A final regulation implementing a February 2009 executive order encouraging project labor agreements on big federal construction jobs drew criticism and praise. The Associated Builders and Contractors says the rule exceeds statutory authority, but the AFL-CIO Building and Construction Trades Dept. supports the regulation. The rule, published on April 13, doesn’t mandate PLAs but encourages agencies to consider them on projects of $25 million or more.
The Federal Highway Administration again has denied Pennsylvania’s proposal to put tolls on the state’s 311-mile stretch of Interstate 80. Pennsylvania says the denial will cost it about $460 million a year in projected revenue for roads and transit. After FHWA’s April 6 ruling, Pennsylvania Gov. Edward Rendell (D) said he will call a special session of the Legislature to address how to deal with the loss of the hoped-for funds. U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said FHWA’s decision was based “on what is allowable under federal law.” Under a federal pilot program, revenue from proposed new tolls on an
In just one year, federally subsidized Build America Bonds for public-works projects have become a hot item. Volume soared to $90 billion, and localities saved more than $12 billion, the Treasury Dept. said in an April 2 report. The program, created by 2009’s American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, is set to expire on Dec. 31, but the House voted to extend it and President Obama wants to make it permanent. Demand is strong. Treasury, citing data from Bloomberg, says that as of March 31, states and localities had gone to market with 1,066 Build America Bond (BAB) issues, totaling more
International donors have pledged $5.3 billion for the first stage of a plan to help earthquake-devastated Haiti rebuild. Among pledges made at a March 31 conference was $1.15 billion from the U.S. Haiti says it will need $3.9 billion for the 18-month first phase of the plan. The Jan. 12 magnitude-7 quake caused more than 220,000 deaths and destroyed about $4.3 billion in housing, roads and other infrastructure.
The Environmental Protection Agency on April 1 issued guidance that for the first time provides a numeric benchmark to measure the level of salt in water affected by mountaintop mining in Appalachia. Currently, states use “narrative” standards, which do not include numeric benchmarks. The guidance, a blow to the mining industry, identifies a range of conductivity of 300-500 microSiemens per centimeter in streams affected by mining runoff. The guidance took effect immediately but may be modified after a public comment period, EPA says. Ed Hopkins, the Sierra Club’s director of environmental programs, says the new policy will make it easier
New guidance from the Consumer Product Safety Commission and the Dept. of Housing and Urban Development, released on April 2, recommends homeowners replace all potentially defective drywall as well as electrical components, wiring, gas-service piping, sprinkler systems and smoke and carbon monoxide alarms that may have been affected by the drywall. Also released on April 2 were preliminary data from a Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory study measuring chemical emissions from drywall. The results show a clear distinction between drywall made in China in 2005 and 2006 and non-Chinese wallboard samples from 2009. Certain Chinese samples had hydrogen-sulfide emission rates 100
In roughly a year on the market, federally subsidized Build America Bonds for public-works projects have soared to $90 billion in volume and saved localities more than $12 billion in interest costs, the Treasury Dept. says. In a report released April 2, Treasury says that the Build America Bonds (BABs), created under last year's American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, have increased in volume to $90 billion as of March 31. That equals more than 20% of the market for new municipal bonds. Critics have charged that investment firms' underwriting fees for issuing the new bonds have been too high. Treasury
In roughly a year on the market, federally subsidized Build America Bonds for public-works projects have soared to $90 billion in volume and saved localities more than $12 billion in interest costs, the Treasury Dept. says. In a report released April 2, Treasury says that the Build America Bonds (BABs), created under last year's American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, have increased in volume to $90 billion as of March 31. That equals more than 20% of the market for new municipal bonds. Critics have charged that investment firms' underwriting fees for issuing the new bonds have been too high. Treasury
The General Services Administration has awarded a $61-million contract to ZGF Architects LLP to be lead design architect for new Dept. of Homeland Security headquarters facilities in Washington, D.C. The other short-listed firms competing for the project were Goody Clancy, Boston; Gund Partnership Inc., Cambridge, Mass.; Kallmann McKinnell & Wood Architects Inc., Boston; Robert A.M. Stern Architects LLP, New York City; and RTKL Associates Inc., Baltimore. ZGF, formerly Zimmer Gunsul Frasca Architects LLP, said in an April 1 release that its contract includes more than 2.1 million square feet of new office space for DHS at the St. Elizabeths Hospital
Construction's unemployment rate declined for the first time in seven months as the industry gained 15,000 jobs in March, the Bureau of Labor Statistics has reported. That is construction's first monthly increase in jobs, in seasonally adjusted terms, since June 2007, economists said. But the 24.9% March rate, though down from February's 27.1%, was still above March 2009's 21.1%, BLS said in its monthly employment report, released on Apr. 2. Construction economists praised the latest BLS numbers, but were wary about whether last month's improvement is the start of a longer-term jobs trend. For one thing, construction is clearly seasonal,
