Author: agcnews

The House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee advances AGC-supported legislation to repeal a new Waters of the U.S. (WOTUS) rule that would expand federal permitting jurisdiction over wetlands and more construction projects. On February 28, the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee approved AGC-backed legislation (H.J. Res. 27) that would repeal the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Army Corps of Engineers’ new Waters of the U.S. (WOTUS) rule. The legislative action complements AGC’s ongoing litigation to reverse the rule. The administration released its new WOTUS rule despite the fact the U.S. Supreme Court is currently weighing the scope of the Clear Water Act as part…

Total construction spending decreased by 0.1 percent in January, as declines in single-family homebuilding and public construction offset marginal gains from private nonresidential construction, according to an analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America today of new federal data. Association officials said a lack of clear guidance from officials in Washington is delaying expenditures on much-needed infrastructure and energy projects. “Laws enacted more than six months ago created unprecedented funding and tax credits for a wide range of transportation, environmental, energy and manufacturing projects,” said Ken Simonson, the association’s chief economist. “But few contractors have actually won contracts yet.”…

On February 13, AGC submitted comments to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), agreeing with agency’s tentative plans to reject an environmental group’s request to list discarded polyvinyl chloride (PVC or vinyl) as hazardous waste under federal law. According to EPA, the Center for Biological Diversity’s legal petition, filed back in 2014, does not support regulation under the waste law and EPA lacks the needed resources to do so. These valid arguments are outlined in EPA’s “tentative” denial of the petition, on which the agency solicited public comment. AGC urged EPA to firmly and finally deny this petition for rulemaking. In addition…

The new report, 2022 National Construction Industry Workforce Summit: Success Stories and New Strategies offers a comprehensive summary of AGC’s most-recent Workforce Summit. This includes over 40 new workforce development solutions crafted by Summit participants, as well as details about what firms, AGC chapters and educators are already doing that is helping address the industry’s workforce needs. Please use this report as a resource for ideas about ways to better recruit, train and retain the industry’s workforce. We trust you will find the information in the report useful and encourage you to share it with colleagues as appropriate. And do not hesitate…

The Construction Labor Research Council (CLRC) reports that the first contract year of new collective bargaining settlements reached in 2022 for union craft workers in the construction industry yielded an average wage-and-benefit increase of 3.8 percent or $2.34. The rate of growth in package increases between 2020 and 2022 was higher than at any time in more than a decade, CLRC observed, attributing the steep incline to inflation rather than to labor shortages or COVID effects. CLRC projects annual increases to average approximately 4.2 percent by 2024. Every region saw growth, and the increases were larger in 2022 than in 2021 for…

AGC recently submitted formal comments to the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB” or “Board”) on a proposed rule to modify certain union representation case procedures. AGC joined with other employer groups in filing joint comments through the Coalition for a Democratic Workplace (“CDW”) and filed our own supplementary comments focused on construction-industry issues. The Board’s proposed rule seeks to rescind regulations issued during the Trump Administration and return to the prior status quo. The Trump-era regulations changed three NLRB policies, two of which apply employers across all private industries – the “blocking charge” and “recognition bar” policies – and one…

In light of price escalation, supply chain challenges, and inflation, more industry practitioners are considering and using cost-of-the-work agreements that may or may not include a guaranteed maximum price (GMP). ConsensusDocs publishes several cost-of-the-work agreements and recently released a new standard contract document to support a cost-of-the-work agreement with a GMP as well as a directed change order standard form. Setting the GMP When a GMP is used, it is set by amendment. The ConsensusDocs 230 Standard Agreement Between an Owner and Constructor with General Conditions (Cost of the Work with a Fee and a GMP) assumes a GMP. For the ConsensusDocs…

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit recently ruled that Central States, Southeast and Southwest Areas Pension Fund may continue its lawsuit against Transervice Logistics, Inc. and Zenith Logistics, Inc. seeking allegedly outstanding pension fund contributions. The case examined two consolidated appeals, each involving a nearly identical collective bargaining agreement (CBA) between each employer and a union, and trust agreements between each employer and the plaintiff fund. The court was asked to determine whether the employers were required to maintain contributions to a multiemployer pension plan pursuant to so-called “evergreen clauses” that renewed the CBAs each year unless timely terminated.…

Join AGC Charities and the Boys & Girls Clubs of Southern Nevada for a community painting project at the Reynolds Clubhouse on Sunday, March 12, 2023! This event offers a fantastic opportunity for volunteers to come together and make a positive impact on the local community. Participants will help revitalize the clubhouse, creating a brighter, more welcoming environment for the children who attend. Whether you’re an experienced painter or a first-timer, your efforts will contribute to enhancing the space where young people can learn, grow, and thrive. Don’t miss out on this chance to give back and connect with others…

On February 16, AGC weighed in on a proposed rule that would create new and onerous greenhouse gas reporting requirements for virtually every federal construction contractor. On February 16, AGC submitted extensive regulatory comments on a proposed rule (FAR Case 2021-015) that would create new and onerous greenhouse gas (GHG) reporting requirements for virtually every direct federal construction contractor (contractors who work on federal agency contracts—Army Corps, General Services Administration, etc.—at the prime or subcontractor level). The rule does not apply to federal-aid transportation contracts issued by state departments of transportation. The proposed rule introduces two new categorizes for federal contractors, “significant contractors” and…