It is troubling that the Chattanooga City Council still seems to be considering rigging the bidding process to give preference to local contractors even when they do not necessarily have the best bids.
We certainly support the many fine local contractors who do excellent work in a variety of fields, and we are glad when they submit the best, most cost-effective bids for either local or out-of-town work.
But adopting an ordinance that would give them a leg up even when their bids are more costly is unwise for multiple reasons:
* If the city awarded a job to a higher local bidder, city taxpayers would have to foot the bill for the difference between the local bid and a lower out-of-town bid. That amounts to a tax increase.
* If Chattanooga puts up obstacles to out-of-town companies bidding for work here, it is likely that cities such as Atlanta, Knoxville and Nashville would set up similar barriers. That would disadvantage the many Chattanooga-area workers who often travel to those and other cities to work.