Vendors Beware. Get Your Money Upfront From Amherst

The Amherst Town Board has refused to pay one of its vendors for more than $60,000 worth of material dating back to late summer because of improper purchasing practices by the Highway Department.

Highway Superintendent Robert Anderson was grilled by board members at Monday night’s Town Board meeting about half a dozen invoices for paving material the town purchased from Municipal Milling and Maintenance.

The Highway Department had low-bid contracts with both Municipal Milling and All American Paving for a variety of paving materials. In a series of instances, the department purchased paving materials from Municipal Milling even though All American Paving carried the low bid, a violation of state law.

Supervisor Barry Weinstein, who also serves as the town’s interim purchasing director, tried to resolve the matter by submitting a resolution authorizing him to sign a contract with Municipal Milling that was backdated to Aug. 6, 2012. The same resolution asked the board to authorize the comptroller to pay all outstanding invoices to Municipal Milling.
Read more…