Federal Contractor Report

 

Register today for the 2019 AGC Federal Contractors Conference taking place June 10-12, 2019 in Washington, D.C. The Federal Contractors Conference discusses the latest projects, policies and contracting issues facing the industry with federal agencies, including the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Naval Facility Engineering Command, Air Force Civil Engineer Center, General Services Administration, Department of Veterans Affairs, Department of State, Natural Resources Conservation Service, and Bureau of Reclamation.

 

 

On April 11, several AGC members from throughout New England met with House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee Ranking Member Sam Graves (R-Mo.) for a Boston roundtable discussion on issues impacting the construction industry. Rep. Graves provided attendees with an update on an infrastructure package and surface transportation reauthorization AGC continues to press Congress to reauthorize the federal highway and transit programs and include a Highway Trust Fund fix in any infrastructure package considered this year.

For more information, contact Sean O’Neill at oneills@agc.org.

 

 

On April 2, General Services Administration (GSA) Administrator Emily Murphy headlined the AGC Federal and Heavy Construction Division Session at AGC’s 100th Annual Convention in Denver, Colorado. Administrator Murphy spoke about the value of AGC’s partnership during her time working on congressional committees and now at GSA Headquarters. She leads a staff of more than 11,000 employees nationwide and approximately $55 billion in annual contracts. Following Administrator Murphy’s remarks was a presentation reviewing the recently completed Laredo Land Port of Entry project by GSA and Brasfield & Gorrie, LLC.

 

On April 1, the U. S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) Wage and Hour Division (WHD) unveiled a proposed rule to revise and clarify the responsibilities of employers and joint employers to employees in joint employer arrangements. This proposal intends to ensure employers and joint employers clearly understand their responsibilities to pay at least the federal minimum wage for all hours worked and overtime for all hours worked over 40 in a workweek. AGC will provide input to the DOL on the impact this update might have on the construction industry and will notify members of any developments.

 

On March 13, the U. S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) Wage and Hour Division (WHD) announced a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) updating the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) overtime regulations. This new proposal would update the salary threshold using current wage data, projected to January 1, 2020. The result would boost the standard salary threshold for exempt employees from $455 to $679 per week (equivalent to $35,308 per year). The NPRM comes following a 2017 Request for Information (RFI) and is in line with AGC’s formal recommendations.

 

The construction industry is experiencing record economic activity with low unemployment and little expectation that the current domestic workforce can alone meet employment demand. Currently, our nation's immigration system provides the high-tech sector, agricultural businesses, and seasonal employers with options for guest workers. It does not for the construction industry.

 

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has opened the EEO-1 online reporting portal following a recent court order reinstating the previously revised Obama administration EEO-1 form’s pay data reporting requirements that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) halted in 2017. The EEO-1 is an annual survey that requires all private employers with 100 or more employees and federal government contractors or first-tier subcontractors with 50 or more employees and a federal contract, sub¬contract or purchase order amounting to $50,000 or more to file the EEO-1 report. Barring EEOC action or an appeal by the administration before the survey’s deadline—May 31, 2019—filers should be prepared for the pay data requirements to be included in the survey.

 

Over the decades, determining where federal Clean Water Act jurisdiction lies has added regulatory uncertainty, delay, and cost to construction projects throughout the nation. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) recently proposed “Waters of the United States” (WOTUS) rule will help construction projects move forward in a timelier manner, clearly limit federal jurisdiction over water and wetlands, and continue to protect our nation’s clean water. Please contact the EPA today to let them know that you support clear federal clean water permitting guidelines.

For more information contact Melinda Tomaino at tomainom@agc.org or (703) 837-5415.

 

 

Each year AGC of America conducts a survey of members involved in highway construction work to evaluate the state of highway work zone safety. We want to collect information on the number, severity, impacts and potential solutions to highway work zone crashes. Our intention is to use the information we collect from this survey as the main focus of a media and public education campaign we will launch the week before Memorial Day, the traditional start of the summer driving season.