Contract specifications

2.27 To foster competition, a key factor is a good tender document-one that recognizes the capabilities and limitations of the local private sector and enables it to bid competitively toward providing an acceptable standard of service.

2.28 Because contracting has been used extensively as the primary mode of privatizing in the United States, substantial guidance is available in the literature issued by various American associations. For instance, contracting issues are discussed and a model contract is provided in the excellent book entitled Solid Waste Collection Practice, which was written by the American Public Works Association (1975). Model contracts are also available in the United States from the National Solid Waste Management Association, whose members are predominantly private contractors, and from the Solid Waste Association of North America, whose members are largely from municipal government (34, 35). In addition, the city of Phoenix has a well-conceived document entitled "Management Procedure for Preparing Cost Estimate for City Services under Consideration to be Performed by Private Industry on a Contractual Basis," which provides a framework for how to establish public-private competition to optimize cost-effectiveness (26).