Author: agcnews
Both Nonresidential and Residential Spending Retreat from January Levels amid Extreme Winter Weather; Association Posts Inflation Alert to Aid Understanding of Squeeze on Nonresidential Construction Firms Construction spending slumped in February as unseasonably severe weather hammered the industry and a decline in new projects squeezed nonresidential contractors experiencing rising costs and delivery times, according to an analysis of new federal construction spending data by the Associated General Contractors of America. The association posted a Construction Inflation Alert to inform project owners and government officials about the threat to project completion dates and contractors’ financial health. “The downturn in February reflects both an unfavorable change…
The infrastructure investment included in the Biden Infrastructure Plan would be funded through a variety of broad tax increases, primarily aimed at multinational corporations, but that would also impact domestic C-corporations, including some construction firms. Increased taxes on pass-through businesses, individual tax rates, estate taxes, capital gains taxes, and payroll taxes, are expected in the next “human infrastructure” package to be released in the near future. The primary funding mechanism would be to increase the corporate tax rate from the current 21% rate to 28%. This is in line with President Biden’s campaign tax plan, as well as a proposal from…
President Biden’s $2 trillion infrastructure plan includes new workforce investments, labor preferences and the PRO Act. The overall labor intent of the plan is to prioritize the construction investments are made with union labor. And, the Administration hopes to do just that with including the PRO Act in its plan. The PRO Act continues to be a top priority of the AFL-CIO to overturn decades of federal labor policy to arm unions with practically every legal and tactical advantage to gain the most favorable terms possible. While the PRO Act passed the U.S. House earlier this year, it has stalled in…
The chief executive officer of the Associated General Contractors of America, Stephen E. Sandherr, issued the following statement in reaction to the unveiling today of President Biden’s new infrastructure proposal as well as related plans to raise taxes and impose new regulatory and labor requirements on employers: “We greet the President’s new infrastructure proposal with mixed emotions. On one hand, the President is right to focus on rebuilding a broad range of aging and overburdened infrastructure and modernizing buildings. These investments will create a significant number of new construction career opportunities that traditionally pay well above jobs in other industries.…
On March 15, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) released a notice for public input on its current recommendations for disclosing climate risks and how it could change or supplement that process in the future. The Commission currently relies on its 2010 guidance to help entities understand how to identify and report on climate risks that could impact investors. Now, the SEC faces considerable pressure to revisit and expand the guidance to include more on material risks and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors. The SEC is asking for feedback on 15 topics associated with the regulation of climate disclosures—including how the rules should…
On March 31, President Joe Biden released the American Jobs Plan, a $2 trillion, wide-ranging infrastructure proposal that seeks to invest in all modes of transportation, water, electric, broadband, public buildings, manufacturing, and much more. On the transportation front, Biden is proposing $621 billion in “additional” investment, including: While it is unclear at this time, AGC assumes this “additional” investment is meant to represent an increase in spending over current levels of funding for current surface transportation programs. The proposal did not specify whether this funding represents a one-time spending investment or an investment over multiple years. While the relation to current funding…
After delaying the opening of the 2019 EEO-1 Component 1 Data Collections on May 8, 2020 in light of the COVID-19 public health emergency, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has announced that the collections will now open on Monday, April 26, 2021. The deadline for submitting 2019 and 2020 EEO-1 Component 1 data will be Monday, July 19, 2021. Recognizing the continuing differential impacts of the pandemic on workplaces nationwide and the requirement to submit two years of EEO-1 data, the EEOC is extending the data collection period this year from 10 weeks to 12 weeks to provide employers additional time…
The U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) recently announced the Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act (VEVRAA) hiring benchmark for 2021. Effective March 31, 2021, the hiring benchmark will be 5.6 percent, slightly down from 5.7 percent in 2020. This benchmark is an annual goal for the percentage of hires who are veterans at each affirmative action plan (AAP) establishment VEVRAA requires contractors with written affirmative action programs (AAPs) to either establish hiring benchmarks for protected veterans each year or to adopt the OFCCP’s annual national benchmark. As a result of this requirement, contractors must compare…
Every week brings new reports of materials costs hitting record highs, while lead times lengthen or become ever more uncertain. AGC of America recently released a Construction Inflation Alert. This document is intended to help chapters and members explain to owners, government officials, and others, what is happening and what all parties can do to minimize the damage. AGC will hold a webinar on “Soaring Material and Supply-Chain Costs and Delays: What to Expect, How to Cope” on Wednesday, April 14, 3:30-4:30 pm EDT. This timely program will cover the latest information on current costs and supply-chain issues for a variety of…
The Nevada Chapter Construction Leadership Council (CLC), founded in 2013, fulfills the need to cultivate the next generation of leaders in the construction industry. CLC provides an opportunity for members to network, develop leadership skills, serve their community, and exchange ideas about the industry and challenges they face as mid-career professionals. Although the pandemic made it nearly impossible to conduct any in-person events or meetings, we managed to make magic happen! Thankfully, we had already been putting on a successful Sporting Clay Shoot and this was our 7th year in a row. Although we had to postpone the event until August…