My sources who have access to the proposed Comprehensive Agreement between the Commonwealth of Virginia and the Dulles Transit Partners (the official name of Bechtel's group) tell me that Section 8 of this document, which is basically a contract for the elevated rail through Tysons, stipulates that all Pricing Documents will be secret and confidential. This is absurd! Is this an open democracy or not? How much and where our tax money is going is the business of the taxpayers. This is not a trade secret that should be protected. Defense contracts aren't this secret--public transportation contracts certainly shouldn't be.Furthermore, I have found that Bechtel is furiously working to rework the contract so they can make the stated price more attractive. However, I have indication that they are only hiding the true cost by changing it from a fixed price bid to a conditional one, with customary cost over-runs sure to restore their oversized margins.
Dragados has submitted a bid that is less than Bechtel's. Instead of making the better choice, Bechtel and our Virginia government is rushing to whitewash the contract figures and make the pricing documents secret. (crossposted from HansMast.com)
Wasn't it Tom Davis that once said "sunlight is the best disinfectant", Tom, do your work, push to have these documents open.
"The Bechtel family has owned Bechtel since incorporating the company in 1925. Bechtel's size, its political clout, and its penchant for privacy have made it a perennial target for journalists and politicians since the 1930s. Bechtel has maintained strong relationships with officials in many United States administrations, including those of Nixon, Reagan, George H. W. Bush, and George W. Bush. The company also has strong ties to other governments, particularly the Saudi Royal Family."
And I found this in an essay I wrote about a trip to the Boston area a few years ago. There are comments about the Big Dig made by state senator Bruce Tarr in the second paragraph. Here is the excerpt:
"Erin had invited an old friend, state senator Bruce Tarr, to join us for dinner. She had worked for a while at the Boston State House before she left the area and became friends with him through her work. Bruce was late but it was worth the wait just to hear his stories. He is an attractive clean cut young man about 35 with beautiful, sensitive brown eyes. He originates from Gloucester and is steeped in its culture."
"The conversation turned briefly to "The Big Dig". I said they should make a monster movie while the hole is still there and call it "The Thing from the Big Dig". He said that they had actually found the monster at the bottom of the Big Dig. It turned out to be Secretary of Transportation Kerasiotes who had been found guilty of graft and mismanagement which had caused billions of dollars in budget overruns. Kerasiotes has since been relieved of his position."