When will the Utah prison relocation board reveal potential new sites?

The Prison Relocation and Development Authority committee spent a lot of time Monday debating when it will publicly release information about bids it receives.

One member suggested there was no need to re-invent the wheel and that PRADA should look to other state agencies, such as UDOT, to see how they handle big bids. Here's the answer.

John Gleason, UDOT spokesman, said that once the agency awards a contract, the bid becomes public. If a contract is not awarded, all bids remain private.

PRADA seems to be moving in that direction. Some said on Monday that bids should be made public "at least" by the time the group makes a recommendation to the Utah Legislature at the end of January.

One problem: the bill authorizing PRADA to seek bids requires that it hold at least two public hearings — one in Draper and one in any community proposed as the site of a new facility. It's difficult to imagine how that can happen if the public isn't able to review the winning proposal and have some basis for offering support or criticism.

— Brooke Adams