Take Action: Urge Your U.S. Senators and Representative to Support H.R. 2751  On March 5, the U.S. House of Representatives Small Business Committee unanimously approved by voice vote the Common Sense Construction Contracting Act of 2013, H.R. 2751, introduced by Representative Richard Hanna (R-N.Y.).  This legislation would essentially prohibit federal agencies from procuring construction services through reverse auctions.  This is the first major hurdle the bill had to jump before coming law. However, more hurdles remain ahead in the legislative process. Please take action and urge your U.S. Senators and Representative to support H.R. 2751.

Get Involved at www.HardhatsforHighways.org   With your Senators and Representatives working in their home states next week, it is the perfect opportunity to get involved in the Hardhats for Highways campaign.  Contact your members of Congress today to set up meetings with each office and educate them on the connection between local jobs and federal highway and transit investment.

In a stunning final special election result from Florida on Tuesday, AGC PAC-supported candidate David Jolly (R), upset favored candidate Alex Sink (D). The campaign's conclusion carries national implications.  Mr. Jolly won the race 48.5 - 46.6 percent, with 4.8 percent going to Libertarian Party nominee Lucas Overby. The Republican victory margin was 3,456 votes from a huge total of 183,627 ballots cast. The seat was vacant due to the death of 43-year congressional veteran Bill Young (R) who passed away last October, just days after announcing that he would not seek re-election in 2014.

This week, the Obama Administration announced its plans to issue an Executive Order requiring the Department of Labor (DOL) to make changes to the regulations governing which employees are entitled to overtime under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).  While the details of the Executive Order have not been released, it is expected to increase the minimum pay employees must receive to qualify as exempt from $455 per week to $984 per week. In addition to the minimum pay requirements, employees must also perform certain types of work to qualify for the exemption.  The primary duties test, the evaluation typically used to determine whether the type of work an employee is performing qualifies for the exemption, is also expected to change. Both changes are expected to have an impact on the construction industry. 

AGC submitted comments to the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) on a Draft Core Toll Concessions Public Private Partnership Model Contract Guide for P3 concessions using tolling as the revenue source. The Guide was prepared by FHWA in response to a requirement in MAP-21 that the agency develop model transaction documents for P3s. It is the first of several Guides that FHWA intends to produce dealing with P3 arrangements. AGC’s comments were favorable about the Guide pointing out that FHWA did a good job of balancing the desire for not mandating specific contract language with the equally strong desire to make P3s more uniform from a risk allocation point of view. AGC participated in a Listening Session that DOT held seeking suggestions on how to implement this MAP-21 directive and also previously submitted written comments and suggested at those sessions that FHWA not develop any mandatory contract language.

Administration to Send Reauthorization Plan to Congress in April This week, committees in the Senate and the House heard from the U.S. Secretary of Transportation Anthony Foxx and other Department officials about their FY 2015 budget submission, MAP-21 reauthorization, and how they intend to administer highway and transit programs considering the pending insolvency of the Highway Trust Fund (HTF).

On Nov. 7, 2013, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued a proposed rule to amend its current recordkeeping regulations to require the electronic submission of injury and illness information. The proposed rule would require construction firms with more than 250 employees to electronically submit detailed records on a quarterly basis to OSHA, which would then be made available to the public online. OSHA is also proposing that firms with 20-249 employees be required to submit only their summary of work-related injuries and illnesses once a year.

On Wednesday, Richard Fierce, senior vice president at Fluor, testified in front of the House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee’s Panel on Public-Private Partnerships (P3 Panel). The purpose of the hearing was to provide an overview on the use of public-private partnerships in highway and transit projects. Other members on the panel included representatives from the Texas Department of Transportation, the Denver Regional Transportation Department, and the Congressional Budget Office. All of the witnesses, including Mr. Fierce, agreed that the only solution to addressing our infrastructure funding gap is to provide address the pending Highway Trust Fund solvency and provide a long-term sustainable revenue source as part of reauthorizing MAP-21.

Get Involved at www.HardhatsforHighways.org With the federal Highway Trust Fund projected to be unable to support any new highway, bridge or public transportation improvements in fiscal year 2015, the AGC co-chaired Transportation Construction Coalition (TCC) is launching a new national outreach campaign called “Hardhats for Highways.”  This campaign – which was launched yesterday in Las Vegas at CONEXPO/CONAGG, one of the world’s largest construction trade shows, where more than 125,000 industry professionals are gathered – is designed to help educate Congress about the connection between local jobs and federal highway and transit investment.  

The first-in-the-nation primary vote was held on Tuesday, and few surprises were noted.  Sen. John Cornyn (R) – facing seven Republican opponents including Rep. Steve Stockman (R-TX-36) – was successfully re-nominated capturing 59.4 percent of the vote with 99.9 percent of the vote counted at this writing.  Rep. Stockman scored 19.1 percent, and Tea Party favorite Dwyane Stovall posted 10.7 percent.