SACRAMENTO -- California's engineers and surveyors yesterday celebrated a state Supreme Court ruling that allows their firms to work on state highway projects.

The California Supreme Court yesterday ruled, in Professional Engineers in California Govt. vs. Will Kempton (docket# S139917), that Propostion 35 allows government to use private workers alongside state transport employees.

Proposition 35, which broadened the California Department of Transportation's (Caltrans) authority to use such firms, was passed by Californian voters in November 2000. The aim was to speed up completion of projects like road construction and bridge building while saving taxpayers' money.

Yesterday's Supreme Court decision affirmed an earlier Court of Appeals ruling against the PECG's challenge to Caltrans' interpretation of Prop. 35.

"We conclude that Proposition 35 did implicitly repeal the prior statutes regulating private contracting, but did not invalidate the prior procedure for selecting private contractors," wrote Associate Justice Carlos R. Moreno in the court's unanimous decision.

The Consulting Engineers and Land Surveyors of California (CELSOC), which originally sponsored Proposition 35, said yesterday's ruling validated the voters' original wishes.

CELSOC executive director Paul Meyer said the Supreme Court decision "removed any doubt that consulting engineers and surveyors can help the state by supplementing the existing work force."

California's Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger called the ruling "a great victory for commuters and taxpayers."