Follow-Up on Contracting Issues at Denver International Airport

Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed contracting practices relating to contracts awarded to build the Denver International Airport. GAO found that: (1) the city and county of Denver awarded 321 prime contracts valued at $2.96 billion for the airport's construction; (2) 36 of the contracts were paid in part with federal grant funds from the Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) Airport Improvement Program (AIP); (3) all 17 of the construction contracts paid with federal funds were awarded to the lowest bidder; (4) 16 professional services contracts, 3 pipeline relocation contracts, and all of the land purchases were negotiated agreements between Denver and the prospective contractor and were based on contractor experience and price; (5) the nonfederally funded construction and professional services contracts were awarded in the same manner as the federally funded contracts; (6) nonfederally funded other services and projects contracts were awarded on the basis of a variety of factors, including lowest bid, a negotiated price, and court orders; and (7) various other contracts and purchase orders, both federally and nonfederally funded, were awarded on bases not limited to the lowest bid.