On October 18, AGC of America formally weighed in against the Biden Administration’s government-mandated project labor agreement proposed rule, amplified by more than 8,500 communications from AGC members against the proposal. 

The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) has proposed a regulation regarding interest rate assumptions in determining a withdrawing employer’s liability to a multiemployer plan, which could have significant implications for the unionized construction industry.

With AGC members recently identifying significant supply chain issues with transformers and electrical components, AGC joined with other contractor organizations detailing the problem with the White House and seeking further engagement.

On October 13, AGC pushed back against a Federal Highway Administration proposal that would ultimately restrict states’ ability to invest in certain road and bridge projects and instead focus on reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

The U.S. Department of Labor has put forth a new test for determining whether someone is an employee or independent contractor under the Fair Labor Standards Act that could tilt the balance in that determination towards employee status. 

Some of the Justices questioned the clarity of the significant nexus test and whether homeowners could be expected to know something the federal government itself can have a hard time determining.

AGC provided solutions to the challenges facing our nation’s infrastructure, and how the GSA can better partner with the construction industry. 

GSA is prioritizing low-carbon selections for the construction materials it identifies as intensive materials for construction and building projects.

AGC attended the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) retirement ceremony for Mr. Alvin Lee, Director of Civil Works.

AGC recently submitted comments supporting the Buy America waiver for EV chargers and encouraged FHWA to not set an arbitrary expiration date for the waiver, but rather to focus on market research of American manufacturing of EV chargers.

93 percent of construction firms have reported that they are experiencing material shortages and/or allocations.

AGC will provide the agency comments by the November 4 deadline on the reporting and documentation requirements of the new labor requirements.

A federal court ruled against the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program and thereby placed the program’s future and the nearly 100,000 individuals in the construction industry working under DACA work authorization under legal threat.

Thanks to AGC legislative and regulatory victories, on October 28 federal construction agencies will begin publicly posting their change order policies and procedures as well as disclosing their change order data on small business construction contracts.

Once consideration of Sen. Joe Manchin’s (D-W.Va.) environmental permitting reform bill was removed from the government funding bill, it easily passed the U.S. Senate and is expected to pass in the House as well.

In this episode, Bill Judge of Drug Screening Compliance Institute discusses best practices surrounding company drug-testing policies and employee safety in the workplace.

AGC goes to the U.S. Supreme Court to defend the practice of pre-bid interaction between public owners and contactors that ultimately leads to better RFPs and projects.

AGC has the latest on Senator Joe Manchin’s (D-W.Va.) legislation for his long-awaited permitting reform for energy infrastructure, as the clock ticks towards another government shutdown.   

AGC continues to press public owners for reasonable price adjustments and makes some headway.

Democratic leaders promised Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) a vote on environmental permitting reform for his vote on the Inflation Reduction Act and Senate Republicans have a bill for him to consider.