At AGC's National and Chapter Leadership Conference, Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-La.) took time out of his busy schedule, even as he was negotiating a critical government funding bill, to address association leaders. Despite the high-stakes environment on Capitol Hill, Johnson made it a priority to be with the AGC attendees, recognizing the vital role the construction industry plays in job creation and economic growth. His presence and message were a clear sign of his commitment to advancing policies that support construction professionals and the broader economy.

On September 23, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky granted the plaintiffs’ request for a preliminary injunction partially halting certain aspects of the U.S. Department of Transportation’s (DOT) Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) program. Specifically, DOT is temporarily blocked from mandating the use of race- and gender-based “rebuttable presumptions” for contracts impacted by DBE goals upon which the plaintiffs bid.

On August 27, the White House’s Office of Management and Budget (OMB) responded to AGC’s request to review the Build America, Buy America Act (BABAA) information collection procedures of 19 different federal agencies. OMB indicated that the 19 agencies, which had been identified as out of compliance with all requirements under the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA), have addressed those concerns and are using approved forms for their information collections.

On August 15, the Department of Defense (DoD) published a second proposed rule for the Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) program that places unified cybersecurity and information security requirements on DoD contractors and subcontractors. As AGC previously reported, the first proposed rule issued in December 2023 focused on the CMMC program and corresponding cybersecurity requirements for DoD prime and subcontractors. This latest proposed rule supplements the first proposed rule. Importantly, it contains DFARS revisions for contract clause requirements and additional guidance to federal contracting officers.

With the addition of two new federal bid protests, AGC is aware that four AGC-member construction firms have now filed federal bid protests objecting to project solicitations that require a project labor agreement (PLA). All four protests have led the government to voluntarily suspend the contract awards for the procurements while the protests are still pending. As reported recently in this article, the protests utilize a legal theory that AGC helped create with outside counsel at Fox Rothschild. All four protests are pending before the U.S. Court of Federal Claims.

Apply by Thursday, October 31, 2024!

Overturning the Chevron Doctrine Will Change How Courts Handle Lawsuits Over Federal Agency Rules

We are excited to announce the opening of the 2024 Diversity & Inclusion (D&I) Assessment, a resource designed exclusively for construction firms. This tool empowers companies to establish a baseline, measure progress, and celebrate successes in their D&I programs, policies, and practices.