Corps of Engineers Withdraws PLA Requirement on Army Reserve Project

Once again, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) initially required that a contractor submit an executed project labor agreement (PLA), this time on an Army Reserve project in Los Alamitos, California.  Over the past week, AGC members and staff made inquiries to the Louisville District Command in charge of the project, demanding justification for including a PLA mandate in a solicitation. Like previous efforts, the inquiries questioned how it determined that the conditions listed in President Obama's executive order on PLAs were present. On September 1, USACE informed potential bidders that the requirement had been removed.  AGC pointed out that the executive order leaves the agency free to refrain from requiring a PLA on the Patrick Air Force Base project and that it permits the agency to require a PLA only if the USACE has determined that all of the following conditions exist: 1.    The project will cost the federal government $25 million or more; 2.    Use of a PLA on the project will advance the federal government's interest in achieving economy and efficiency in federal procurement; 3.    Use of a PLA on the project will advance the federal government's interest in producing labor-management stability; 4.    Use of a PLA on the project will advance the federal government's interest in ensuring compliance with laws and regulations governing safety and health, equal employment opportunity, labor and employment standards, and other matters; and 5.    Use of a PLA will be consistent with law. This is the latest of AGC's continuing efforts to educate government agencies about PLA issues and implications.  While AGC neither supports nor opposes PLAs in general, AGC strongly opposes government mandates for PLAs on publicly funded construction projects.  AGC is committed to free and open competition in all public construction markets and believes that publicly funded contracts should be awarded without regard to the lawful labor relations policies and practices of the government contractor.