July is here and things are hot! The high temperatures have many seeking to enjoy the lazy days of summer with a cold beverage and a cool body of water. However, that is not the case with AGCVA. We have been busy producing results and returning value….action on behalf of our members. We are 6 months into our new strategic plan, and I am excited to give a brief report on the amazing progress being made in our three core pillars – Advocate, Grow, and Connect.
Advocate: The issue of pay-if-paid and the bill that passed last session (SB 550) is an issue that affects all our members. Part of this momentous piece of legislation created a workgroup with the Department of General Services (DGS) to review the impact of the new statute. AGCVA is one of a handful of parties that has a seat at the table to provide input on the new law. In order to provide beneficial input to this workgroup we have implemented our own internal workgroup consisting of member companies representing general contractor, subcontractor, legal and bonding industries. This group has met multiple times and has made immense progress toward a stance that supports all our members.
If you haven’t seen it already, I encourage you to check out the new logo for our AGCVA PAC. Suggested by our PAC Committee, this catchy logo was designed completely in house by AGCVA staff, and looks amazing. This logo comes at a perfect time as next year’s Virginia elections could have huge implications on how we conduct business. Thus, the importance of the AGCVA PAC has never been greater. The PAC Committee has a lofty goal of raising $200,000 in time for these elections. In response to this, I challenged our state Board of Directors to give to achieve 100% board participation. Now the PAC Committee and I want to issue a similar challenge to all our districts and our members. If we all chip in, not only can we achieve this goal, but I’m certain we can beat it. Our members are already stepping up in our advocacy efforts, we have seen a nearly 40% increase in member participation in advocacy efforts. Please take the time to sign up for our action alerts and donate to the PAC. Every dollar matters.
Grow: It is a goal of AGCVA to make inclusivity a core value, not just a buzzword or box to be checked; a true part of our everyday beliefs and actions. The first step has happened with the official launch of our DEI Committee. The group is exploring a myriad of ways to engage women and minority owned groups, expanding our combined experiences to further our efforts . Along with DEI, AGCVA continues to focus on the construction industry’s workforce development and is hosting a forum and tabletop trade show at our Summer Conference with multiple agencies across the state. Members attending this conference will come away with the tools and information on how they can plug into existing AGCVA partnerships with these groups. Additionally, the Safety Roundtable (formerly the Safety Taskforce) continues to meet and recently held a sobering yet important conversation on active shooter situations. This was a well-attended presentation and provided members with valuable information that we all pray will never be put to use. Finally, our Young Construction Leader groups have remained active throughout the state. Please continue to support these young members by attending their gatherings and sharing insights from your construction experiences.
Connect: AGCVA districts have been very active across the state hosting some great events and our members are showing up. Recently, districts are reporting consistently high attendance, including some attendance records and event sell-outs. It is wonderful to see our members getting back together and connecting with such gusto. We plan to carry these results right into 2023 and staff will begin to reach out to our incoming district leaders to begin the process of planning for next year.
The AGCVA Board of Directors will receive a full, detailed report on all this activity at the upcoming board meeting, as well as a review on a recommendation from the board-appointed Dues Task Force on potential changes for upcoming dues cycle. Dues have not changed in the last three years and the board will be considering a modest increase to keep up with the cost of delivering value to members. Please feel free to reach out to your district’s board representative for a full update after the Summer Conference.
Thank you for your continued support of the AGCVA and our wonderful industry.