Following weeks of speculation, President Obama has nominated a top current Environmental Protection Agency official and a former Clintoon administration Energy Dept. official to fill the top posts at EPA and DOE.Gina McCarthy, currently assistant administrator at EPA’s Office of Air and Radiation, has been tapped to serve as administrator of EPA; Ernest Moniz, former under secretary of energy during the Clinton administration, and currently a physicist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) to lead the DOE, Obama announced at a March 4 White House briefing.Both are expected to be confirmed, industry sources say, although some environmental groups express
Related Links: OMB sequester report, including program-by-program cuts Federal construction programs have taken a hit totaling several billion dollars under mandatory spending cuts that took effect March 1. Among the construction accounts absorbing the biggest reductions in the budget “sequester” are Dept. of Energy environmental cleanup at former nuclear weapons plants, Environmental Protection Agency water infrastructure and military construction.Cuts to major construction programs will amount to more than $4 billion, according to an initial ENR review of a March 1 Office of Management and Budget report to Congress on the sequester.That amount is in line with an early February Associated
Related Links: Sen. Vitter Press Release on James Martin Resignation A political flap over Environmental Protection Agency officials' use of "alias" emails has generated more fallout.Last fall, GOP lawmakers blasted then-EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson for using a secondary email account. They claimed the account, under the name "Richard Windsor," was a ploy to circumvent agency transparency rules.On Feb. 15, James Martin, the head of EPA's Denver-based Region 8, said he would resign. An EPA spokeswoman says Martin resigned for "personal reasons" and did not comment further. But some Republicans speculate that the email probe was a factor in Martin's decision.
Related Links: Link to National Coordinating Committee for Multiemployer Plans commission's report Link to two PBGC reports on multiemployer pension plans A commission comprising industry and union officials, including a large construction contingent, has called for short- and long-term actions, ranging from minor tweaks to major changes, to bolster the ailing multi-employer pension system.The National Coordinating Committee for Multiemployer Plans panel's Feb. 19 report may help shape bills on multi-employer pension rules. Marco Giamberardino, National Electrical Contractors Association executive director for government affairs, says, "The goal is to see legislation pass before the end of this year."The report says there
Photo by Martin Gonzalez After demolition of the dilapidated Chicago-area hotel, a federal judge halted plans for a high-end, eco-friendly conference center after allegations the developer had bilked investors. A federal judge has halted plans to construct the "world's first zero-carbon-emission platinum LEED-certified" hotel and conference center in Chicago after a federal suit accused its developer of fraudulently selling more than $145 million in securities and $11 million in fees to foreign investors.In a suit filed in February, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission alleges Anshoo Sethi, the Intercontinental Trust Center of Chicago and the Chicago Convention Center "perpetuated a
Two former employees of Trojan Labor of Nashville LLC charge in a federal lawsuit that the company violated wage and hour laws and docked their wages for safety equipment it should have provided.John T. Taylor and Michael J. Dooley are seeking class action status for themselves and all similar employees of the temporary staffing firm over the past three years.Workers had to report at Trojan Labor offices as early as 4 a.m. to sign in and get a “work ticket,” but had to wait there before going in a mandatory carpool to the jobsite, according to the suit filed Feb.
Related Links: Link to Letters From Federal Departments, Agencies Outlining Impact of Sequester Construction Industry Worries About Fiscal Cliff (ENR 12/3/12) As Congress began its Presidents Day recess, lawmakers had yet to act to undo or delay $85 billion in mandatory spending cuts slated to take effect on March 1.Senate Democrats on Feb. 14 unveiled a $110-billion package of tax hikes and other spending reductions to hold off the budget "sequester" for 10 months. But Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) dismissed the tax hikes in the plan as "a total waste of time." The cuts were to begin on
Related Links: Federal Appeals Court Invalidates NLRB Recess Appointments NLRB Appointments Generate New Wave of Controversy After a Jan. 25 federal appeals court decision determined that two appointments to the National Labor Relations Board were technically invalid, President Obama is under pressure to nominate board members that can be confirmed by the U.S. Senate.In Noel Canning v. NLRB, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit held that the appointments of Sharon Block and Richard Griffin—both Democrats—were unconstitutional because Congress was technically not in recess when the appointments were made. Organized labor, as well as some Democrats,
Related Links: Summary of Sanders-Boxer bill Lawmakers Unveil Climate-Change Bill (ENR 5/19/2010) Sens. Bernard Sanders (I-Vt.) and Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) have introduced a measure that would set fees on carbon emissions from large fossil-fuel-powered plants to help pay for renewable-energy and home weatherization projects.The bill would give consumers rebates to offset fossil-fuel-using companies' efforts to raise prices.The lawmakers announced the bill on Feb. 14, surrounded by leaders from environmental groups such as the Sierra Club and 350.org. But the bill faces an uphill battle. A 2010 Senate cap-and-trade bill failed, and the new one is likely to run into strong
Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy In his State of the Union speech, the president proposed a $40-billion 'Fix It First' plan to repair bridges, other infrastructure. Related Links: Text of Obama's State of the Union address White House background document on State of the Union proposals Construction officials were pleased to hear President Obama make a pitch in his State of the Union speech for more federal funds for infrastructure. But the proposed $50-billion infusion is similar to one Obama floated in 2011 and 2012. Congress didn't adopt those earlier proposals; with federal spending still under heavy pressure,