White House photo by Chuck Kennedy Obama announces his selection of Pritzker for Commerce secretary, Froman for U.S. trade representative. Related Links: Pritzker bio Froman bio (from State Dept. 2009) Seeking to fill top economic posts in his administration, President Obama has selected Chicago businesswoman Penny Pritzker as his nominee to lead the Commerce Dept. and White House aide Michael Froman to be U.S. Trade Representative.The choices, announced on May 2, are of keen interest to design firms, contractors and construction equipment and materials companies that want to expand their business overseas or fight what they view as unfair trade
Related Links: Disputed Shift by Insurance Brokers Entangles Contractor Clients Watch Out for Workers' Comp Costs Effective this March, the Insurance Services Office (ISO) revised its forms and endorsements for commercial general liability. This latest round of CGL changes is the largest the industry has seen in years. Major and minor modifications, along with new endorsements, could significantly affect, and in some cases narrow, the scope of CGL coverage moving forward. While insurers are obligated to notify insureds about changes that affect policy coverage, as always, the burden of due diligence ultimately falls on contractors to understand their coverage and
Related Links: Text of Senate-passed Bill Sequester's Construction Cuts Exceed $4 Billion (ENR 3/2/13) Industry officials are disappointed a newly approved bill lets the Federal Aviation Administration shift construction funds to pay for the cancelled furloughs of air traffic controllers.The Senate passed the bill on April 25, the day it was introduced, and the House cleared it on April 26. President Obama is expected to sign the bill.The bipartisan action was sparked when the FAA, citing mandatory budget sequester cuts, began furloughs on April 21, which caused flight delays. Under the sequester, which took effect on March 1, most FAA
Related Links: Keystone XL Pipeline Clears a Hurdle EPA's April 22 letter The significance of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's critique of the State Dept.'s draft supplemental environmental impact statement for the Keystone XL pipeline is, apparently, in the eye of the beholder.Proponents of TransCanada's $5.3-billion project say EPA's April 22 letter to the State Dept. is nothing more than a call for tweaking the environmental document to address some lingering issues. However, opponents say EPA's comments pose important questions.Sabrina Fang, an American Petroleum Institute spokeswoman, says the project "is safe and will create tens of thousands of well-paying jobs.
Related Links: April 23 Court Ruling (PDF) Earthjustice Amicus Brief The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit has handed environmental groups a victory in their battle to restrict mountaintop removal mining, but coal advocates say the recent decision is not necessarily the death knell for the practice.The appeals court ruled on April 23 that the Environmental Protection Agency has the authority under the Clean Water Act to retroactively veto a previously approved U.S. Army Corps of Engineers dredging permit.In 2011, EPA overturned a 2007 Corps permit issued to the Mingo Logan Coal Co., a subsidiary of
Related Links: Foxx bio Obama remarks announcing Foxx's selection Moving to fill one of the few remaining Cabinet vacancies for his second term, President Obama announced on April 29 that he will nominate Charlotte, N.C., Mayor Anthony Foxx to lead the U.S. Dept. of Transportation.FoxxIf the Senate confirms Foxx, he would face major infrastructure issues. Topping the list, construction and transportation industry officials say, is finding a way to shore up the ailing Highway Trust Fund and provide more-assured financing for roads and transit beyond next year.In addition, DOT like all federal agencies, will continue to face severe near-term pressure
Related Links: Foxx biographical sketch Obama remarks announcing Foxx's selection Moving to fill one of the few remaining Cabinet vacancies of his second term, President Obama has announced that he will nominate Charlotte, N.C., Mayor Anthony Foxx to lead the U.S. Dept. of Transportation.If the Senate confirms Foxx, he will face major infrastructure issues. Topping the list, construction and transportation industry officials say, is finding a way to shore up the ailing Highway Trust Fund and, beyond next year, provide more-assured financing for roads and transit.In announcing the selection on April 29, Obama said Foxx will be "extraordinarily effective" at
Related Links: Text of FAA bill ACI-NA statement Congress has approved legislation to give the Federal Aviation Administration more funding flexibility to let it cancel furloughs of air traffic controllers but airport groups are unhappy that the bill lets FAA shift money from airport construction aid to pay the increased personnel costs.The Senate passed the FAA bill on April 25—the same day it was introduced—and the House cleared it April 26. The bill next goes to the White House for President Obama’s expected signature.The rapid, bipartisan congressional action was sparked when FAA furloughs started on April 21 and flight delays
Related Links: EPA's Proposed Effluent Guidelines for the Steam Electric Power Generating Category Sierra Club Press Release Regarding EPA Plan Environmental groups praised the Environmental Protection Agency for proposing new coal-plant water pollution standards to limit the amounts and types of toxic metals and other pollutants released into America's waterways.EPA's proposed effluent limitation guidelines for steam-electric powerplants, released on April 19 to comply with a consent-decree deadline, primarily target coal-fired powerplants that use wet-ash handling and scrubbers, but they also will affect some nuclear, oil and natural-gas plants.The Sierra Club says the standards are necessary for reducing water pollution from
Related Links: Obama Nominates Justice Dept. Official to Lead Labor Dept. HELP Committee Ranking Member Lamar Alexander's opening statement Tom Perez, President Obama's pick to serve as the next Labor secretary, faced tough questioning from GOP lawmakers at his April 18 confirmation hearing before the Senate labor committee.But Democrats portrayed Perez, who heads the Justice Dept.'s civil-rights division, as a well-qualified consensus-builder who earned the support of both business and labor groups during his stints as Maryland's labor secretary and as a Montgomery County, Md., council member.Ranking member Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) said he had concerns about Perez's role in the
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