The Chief Executive Officer of the Associated General Contractors of America, Stephen E. Sandherr, issued the following statement in response to the release today of a new Biden administration rule imposing government-mandated project labor agreements on federal construction projects valued at $35 million or more:
Texas and Kentucky Top Rankings of Year-over-Year Increases, While New York and North Dakota Lag; Texas and Oklahoma Lead in Monthly Gains, While New York, Ohio, New Jersey Experience Largest Declines
On Dec. 22, 91¶ÌÊÓƵ again pushed back on the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) effort to establish a one-sized-fits-all national standard for heat injury and illness prevention in outdoor and indoor settings.
On Dec. 18, the Biden administration announced its government-mandated project labor agreement (PLA) final rule that requires PLAs on direct federal construction projects of $35 million or more, with limited exceptions. 91¶ÌÊÓƵ has long prepared to and will fight this executive overreach in court.
New Mandate will Make it Even Harder for Construction Firms to Build Projects, will Undermine Efforts to Diversify the Construction Industry and will Punish Taxpayers, Association Warns
The 91¶ÌÊÓƵ Mental Health & Suicide Prevention Forum meets virtually on a quarterly basis to gather/share information, resources, and best practices among stakeholders in the construction industry. The first-quarter forum is scheduled for January 24, 2pm – 3pm, Eastern Time. If you would like to participate in the forum, please sign up here. You are encouraged to browse the website created to house important and lifesaving tools related to mental health and suicide prevention.
A takeaway from this year’s Construction Superconference was a growing apprehension regarding the risk associated with design-build projects, especially for large mega projects. In four key sessions, concerns surfaced about the project delivery method’s efficacy in fairly allocating risk. Concerns about risk in design-build have previously been reported in ENR. The debate continues over how to share risk and reward among all the parties to the construction process. Amidst these concerns, progressive design-build emerged as a promising variation to the traditional design-build approach. Progressive design-build emphasizes a qualifications-based selection to expedite decision-making and reduce costs. This article explores the pivotal discussions at the Construction Superconference, revealing the industry's quest for a more balanced and efficient approach to risk allocation in design-build projects.
In November, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) quietly released draft guidance on when discharges to surface waters via groundwater would require a Clean Water Act section 402 permit (National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System). Regulated entities will need to determine whether a permit is necessary before discharges occur, and EPA will act if unauthorized discharges to waters of the United States (WOTUS) are discovered. This new guidance may impact the common practices of groundwater recharge and reinfiltration.