The chief executive officer of the Associated General Contractors of America, Stephen E. Sandherr, issued the following statement in reaction to President Obama's State of the Union address: "It is encouraging that the president identified getting swift passage of both new long-term surface transportation and Water Resources Development bills as among his top priorities for the year.  We expect Congress will heed his call for action on these two critical pieces of legislation and will work aggressively to help ensure their swift passage.  We also expect that the administration's FY 2015 budget proposal will reflect the president's priorities and provide additional details about how to address chronic revenue shortfalls that once again threaten the viability of the Highway Trust Fund.

Congress Willing to Spend Money on Construction to Save Money in Long-Run The appropriations law Congress passed last week sets the General Services Administration’s (GSA) FY 2014 construction funding at $1.5 billion—about $500 million for new construction and $1 billion for repairs and alterations. That’s more money for GSA construction than the last three fiscal years’ funding combined.

Green Globes May Also be Considered by DOD Agencies The Department of Defense (DOD) may now consider and award projects that include LEED Platinum and Gold certifications. The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for FY 2012 included a ban on FY 2012 funds for LEED gold or platinum construction for DOD. That ban was extended and expanded in the NDAA for FY 2013, not only to FY 2012 and FY 2013 funds, but all DOD funds whether appropriated or not.  On Dec. 26, 2013, President Obama signed the NDAA for FY 2014, which did not extend that ban in any form.

On Jan. 21, AGC sent a letter opposing the possible use of a project labor agreement (PLA) mandate posted by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Wilmington District for two projects at Fort Bragg, N.C.

This week, AGC CEO Steve Sandherr sent a letter to President Obama, preceding his State of the Union address on Tuesday, Jan. 28.  The letter asks the president to deliver definitive bipartisan solutions to ensure more investment in our nation’s aging infrastructure.

With optimism growing in national Republican circles that the party can capture the Senate majority this November, former Republican National Committee Chairman Ed Gillespie made his candidacy official last week when he announced his challenge to Sen. Mark Warner (D).

Rumors have been swirling for months that Louisiana Sen. David Vitter (R) was seriously considering a gubernatorial run. On Tuesday, the two-term senator made it official and announced his intention to seek the state’s top post.

Oklahoma Sen. Tom Coburn (R) announced last week that he will resign from Congress at the end of 2014, thus allowing a replacement special election to occur on the regular 2014 election calendar.

The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and U.S. DOT continue to produce regulations and guidance in response to changes that were contained in MAP-21 transportation reauthorization legislation. The latest from FHWA is guidance for implementation of changes made in the Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality (CMAQ) program, which is a special category of highway funding to be used for transportation projects that improve air quality in areas not in compliance with air standards. AGC was successful in expanding the eligibility detailed in MAP-21 for the use of CMAQ funds to assist contractors in retrofitting their off-road construction equipment in air non-attainment areas when required by the contract and addressed this same issue in comments to FHWA on the proposed guidance.

Yesterday, the House passed H.R. 3547, the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2014, by a vote of 359 - 67.  This evening the Senate passed the bill by a vote of 72-26.  The bill comes after Congress failed to pass any of the 12 appropriations bills for fiscal year (FY) 2014.  AGC advocated for the passage of the bill to ensure predictability for FY 2014 federal construction programs.