Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Heated testimony as committee examines design-build-maintain bills; industry warns of higher costs and limited competition
Summary
House Bills 5175 and 5176 would enable design-build-maintain contracting for road projects with negotiated long-term maintenance obligations. Sponsors argued the approach would improve longevity and accountability; industry groups and county road officials warned mandatory use could raise costs, limit competition, strain bonding capacity, and complicate maintenance duties. The committee paused votes to seek further input, including MDOT testimony.
Lawmakers and industry representatives spent the bulk of the hearing on House Bills 5175 and 5176, companion measures intended to allow — and in some versions encourage — longer-term 'design, build, maintain' contracts for road reconstruction projects.
Sponsor Representative Cara described the concept as a middle ground that preserves government oversight while assigning day-to-day accountability and longer-term durability to private contractors. "Design, build, maintain largely proposes... the private sector would have more responsibility... not just building the road, but how are we going to do it cost effectively for the longevity of the road," Cara said. Representative Alexander said the bills complement…
Already have an account? Log in
Subscribe to keep reading
Unlock the rest of this article — and every article on Citizen Portal.
- Unlimited articles
- AI-powered breakdowns of topics, speakers, decisions, and budgets
- Instant alerts when your location has a new meeting
- Follow topics and more locations
- 1,000 AI Insights / month, plus AI Chat
