In regards to what must be included in determining whether a public works project's total cost exceeds the contract limit, the following should be considered:

R.S. 38:2212 (C)(1) notes that the total cost of a public works project is determined by including the costs of all labor, materials, and equipment as per the rates in the latest edition of the Associated Equipment Dealers Rental Rate Book and administrative overhead, not to exceed 15 % and R.S. 38:2212(V) states that a public entity cannot divide a public works contract into smaller projects in order to avoid complying with the provisions of the Public Bid Law.

Therefore, a public entity must include all aspects of the construction of the public work (especially plumbing) in determining if the total project cost will exceed $250,000 and thus be required to be advertised for bid.

Further, a public entity may not divide various elements of the public works project into separate contracts in order to avoid bidding out the entire project.