the contract. We're not gonna pay you anymore.' You have to look at the specs of what's in the contract and we will be looking at the specs of the contract."

Brown says it's not DPW's job to babysit contractors. Officials are also looking at possibly including an exit evaluation in future contracts that would allow DPW to pay based on the quality of work performed. She also stressed the need for more professional engineers and additional staff to assist with the growing number of construction projects.