This week, AGC sent a letter to Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) asking for the Senate to take up and pass the Water Resources and Development Act (WRDA) of 2016 before the Senate adjourns in July for their summer recess. Additionally, the AGC co-chaired Water Infrastructure Network (WIN) sent a similar letter, and we joined 86 other associations in a separate letter further reiterating our desire for the Senate to take action.
Construction employment declined or was stagnant in 131, or 37 percent, of 358 metro areas between May 2015 and May 2016, according to a new analysis of federal employment data released today by the Associated General Contractors of America. Association officials said. The data comes as years of underfunding have contributed to declining highway, transit and other public infrastructure just 60 years after President Eisenhower signed the first interstate highway act.
<p>This week, AGC joined a group of construction employer associations in a letter to Congressional leaders calling for multiemployer pension reform. The letter highlighted how imperative it is for Congress to authorize composite plans for multiemployer plans as soon as possible. Composite Plans enjoy strong support from both labor and management in the construction industry stakeholders and we don’t think paralysis should set in because of the Treasury Department’s rejection of the Central States Rescue plan. In fact, we think it makes a stronger case for action now on Composite Plans. </p>
<p>Today, the House passed legislation to address the financial crisis in Puerto Rico. The <u><a href="http://http://newsmanager.commpartners.com/agcleg/downloads/2016-05-23%20Puerto%20Rico%20Letter.pdf">AGC-backed bill</a> </u>would create a debt-restructuring process, empower a federal oversight board to supervise the territory’s fiscal affairs and create a redevelopment authority —with no taxpayer dollars used for a bailout— that will help rebuild Puerto Rico’s infrastructure. As it stands, many Puerto Rican government entities are unable to pay contractors for work completed on government construction projects and the public and private construction markets there remain on life support.</p>
<p>A new <a href="https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2016-05-31/pdf/2016-12494.pdf"><u>rule</u> </a>by the Small Business Administration makes several changes to small business contracting regulations. These changes, set to go into effect June 30, are aimed at increasing small-business competition and enabling small businesses to potentially obtain larger contracts without increasing compliance costs. In April, AGC <a href="http://newsmanager.commpartners.com/agcleg/downloads/AGC%20Comments%20on%20SBA%20Performance%20of%20Work%20Prop%20Rule.pdf"><u>submitted comments</u></a> on the proposed rule.</p>
<p>The U.S. Supreme Court issued a <a href="http://www.scotusblog.com/case-files/cases/united-states-army-corps-of-engineers-v-hawkes-co-inc/"><u>ruling</u> </a>that will allow landowners to challenge a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers determination that a jurisdictional “Waters of the U.S.” (WOTUS) is present on property where they want to build. A “jurisdictional determination” significantly impacts how land may be used, dramatically raises costs, and often reduces the feasibility of constructing critical infrastructure. AGC submitted a joint “friend of the court” brief in the case, US Army Corps of Engineers v. Hawkes Co., making a strong case for why it is vital for contractors to know with certainty whether their property contains a WOTUS. The Court’s findings closely track the points AGC argued in <u><a href="http://www.scotusblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/15-290-bsac-American-Farm-Bureau-Federation.pdf">its joint amicus brie</a>f</u>. AGC was the only trade association to advance the commercial construction industry’s interest in the outcome of this case and, once again, AGC has succeeded in changing facts on the ground. This decision will have a material impact on the way that the Section 404 permit program actually functions.</p>
The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) announced this week the eleven technologies and practices that are being promoted as part of the fourth-round of Every Day Counts (EDC) for 2017-2018. EDC is FHWA’s state-based initiative to deploy proven innovations to shorten and enhance project delivery. FHWA will offer technical assistance, training and resources to help transportation agencies and stakeholders adopt the innovations in 2017 and 2018.
AGC held a WebEd this week to inform members and chapters about developments in the use of mileage based user fees to fund transportation infrastructure investments at the federal and state levels in the future. Participants heard from Jack Basso, former DOT Budget Director and Chairman of the Mileage Based Use Fee Alliance (MBUFA), who discussed the current depleted status of the Highway Trust Fund and the need to find alternative revenue sources to supplement and possibly replace the gas tax. Bob Arnold, Director of DOT’s Office of Transportation Management reported on provisions in the FAST Act which provided $95 million in grant funding to support states in implementing pilot programs to test various alternative user fee initiatives for purposes of maintaining the future long-term solvency of the Federal Highway Trust Fund. Finally, Malcolm Dougherty, Director of CalTrans, reported on California’s road charge pilot program.
On June 21, 2016, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) finalized a new and comprehensive set of rules for the commercial use of small drones in all industries, including construction. This action completes a rulemaking process that the FAA began in February of 2015 – in an effort to meet Congressional demands and to stem a rapidly rising tide of applications for individual exemptions from longstanding rules that make no distinction between manned and unmanned aircraft. Through January 20 of this year, the FAA had granted 3,136 of these exemptions for the commerc
A large construction company with many subsidiaries triggered withdrawal liability of almost $1 million under controlled group liability principles in the Multiemployer Pension Plan Amendment Act (“MPPAA”) when it purchased a nonunion construction company.
On May 31, 2016, the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB” or “Board”) issued a decision holding that an employer's right to hire permanent replacement for economic strikers is not unlimited, and that an employer must be circumspect about its reasons for seeking permanent replacements or risk substantial penalties. The case is American Baptist Homes of the West (“American Baptist”), and has ominous overtones for the future.
