A husband and wife who owned two asphalt paving companies agreed to a $360,756 settlement with the state for alleged antitrust violations, according to a Dec. 6 press release from the Connecticut Office of the Attorney General.
An investigation conducted by the Attorney General’s office found that the companies, B&W Paving & Landscaping, LLC (B&W) and Advanced Resources, LLC (AR), violated the Connecticut Antitrust Act. The companies, which are owned by a married couple James and Linda Wray, are accused of illegally rigged a bid for a state paving contract by sharing “sensitive pricing information and precoordinated winning bids.”
“Under the settlement agreement, the two contractors – B&W and AR – and their respective principals, a husband and wife, were alleged to have harmed competition in the supply of asphalt paving services to state agencies and municipalities that relied upon the bids submitted under the state contract,” the press release stated.
According to the release, their actions “created a false appearance of competition and manipulated the competitive bidding process for subcontracted work in violation of federal and state antitrust laws.”
The Attorney General’s office began investigating the companies in early 2023. This settlement agreement ended that investigation, according to the press release.
“The alleged actions of these asphalt paving companies and their principals were a blatant attempt to rig the bidding process and manipulate the market for public contracts,” Attorney General William Tong said in the press statement. “Bid-rigging illegally eliminates competition–hurting consumers and taxpayers alike. We will continue to aggressively protect the integrity of our state procurement system and will hold those who distort the marketplace accountable.”
The contractors and their principals, the husband and wife who own the companies, agreed to pay the state $216,454 in civil penalties. The rest of the settlement—$144,302—is deferred on the condition that the contractors abide by the terms of the agreement. They will have to dissolve and divest from AR. On top of that, B&W will have to “adopt a robust antitrust compliance program to help ensure that they do not violate the antitrust laws in the future.” B & W will also have to cooperate with future antitrust investigations.
The Wrays deny any wrongdoing. In an email sent to Inside Investigator, attorney Carolyn Young said the state’s press release “was misleading regarding the nature of the allegations and settlement.”
Wray’s legal team sent a statement that said, “From the outset of the investigation, and as clearly stated in the settlement agreement, our clients cooperated fully with the State’s investigation. At the same time, they fully and vigorously denied all allegations of wrongdoing alleged by the state. They continue to deny any and all allegations of wrongdoing, both in practice and in substance.”
It went on to say, “The current settlement of the Attorney General’s accusations was reached without any findings of fact or admission of wrongdoing… The decision to settle the matter and pay an exorbitant fine to the State represented a very difficult business decision based solely on our clients’ desire to avoid protracted and expensive litigation.”
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