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Pavement

NRMCA Blankets Kentucky with Concrete Overlay Promotion Blitz

A three-day, promotion-focused trip to Kentucky resulted in 54 engineers, architects, and contractors hearing about asphalt parking lots with concrete overlays, reports Jon Hansen, NRMCA senior vice president, local paving. The meetings were hosted by the Kentucky Ready Mixed Concrete Association staff members John McCord, Greg Smith and Brett Baker with NRMCA Producer member Irving Materials, Inc. (IMI) of Evansville, IN.

"This was a great opportunity to take the message to the people and have time to interact, answer questions and build relationships within the concrete construction industry," Hansen said.

For more information, contact Jon Hansen at jhansen@nrmca.org.

Association & Industry News

Nominate Your State Association for National Recognition

Nominations are now being accepted for the 2016 NRMCA State Association of the Year Award. This award recognizes state or area/regional ready mixed concrete associations making significant progress for the industry in the areas of promotion, education, advocacy and/or research. The award will be presented at the 2017 NRMCA Convention, March 4 - 6 in Las Vegas, NV. Nominations can be made by either a member company or the state association itself, with member endorsement. The deadline for nominations is Monday, December 12, so be sure to nominate your state association to receive national recognition for its efforts.

Click here to access a PDF of the nomination form. For more information or to receive an editable version of the nomination form, please contact NRMCA’s Tamara Waugh at 240-485-1132 or twaugh@nrmca.org.

Government Affairs

NRMCA Advocacy News Roundup Updated Through October 14

Media articles on Congress, transportation infrastructure, regulation, taxes and other subjects, each of which relate to the ready mixed concrete industry, are updated each week by NRMCA's Government Affairs staff. To access the most recent compilation of articles for October 10-14, 2016, please click here.

If you would like to receive this weekly updated link in a separate e-mail, or if you have questions or comments about the roundup, contact NRMCA’s Jill Landry.

NRMCA Calls on Presidential Candidates to Prioritize Transportation Investment

NRMCA along with 34 partnering transportation, materials and labor organizations sent a letter to the two major-party presidential candidates, Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton, expressing the importance of U.S. infrastructure investment. Also expressed in each letter is the need for long-term, reliable strategies needed to upgrade our nation’s aging roads, highways and bridges. In the letters, these groups reminded the candidates that Congress and the president signed into law the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act last year, but that missing from that measure was language addressing the need to create new sustainable revenue sources for the Highway Trust Fund. By leaving gaps in these issues, the groups argued that resulting uncertainty has had dramatic negative impact on the ability of state and local government to plan, fund and construct transportation projects. As a result, America’s economic competitiveness has been, and will continue to be, hampered.

NRMCA supports candidates running for re-election who support long-term, highway funding. The letters served as reminders that transportation investment has always garnered bipartisan support from every level of government involvement.

Click here to read a copy of the letter to Hillary Clinton’s campaign and here for the corresponding Trump-focused letter. For more information, please contact NRMCA’s Kerri Leininger at kleininger@nrmca.org.

NRMCA Opposes Proposed IRS Estate Tax Rules

In August, the Internal Revenue Service proposed making it more difficult for family-owned businesses, like many in the ready mixed concrete industry, to transfer assets to future generations. Specifically, the proposed regulation would limit the use of valuation discounts for family-owned businesses that the agency has said have been long abused. The proposal would not amend the tax rate ceiling on estate taxes, but would eliminate existing discounts on the valuation share assets held by the family-owned business, including ready mixed concrete company owners. Currently, the estate and gift taxes on asset transfers for individuals is 40 percent for individuals with assets in excess of $5.45 mil and in excess for couples is $10.9 mil after the death of an owner. Assets valued below that threshold can pass along a business’s assets free of federal estate tax, making this proposal quite cumbersome once finalized.

House and Senate Republican leaders are considering legislation to be included as part of the year-end spending pacakge to block Internal Revenue Service estate tax regulations on valuation discounts. Rep. Warren Davidson (R-OH) has also introduced legislation (HR 6100) to block funding for implementation of this rule should it be promulgated by the IRS. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) has introduced a companion bill (S 3436) when Congress returns after the election.

NRMCA supports legislation blocking the IRS from taking away a valuable estate planning tool from ready mixed concrete business owners. We are evaluating the proposed rule and its impact on the industry, and are working with a coalition of business groups in Washington to comment on the regulation.

For more information please contact NRMCA’s Kerri Leininger at kleininger@nrmca.org.

Buildings

NRMCA Develops Environmental Product Declaration Marketing Brochure

Many market sectors are evaluating the environmental and social practices of their suppliers, whether it is the sustainability of the company or the products it purchases.

Learn More...

FEMA Now Requires States, Cities Adopt New Building Codes for Disaster Assistance

On September 30, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) released an update to Recovery Policy FP-104-009-4.

Learn More...

OES

Registration Opens for Full Complement of NRMCA Operations Classes

NRMCA's OES Department will host seven face-to-face classes during the winter and spring months. A registration fee discount is extended to those companies that send three or more people to the same class.

• Dispatcher Course – January 10-12, 2017, Orlando

• Environmental Course – November 29 - December 1, 2016

• Frontline Supervisor Course – January 17-19, 2017 Kissimmee, FL (metro Orlando)

• Plant Manager Certification Course - January 24-27, 2017, Kansas City, MO

• Plant Manager Certification Course – February 21-29, 2017, Atlanta

• Plant Manager Certification Course – April 25-28, 2017, Seattle

• Safety Course – March 20-22, 2017, Atlanta

These classes are required to earn NRMCA's STEPS "Operations and Production" Track certification, CCPf. STEPS is the ready mixed concrete’s industry most prestigious employee professional development program, supporting career development and job retention/succession planning.

Click here to access each calendar listing for the above classes. Each link will then provide more information, including online and fax-back registration options. For more information, contact NRMCA's Jessica Walgenbach at jwalgenbach@nrmca.org or 240-485-1152.

RCC Road Overlay a First in Pennsylvania

When Shippen, PA, Township Road Master Garrett Ramsey contacted Wayne Stephen, president of Wayne Paving, the last thing he expected was to get a concrete road. Looking for repair solutions, Ramsey was seeking information on various flexible pavement options. However, Stephen suggested roller compacted concrete (RCC), reports NRMCA Vice President, Local Paving, Phil Kresge. But this was not your typical RCC placement; rather what was placed was an RCC overlay of the existing asphalt road (shown here) – the first such application on a township road in Pennsylvania.

With RCC supplied by NRMCA Producer member Wayne Concrete of Shinglehouse, PA, the unbonded overlay was placed at 5 inches in depth and compacted to 4 inches utilizing conventional asphalt paving equipment. Due to the smaller scale of the project, Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) officials were willing to waive some requirements that would have mandated more restrictive specifications. PennDOT representatives were on-site for the placement and were very interested in the application process. The roadway was re-opened to traffic in just 24 hours. Thus far, Ramsey and the roadway’s residents are very pleased with the outcome of the project. Ramsey and Stephen are currently assessing other opportunities within the township, Kresge said.

For more information, contact Wayne Stephen at wayne@waynepaving.com or Phil Kresge at pkresge@nrmca.org.

Calendar

A Look Ahead

*Please note that e-mail and direct links to each event listed below can be accessed from NRMCA's Web site.

October 24, Rosemont, IL

Regional ConcreteWorks Great Lakes Region

Email: Tamara Waugh, (240) 485-1132

November 3, Oklahoma City

Regional ConcreteWorks South Central Region

Email: Tamara Waugh, (240) 485-1132

November 7 - 11, Linthicum, MD *Sold Out

Annual "Short Course"