Section 1512 of the Recovery Act requires information about the project and the jobs it creates, and salary disclosure for certain federal contractors to be reported to the central federal Web site, www.federalreporting.gov.At 12:01 A.M. on August 17, 2009, that website is scheduled to go live and recipients of Recovery funds will be able to register as the first step in the reporting process mandated by the Recovery Act. To register, recipients must already have a DUNS number and CCR number.Registration will continue through September 30, 2009, with reporting officially beginning on October 1, 2009 through October 10, 2009. For more information on the reporting requirements contained in the Recovery Act, click here (for federal contractors), here (for federally-assisted work), and here (for more information about the reporting process). For OMB's guidance and forms associated with reporting, see recipient reporting information.

On July 14, 2009, the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Council issued a notice of proposed rulemaking implementing President Obama's Executive Order 13502, which creates new FAR contract clauses to be included in Federal contracts should an agency choose to require a Project Labor Agreement (PLA) on a particular Federal construction project. Comments are due on August 13, 2009.In short, the proposed rule (FAR Case 2009-005) would:Provide a new FAR Subpart 22.5, Use of Project Labor Agreements for Federal Construction Projects;Add a new provision at 52.222-XX, Notice of Requirement for Project Labor Agreement, to be included in solicitations where the agency has exercised its discretion to require a project labor agreement as prescribed at FAR 22.505(a);Add a new clause 52.222-YY, Project Labor Agreement, to be included in contracts in accordance with FAR 22.505(b).The proposed rule seems to implement the executive order carefully, without expansion, by encouraging (not requiring) agencies to consider (not necessarily adopt) a PLA requirement on large-scale construction projects (defined as projects with a total cost to the federal government of $25 million or more) on a project-by-project basis where certain criteria are met. It expressly leaves to the contracting agency discretion to decide whether or not to require a PLA.AGC is encouraging agencies to exercise this discretion prudently, leaving the decision of whether to perform the work under a collective bargaining agreement up to the contractor-employers and their employees, as provided under federal labor law. AGC believes that it is inappropriate for public agencies to use their contracting authority to interfere with labor relations among private employers and employees, and explained that position to White House and other officials at a recent meeting about PLAs.The proposed rule includes standards for all PLAs issued under the rule. These include that the PLA must "allow all contractors and subcontractors to compete for contracts and subcontracts without regard to whether they are otherwise parties to collective bargaining agreements." AGC intends to point out in its comments how this ostensibly fair principle is unrealistic, considering the very burdensome changes that a public PLA typically imposes on open shop contractors operations.

This week, President Obama visited Mexico and stated that he did not expect comprehensive immigration reform to be done this year and that he expected the issue to be taken up in 2010.    However, Members of Congress remain interested in the subject with some hoping to at least get legislation introduced in October so that negotiations can begin this year. In addition, some lawmakers are giving more thought to working on smaller immigration bills.  AGC remains active in conversations in both the House and the Senate with regard to items of concern for the construction industry, including employer enforcement, employment verification, changes to visa programs and the development of any future flow program.   AGC supported comprehensive immigration reform during the 110th Congress.  Though the economic climate is a difficult one right now for Congress to discuss this issue, AGC will remain involved and track developments closely.

Despite Congress leaving Washington, D.C., until September, the debate and furor over health care reform legislation has followed them home. Members of Congress on both sides of the aisle continue to hear from constituentS in support and opposition to the current health care reform legislation.While the vocal opposition at recent town hall meetings has centered around end-of-life care and the creation of a public option, AGC remains concerned with provisions in the current House proposal relating to financing and employer mandates. Although the three House committees of jurisdiction passed their respective portions of the bill, it could still change before the bill is debated on the House floor.Senate Finance Committee members continue to actively look toward finding a bipartisan solution. The Committee is expected to release some legislation in September. Although it appears that President Obama's goal of signing a bill by October may pass, Democratic leaders remain committed to passing an overhaul bill this year with or without bipartisan support.AGC continues to encourage members to use the Legislative Action Center to voice their opposition to the America's Affordable Health Choices Act.

The Senate Appropriations Committee has now approved its version of the FY 2010 transportation appropriations legislation. The bill provides $42.5 billion for the highway program, a 4.4 percent increase over FY 2009 and transit program funding of $11.1, a nine percent increase over FY 2009.The bill also provides $3.5 billion for the Airport Improvement Program, the same amount appropriated in the past two years. Previously, the House approved its version of the bill, which included lower amounts for highways ($41.1 billion) and transit ($10.5 billion). The Senate bill includes $1.2 billion for high-speed passenger rail improvements-$2.8 billion less than the amount in the House bill. While the appropriations bill is required, action to extend transportation program authorization - and provide additional Highway Trust Fund revenue beyond the $7 billion recently approved by the House and Senate - is necessary before the appropriated funds can be sent to the states.

The White House on July 29 formally unveiled contracting and workforce reforms that are designed to save the taxpayers at least $40 billion a year. The reforms, released by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), focus on three areas: improving acquisition, managing the multi-sector workforce and contractor performance information.Previously, President Obama established in a March 4 memorandum his principles for contracting reform, and charged the OMB with identifying the best approaches to accomplish his goals.The guidance requires agencies to reduce contracts by a minimum of seven percent, with special focus on "high-risk" contracts, such as non-competitive contracts and cost-reimbursement contracts. The guidance also requires agencies for the first time to track contractor performance through a new unified database, the Past Performance Information Retrieval System (PPIRS) located at www.ppirs.gov. The White House reports that federal agencies will be able to check on a contractor's past performance before signing a new contract with it. OMB will monitor their compliance with this requirement and will publicly release statistics on agency compliance.The guidance on managing the multi-sector workforce lays out a new framework for managing the workforce that evaluates all the functions an organization performs to assess if an agency has achieved the best combination of public and private labor resources to serve the American people. Agencies will be required to pilot this new framework by examining at least one program, project or activity where the agency has concerns about over-reliance on contractors.A second phase of contracting guidance is scheduled to be released in September. This next phase will focus on maximizing competition, choosing appropriate contract types, building the capacity of the federal acquisition workforce and clarifying when outsourcing is appropriate.AGC will continue to engage with key Administration decision-makers and contracting leaders on Capitol Hill as these issues further develop.

Senate Environment and Public Works Committee staff have indicated that S. 1005, the Water Infrastructure Financing Act of 2009, will not come up for a vote before for the full Senate until legislators return from the August recess in September.S.1005 authorizes $39.191 billion for EPA water infrastructure programs over the next five years, including: $20 billion for the Clean Water State Revolving Fund Program and $14.7 billion for the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund Program. Annual dollars authorized for EPA SRF Programs are detailed in the chart below.SRF20102011201220132014TotalClean Water$3.2b$3.2b$3.6b$4b$6b$20bDrinking Water$1.5b$2b$2b$3.2b$6b$14.7bOther key programs funded in the bill include $1.8 billion for Sewer Overflow Grants, $1.43 billion for the Critical Drinking Water Infrastructure Grant Program, grants for reducing lead in drinking water and technical assistance for small, rural and disadvantaged communities.AGC members are encouraged to contact their Senators to urge support of S.1005 using AGC's Legislative Action Center.

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) provides significant funding for states to finance high priority infrastructure projects needed to ensure clean water and safe drinking water. The Act also includes "Buy American" provisions that require Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF) and Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF) projects to use domestic iron, steel and manufactured goods. According to EPA officials, 10 individual project-specific Buy American Waivers have been granted for water infrastructure projects using Recovery Act Funds. The following list contains Buy America Waiver notices published in the Federal Register to date.Project/Regional Waivers7/28/2009 - Sharon Elementary School Water System, Sharon, Vermont7/28/2009 - Lewiston, ME Department of Public Services7/9/2009 - Claywood Park Public Service District, West Virginia6/29/2009 - State of New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services' Winnipesaukee River Basin Bureau6/22/2009 - Auburn, Maine, Sewerage DistrictNationwide Waivers6/2/2009 - de minimis Incidental Components of Projects Financed Through the Clean or Drinking Water State Revolving Funds Using Assistance Provided Under ARRA6/2/2009 - Projects that Solicited Bids on or after October 1, 2008 and prior to February 17, 2009 that are Financed through the Clean or Drinking Water State Revolving Funds using Assistance Provided under ARRA4/7/2009 - Projects With Debt Incurred on or After October 1, 2008 and Before February 17, 2009 That Are Refinanced Through the Clean or Drinking Water State Revolving Funds Using Assistance Provided Under ARRA

The Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure met on Friday, July 31, to examine progress to date on implementing the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The hearing primarily addressed implementation efforts in non-transportation programs under the Committee's jurisdiction, including environmental, inland waterways and public buildings infrastructure. T&I Committee members received status  updates from agencies receiving Recovery Act dollars under its jurisdiction, including the EPA , U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the General Services Administration and Coast Guard. With the exception of the highway funds, Chairman Jim Oberstar (D-Minn.) and other members of the committee expressed deep concern with the lack of construction activity underway with Recovery Act dollars and the rate in which Recovery Act funds were translating into contracts. He further expressed consternation over the problems being caused by the 'Buy American' provisions inserted into the Recovery Act and the effect they were having on contracts getting put out to bid. AGC was among the first to identify these problems. Click here for video and additional information about the T&I "160 Day Report Card." This comes on the heels of AGC CEO Steve Sandherr's letter to 27 federal agency heads concerning the pace that Recovery Act dollars are flowing through the agencies and in the form of contracts available for bid. With more than one million construction workers having lost their jobs over the past year, AGC expressed concerns that given the high unemployment rate that remains in the industry, it is ready to put the Recovery Act to work.

Despite the congressional recess, the President and Congress continue to work on health care. Just today, Senate Finance Committee members sat down with the President to discuss how to deliver a bipartisan bill.Prior to the traditional summer break, the House was able to finish marking up H.R. 3200, America's Affordable Health Choices Act of 2009, which will now be readied for floor debate in September.  The Senate is moving slower on health care but is expected to resume consideration in September.  As concern over the creation of a public option and the rising costs mount, Democrats are feeling pressure from voters on the principles in the House version of the bill, which may result in a Senate bill that is more bipartisan. The House bill creates health insurance exchanges, essential benefit packages that will mandate the benefits that must be offered, and insurance reform. It also expands Medicaid and includes a payroll tax for firms not offering minimum benefits. The bill also includes surtaxes on individuals to help offset the cost of the bill. Finally, the most controversial and expensive portion of H.R. 3200, is the public option, which is designed to compete with private insurance.Based on AGC's analysis, AGC members and their employees will face a nearly impossible task of keeping insurance coverage, paying for coverage and maintaining an acceptable level of coverage without being pushed into a national plan. As such, AGC currently opposes the health care reform proposals in Congress and encourages members to use the Legislative Action Center to write their congressional delegation and urge them to oppose the bill.