Sec. 1. 23 MRSA §753, as amended by PL 1989, c. 208, §20, is further amended to read:

§753. Contracts for construction

The department shall have has full power in the letting of all contracts for the construction of all state highways and other work under its jurisdiction, except as otherwise provided. The department shall make all surveys, plans, estimates, specifications and contracts for all proposed work and shall, except as otherwise provided in chapters 1 to 19, advertise for bids for the same electronically through the department's publicly accessible site on the Internet or through notices in newspapers.__If through newspaper notices, advertisements must appear in 2 or more public newspapers printed wholly or in part in the State, and in one public newspaper printed wholly or in part in the county where the proposed work is to be done, if any such newspaper is so printed in such that county. Such The advertisement shall must state the place where the bidders may examine the plans and specifications, and the time and place where the bids for such the work will be received by the department. Each bidder must accompany his that bidder's bid with a deposit of a good and sufficient bid bond in favor of the State for the benefit of the department, executed by a corporate surety authorized to do business in the State, or certain securities, as defined in Title 14, section 871, subsection 3, payable to the Treasurer of State, for an amount which that the department considers sufficient to guarantee that if the work is awarded to him that bidder, he the bidder will contract with the department for its due execution. All bids so submitted shall must be publicly opened and read at the time and place stated in such the advertisement. The department shall have has the right to reject any and all bids, if in its opinion good cause exists, but otherwise it the department shall award the contract to the lowest responsible bidder. Any town may submit bids for state highway construction within its limits, and shall be is subject to all requirements prescribed for other contractors, except that no a bond need be is not required of it the town. The department may construct state highways by day labor without advertising for bids; and may, with the approval of the Governor, award contracts for state highways without advertising for bids, if the same shall be is for the best interest of the State.

The department may adopt its own standard contract specifications. Notwithstanding any other federal or state law, the The department's standard specifications shall must be utilized in lieu of federally mandated contract clauses.