LaFAYETTE — The Chambers County Commission had a by-the-numbers meeting Monday night, approving several new and renewing highway department bids for the upcoming fiscal year.

Since each bid had to have its own resolution, County Engineer Josh Harvill read out each bid renewal and award proposal for the commissioners to vote on. All of the highway department’s recommended bids were voted in unanimously and without discussion, except for one.

Chambers County had been using W.H. Thomas oil for all their fuel needs, but with an increase in price, Harvill believed it was time for a change.

“This is a big [decision] for the whole county,” Harvill said. “WH Thomas has our current bid and they have practically doubled their freight price so they were beat by a new bidder here, Petroleum Traders.”

Petroleum Traders Corp is a wholesale fuel supplier in the United States. Harvill said that their freight price, in other words, what it would cost to bring the oil to the county, was a better choice for Chambers.

“All they bid on is the delivery of the fuel,” he said. “The profit margin of the freight, that’s their bid.”

Discussion on the bid came from County Attorney Skip McCoy, who cited in times past when fuel providers changed their prices after the bid was accepted. His concern, which was shared by several commissioners, was that there may be language within the bid contract that would stop any change in the agreement.

Harvill agreed with the sentiment, but being that the current contract for county fuel runs out in October and the county needed a new one to continue receiving gasoline and diesel, that would be something they included when it came for renewal next year.

“I don’t want to put ourselves in the position where we can’t get fuel in October,” Harvill said.

The commission unanimously voted to accept the bid from Petroleum Traders Corp.

Other renewed and awarded bids were for necessary products like cold mix, bulk cement, riprap, HDPE pipe, granite, limestone and concrete. The commission also voted to continue the county’s license agreement with Diversified Computer Services, or DCS, that provides asset management software.

Also at Monday night’s commission meeting, Major Mike Parrish of the Chambers County Sheriff’s Office commended officer Lavetta Brock for completing the Alabama Jail Training Academy and presented her with
a certificate of completion.