Governor Ryan turned to Speaker Hastert, and the bidding requirement was stripped from the bill.

The Argentine delegation rejected all of the bids twice, each time recycling the best technical aspects of the tendered designs when crafting new bidding requirements.

Some believe that the need for prevailing wages is to prevent the public sector's large expenditures and strict competitive bidding requirements from destabilizing local and regional construction markets.

Last month Ms. Roukema was the only Republican to vote for a Democratic-sponsored amendment that would have retained the competitive bidding requirement.

Mark K. Schonfeld, director of the S.E.C.'s Northeast office, said the competitive bidding requirement was a first.

In addition, the audit said, the Correction Department circumvented the city's competitive bidding requirements by purchasing less than $500 of such items as kosher sausage and soft drinks.

As part of the bidding requirements, each city had to promise to construct a bobsled and luge course and a speed-skating facility.

And aides to Mr. Cuomo stressed that strict bidding requirements made it all but impossible for the Governor to exert influence over state contracts.

Should it fail to reach a consensus, the panel could suggest alternatives, such as easing the bidding requirements, forming a public-benefit corporation to run the facilities or making no changes at all.

If not, all the technical specifications are in the cubes, as well as the bidding requirements themselves.