he Transportation Construction Coalition (TCC) sent a letter to all members of the new 115th Congress urging that it get off to a productive start and show the American public that its intention to make good on campaign pledges to work together in the best interest of the country by completing action now on a fully funded FY 2017 transportation appropriations measure. The letter points out that many state DOTs are unable to put their full list of construction projects out to bid because Congress has only approved FY 2017 funding for highway and transit programs through April 28, 2017. In addition, because the DOT funding is currently part of a continuing resolution to fund the entire government at FY 2016 levels, the highway and transit programs are funded at 2 percent below the level authorized in the one year old FAST Act. You are urged to also contact your Congressional delegation and urge them to complete action on this important funding bill. A message is available for you to send through the Hardhats for Highways site and can be accessed here. http://hardhatsforhighways.org/

Plan on participating in a National conference April 4-6, 2017 in Sparks, Nevada on, "Advancing Best Practices in the ART of Partnering." AGC of America, AGC of Nevada, and Las Vegas Chapter AGC are working with the Nevada Department of Transportation (NDOT) and the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) in this initiative emphasizing the need for partnering; highlighting the top two or three state of the art partnering practices; and, showcasing how these recognized leaders are supporting and advancing the use of partnering on highway construction projects.The conference is targeted at state DOT officials, contractors, chapter staff, and FHWA. AGC members are encouraged to participate to bring the contractor perspective to the issue of partnering. Further information, including registration and hotel details is available here.

The Senate Commerce Committee held a confirmation January 11, 2017 for President-elect Trump’s nominee to head the Department of Transportation, Elaine Chao. Ms. Chao – who previously served as the Secretary of Labor under President George W. Bush and the Deputy Secretary of Transportation in President George H.W. Bush’s Administration – is expected to help shape an infrastructure plan that has been promised by President-elect Trump. Secretary-Nominee Chao offered no specifics of what a Trump infrastructure plan would include but she did acknowledge that the challenges with any plan lie in how it is paid for. During the hearing she expressed the belief that both direct federal spending and private financing will be a part of the incoming administration’s proposal. She went on the say that seeing a fix for the Highway Trust Fund – which will again be facing insolvency in 2020 – will be a “top priority” for the Department.

The federal highway Administration (FHWA) issued final rules on performance measures for congestion and freight movement that include requirements for states to measure and report CO2 (Greenhouse Gas- GHG) emissions from on-road vehicles for projects receiving federal funding. AGC and numerous other groups and Members of Congress advised FHWA in formal comments on the proposal that it lacked authority to expand into CO2 emissions but FHWA said it didn’t agree. In a separate action, the Department of Transportation (USDOT) released updated implementation procedures for states to use to comply with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). Not only did USDOT rush these procedures out for publication with limited (21 days) for comment, the document adds a new level of oversight to the environmental review process. This undermines efforts by Congress in the past three transportation authorization bills and previous administrations to streamline environmental review and shrink the time it takes for project approval.

Talking Points Can be Found at www.HardhatsforHighways.org While Members of Congress are back home for the remainder of the year, the AGC co-chaired Transportation Construction Coalition (TCC) is urging our members to contact their Members of Congress – either in person or via email – and encourage them to permanently fix for the Highway Trust Fund. A new Congress and administration could provide the opportunity to fix the trust fund either through tax reform and/or an infrastructure package (as promised by President-Elect Trump).

Marcia Kellogg There are just some clients that your business cannot afford to have - you know who they are: the ones who are highly commodity-based and have limited experience, whose projects result in little or no profit, and who are a drain on your firm and its resources. Instead of trying to find projects that suit the firm, client-based firms identify clients with whom they can develop and nurture a partnership over time. It’s a philosophy that is primarily interested in owning the client, not the project. Most importantly, the focus of a client-based business is maintaining the relationship at all costs. Firms that align their cultures with the business goals and objectives of their clients realize a vast improvement in performance, because they have a true belief and purpose in the project and the client with whom they are working, and this spirit resonates throughout everything they do.

Julie Huval, Beck Technology The acronym “BIM” is showing up more and more in our industry. Owners are requiring it on projects, countries are setting standards for it, and firms are touting expertise in it. But what is Building Information Modeling (BIM) and, as marketers and business developers, why should we care?

AGC chapters have been successful in promoting state transportation funding initiatives over the past several years. Success at State Level – Since 2013 – includes a mix of revenue options:

If all stakeholders aren’t on board with Lean, can it work? How do you use Lean principles on construction projects where the GC is not an advocate of Lean? You can still improve your project outcomes even if all the stakeholders aren’t on board. In this webinar, learn how Ted Angelo, with Grunau has been effective using Lean by focusing his team on what they control.

The 78% increase in the Occupational Health and Safety Administration's penalty structure is now in effect, as are new reporting and record-keeping rules. OSHA is working hard to get the word out and offer employers guidance, but contractors should stay on top of OSHA's efforts.