Congressional Leaders and Trump Administration Release “Unified Framework” for Tax Reform
On Wednesday, Republican leaders in Congress and the Trump Administration released their “Unified Framework For Fixing Our Broken Tax Code.” As the leaders noted upon its release, this document represents the consensus position of the House, Senate, and White House on tax reform.
While the plan had a number of specifics – such as the proposed rates for ordinary income, pass-through business income, and corporate income – a number of details were left out. The expectation is that the tax writing committees in the House and Senate will take the framework as a baseline, and fill in the details through the committee process.
Among the highlights in the plan are:
- A 20 percent corporate tax rate
- Pass-through income capped at 25 percent
- Individual rates of 12, 25, and 35 percent (with a possible fourth bracket above the 35 percent bracket)
- Repeal of the estate tax
- Repeal of both the individual and corporate Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT)
- Elimination of most itemized deductions for individuals except for mortgage interest and charitable giving
- Capping net interest deductions
- Moving to a territorial system of taxation for multi-national businesses
AGC issued a supportive statement of the framework, calling it “a step in the right direction” but noting that tax reform and an infrastructure package should move together. As the Committees work to fill in the details, AGC will work to ensure that the construction industry’s priorities are satisfied.
For more information, contact Matthew Turkstra at [email protected] or (202) 547-4733.
AGC Environmental Conference Addressed Key Environmental Uncertainties on Jobsites
Join Us Again Next Year on September 12-13, 2018, in Crystal City, Virginia!
Save the date now for AGC’s 2018 Construction Environmental Conference on September 12-13 in Crystal City, Virginia.
In today’s uncertain regulatory climate, AGC’s 2017 Construction Environmental Conference (CEC) went back to the basics to help the nearly 100 people who attended this year's program ensure that their jobsites are ready to handle changing regulations and site conditions. Approximately 20 government representatives and a handful of organizations focused on sustainability were in attendance to address questions one-on-one during a unique compliance assistance hour. During the educational sessions, participants learned the management solutions, tools and best practices to plan for and meet environmental responsibilities during all phases of a project. In addition, they explored how environmental concerns fit in with estimating, permitting, acquiring and closing out properties, common pitfalls during operations, and more.
AGC appreciates the time and talent of the expert speakers at the 2017 CEC and would also like to thank the sponsors: Angler Environmental a RES Company, Cianbro, EMSL Analytical, Hanes Geo Components, The Lane Construction Corp, ORR Safety, Profile, RP Alliance, and Zurich.
For more information, please visit http://meetings.agc.org/cec/ or contact Melinda Tomaino at [email protected] or (703) 837-5415.
Tax Reform Plan
Last week, Paul Ryan announced that an outline of the Republican tax reform plan is expected to be released by the so-called “Big 6” group of negotiators the week of September 25th. The group, represented by Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin and NEC Director Gary Cohn of the Trump Administration, Speaker Paul Ryan, Ways and Means Chairman Kevin Brady in the House of Representatives, Majority Leader McConnell, and Finance Chairman Orrin Hatch in the Senate, have been meeting regularly to form a consensus Republican tax reform plan.
After the plan is released, it is expected to go through regular order in Congress, with the tax committees taking a lead in drafting the specific language of the tax reform bill. AGC will closely examine the plan released next week, and engage the committees to ensure the tax reform proposal includes AGC's tax reform priorities.
For more information, please contact Matthew Turkstra at [email protected] or (202) 547-4733.
AGC/TCC Weigh In on Effort to Repeal California Gas Tax Increase
On April 28, 2017, California Governor Jerry Brown signed Senate Bill (SB) 1, the Road Repair and Accountability Act of 2017, a 10-year, $52.4 billion transportation investment bill financed partially by the first statewide gas tax increase in 23 years. The legislation increases the state gas tax by 12 cents-per-gallon and the diesel tax by 20 cents-per-gallon, with an additional 4 percent increase in the diesel sales tax, beginning Nov. 1, 2017. The act also creates a Transportation Improvement Fee based on a vehicle’s market value and implements a Zero-Emission Vehicle Fee of $100 for electric vehicles beginning in 2020.
There is an effort by some in California to repeal SB 1 and they are calling for the issue to be on the ballot in November 2018. Members of the California Republican Congressional delegation are considering formally supporting the repeal effort in hopes of increasing voter turnout and thereby, hopefully protecting all incumbent Republicans and increasing the number of Republicans in the House as well as other elected bodies.
AGC and the Transportation Construction Coalition (TCC) have joined with AGC of California, the San Diego Chapter of AGC and other transportation improvement allies in opposing this repeal effort. In letters to the California’s Congressional delegation, TCC expressed strong opposition to such an effort and encouraged individual members of the delegation to also oppose it. The letter points out that our nation’s transportation funding challenges are well documented and the only way to address them is to increase funding at all levels of government while also encouraging greater private investment where appropriate. The letter also says, “Repeal of SB 1 is ill advised and ignores the transportation infrastructure needs of California.”
For more information, please contact Brian Deery at [email protected] or (703) 837-5319.
OSHA Announces 30-Day Enforcement Policy for the Silica Standard in Construction
On Tuesday, September 20, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued a memorandum to OSHA Regional Administrators announcing how the Agency will handle enforcement of the new silica standard for the construction industry, which takes effect on September 23, 2017.
The memorandum states that during the first 30 days of enforcement OSHA will not issue citations to contractors who are putting forth good faith efforts in their attempt to comply with the new standard. For those contractors attempting to comply, OSHA will offer compliance assistance and outreach with a focus on full and proper implementation of the controls listed in Table 1. However, during an inspection, if it appears that a contractor is not making any effort to comply with the requirements of the silica standard, OSHA’s inspection will include air monitoring for exposures, and the contractors may also be considered for citations. During this time period, any proposed citations are required to be reviewed by the National Office.
The memorandum also notes that OSHA has developed interim inspection and citation guidance to be released prior to the termination of the memorandum, and that a compliance directive will be issued at a later date. AGC encourages contractors who have operations in State Plan States and are covered by the silica standard, to contact their Administrators to find out if the September 20 memorandum will be acknowledged.
For more information, please contact Kevin Cannon at (703) 837-5410 or [email protected].
Register for the Highway, Transportation & Utility Infrastructure Conference
Don’t Miss Out! Nov. 1-3, 2017
The 2017 Highway, Transportation and Utility Infrastructure Conference will take place Nov. 1-3, 2017 at the Marriott Desert Ridge in Phoenix, Arizona. The conference features excellent speakers and group interaction on a number of topics impacting the transportation and utility infrastructure construction market including: silica rule compliance, Gold Shovel Standard, future market trends, Trump Administration infrastructure initiative and more. For more information and to register, click here.
This year’s meeting runs from Wednesday to Friday and will again feature a preliminary golf tournament to prepare you for two days of intense learning. Join your industry colleagues in Phoenix.
For more information, contact Brian Deery at [email protected] or (703) 837-5319.
Trump Nominates Trombino as Federal Highway Administrator
President Trump has nominated Paul Trombino, the former director of the Iowa Department of Transportation, to serve as the next administrator of the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). Mr. Trombino came to the Iowa DOT in April 2011 after 17 years with the Wisconsin Department of Transportation. He served as the 2016 AASHTO president and was active on the AASHTO-AGC-ARTBA Joint Committee. Mr. Trombino was well respected by industry and his peers during his tenure as DOT director.
During his service in Iowa, he played a key role in pushing the Iowa Legislature to approve a 10-cent-per-gallon increase in gasoline and diesel fuel taxes to generate about $200 million annually in additional money for state and local road and bridge construction projects. He also was involved in an initiative in which Iowa is attempting to become one of the first states in the nation to develop a digital driver’s license that can be used as an app on smartphones. The U.S. Senate must still confirm Mr. Trombino as FHWA Administrator.
For more information, contact Brian Deery at [email protected] or (703) 837-5319.
Government Funded through December, Congress Works on FY18 Funding
Last week Congress averted a fiscal showdown at the end of the month by passing a short-term funding bill through Dec. 8 that included a down payment on disaster relief and raising the debt ceiling. Congress must still work to pass a bill that funds the government for the full 2018 fiscal year. This week the House finish considering all 12 annual appropriations bills, the first time in more than a decade that the House has passed all 12 bills before the end of a current fiscal year.
The House-passed funding bills include many AGC priorities. The bill that funds the Department of Labor includes funding cuts, but not on the same level as the president’s budget request. The bulk of the president’s proposed funding cuts were to job training programs, and ultimately, the House restored much of that funding. The bill contained policy changes supported by AGC such as amendments that would block OSHA’s record keeping rule that prohibited post-accident drug testing, block the NLRB controversial quickie election rule and overturn the NLRBs new joint employer standard. The bill also contains a prohibition that the OFCCP and EEOC merge together as the president’s budget had requested.
The House-passed bill does include a prohibition on OSHA Susan Harwood Training Grants. However, AGC remains hopeful that the Senate version, which provides full funding for the grants, will survive the full legislative process. It also includes language that would prohibit the Federal Election Commission from using FY18 funds to enforce prior approval on corporate-member trade associations like AGC of America.
With the House completing its work for FY 2018, the package must be negotiated with the Senate prior to becoming law. At this point it remains uncertain how many of the policy provisions could survive the Senate process and how deep funding cuts could be.
For more information, contact Jim Young at [email protected] or (202) 547-0133.
Congress Asks About Streamlining Permitting
AGC Submits Recommendations
AGC submitted testimony to the House Small Business Committee at a hearing entitled “Expediting Economic Growth: How Streamlining Federal Permitting Can Cut Red Tape for Small Businesses.” AGC took the opportunity to urge Congress to implement reforms to the federal environmental review and permitting process. Time and money is wasted on redoing project analyses and reviews and on collecting duplicate information from permit applicants. AGC included its flow chart of environmental permits to illustrate some of the regulatory hurdles that contractors must overcome.
Additionally, AGC recommended that Congress require a nationwide merger of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the Clean Water Act Section 404 permitting processes, with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers issuing a 404 permit at the end of the NEPA process based on the information generated by NEPA. The monitoring, mitigation and other environmental planning work performed during the NEPA process, and included the final Environmental Impact Statement / Record of Decision, must satisfy federal environmental permitting requirements unless there is a material change in the project. Further, AGC urged Congress to consider a reasonable and measured approach to citizen suit reform to prevent misuse of environmental laws. These lawsuits can take years to resolve and, in far too many cases, litigation impedes projects that are vital to the renovation and improvement of our nation’s infrastructure.
AGC will continue to advocate in Congress and with the Administration for practical regulatory reform and additional infrastructure funding.
You can read AGC’s Enviro Permit Flow Chart Backgrounder.
You can read AGC’s Reforms for Improving Federal Environmental Review and Permitting.
For more information, contact [email protected] or (703) 837-5368.
Federal Contractor “Blacklisting” Provision Resurfaces in Senate Bill, AGC Working To Remove It
The fiscal year 2018 National Defense Authorization Act includes a provision that would require contracting officers to consider violations of the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSH Act) as part of the responsibility determination process prior to award of DoD contract. The provision ultimately gives contracting officers the ability to debar a construction contractor on a contract-by-contract basis with little cause. Prime contractors will also be responsible for evaluating violations of subcontractors at all tiers. AGC’s regulatory counsel authored an article earlier this year on the full impact of the provision.
The provision is substantially similar to President Obama’s Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces Executive Order that Congress repealed earlier this year by using the Congressional Review Act. While the new provision in the NDAA targets only one labor law, the OSH Act, it remains substantially similar to the executive order and AGC strongly opposes it for many of the same reasons. The provision is unnecessary; there is no significant evidence that labor violations by federal contractors is widespread and the federal government already has the ability to suspend and debar bad actors in the event a violation occurs.
A legislative attempt to strip the language from the Senate bill has been offered by Senator Jim Inhofe. While the amendment is unlikely to be included prior to the larger bill, the NDAA, passing the Senate, it still must be reconciled with a House version that passed earlier this year and did not include any blacklisting like language. AGC will be working with Congressional leaders to remove the blacklisting language from the final bill.
For more information, contact Jim Young at [email protected] or (202) 547-0133.