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Conference
Committee Agrees on Highway Reauthorization Bill: Fixing
America'sSurface
Transportation (Fast) Act Expected To Be Finalized Soon
December
3:
House and Senate conferees on the transportation reauthorization bill this
week released the compromise version of the legislation that they have been
working on for the past several weeks. The legislation, called Fixing
America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act, provides funding authorization
for five years with the first year entailing a 5.1% increase over
FY15. That will then be increased by amounts ranging from 2.1%-2.4%
over the years, increases that should approximately offset the effects of
projected inflation. The bill will likely be voted on in the House on
Thursday and possibly in the Senate as early as Friday. While President
Obama is expected to sign the bill, a final short-term extension may be
necessary to allow time for final reviews. Once passed, the bill would be
the longest highway authorization since TEA-21 was passed in 1998.
The funding levels are a compromise between the Senate
passed DRIVE Act and House passed STRR Act levels. The FAST Act calls for
adjustments in authorized funding levels should Highway Trust Fund revenue
increase or decrease beyond the projected annual income amounts.
Approximately $225 billion is dedicated to highway
projects, which is a $20.2 billion increase over five years compared to the
2015 funding amount. About $48.9 billion of the funding is for transit.
This is about an 82% / 18% split between highways and transit. Another $7
billion is tacked on for NHTSA and FMCSA programs.
Two new freight-related programs received most of the
"new money" in the bill. These are generally highway oriented
although up to about 10-11% may be spent on other freight modes, under
certain conditions. Other core programs received smaller increases,
generally in line with inflation.
One major program, the "TIFIA" program is
significantly cut. TIFIA is used to provide loans or loan-guarantees for
certain types of projects – generally those that produce revenue over time.
For highways, many TIFIA projects are toll roads. The tolling ban on
Interstates remained largely intact, despite intense lobbying efforts by
pro-tolling groups.
Ohio’s average annual apportionment over the 5 year
life of the bill will be $1.4 billion, with the total apportionment over
the five-year total projected to be approximately $7.1 billion.
The bill includes over $75 billion in revenue increases
to supplement user fees that fund the program. The revenue comes from a
variety of sources, none of which constitute a traditional tax or user fee
increase that traditionally funded the highway program in the past. The
most significant offset ($53 billion) is a drawdown of surplus funds from
the Federal Reserve Bank. As you might imagine, The Federal Reserve is not
happy with this use of "their" money.
Our thanks to the many OCA members who over the years
contacted their members of Congress and attended our annual Fly-In visits
to Washington, D.C. to keep the pressure on Congress and the administration
to pass a highway reauthorization bill.
Please click here to see ARTBA’s more detailed analysis of the FAST
Act.
Winter Conference –
Opening Sessions
Our opening sessions
will begin at 9:00 a.m. on Monday, December 7. Be sure to come early
and enjoy the continental breakfast served from 8:00 until 9:00. We
look forward to seeing our members at this annual event! Click here for the agenda.
Are
You Giving Away a Prize?
At
the conclusion of the winter conference casino and reception (7:00 pm on
Monday, Dec. 7), four winning tickets will be drawn. Each winner will
receive $500! You must be present to win.
If you are
an exhibitor and are giving away a gift or prize, please see Rachel Sirca
at the conference if you would like to announce your winner at the same
time.
OSHA Penalties to Increase
Significantly
Hidden within the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015 signed by President Obama
on November 2 is a provision calling for OSHA's citation penalties to
increase for the first time since 1990 and to be tied to the Consumer Price
Index for future annual increases. The Budget Act allows for catch-up
adjustments to these penalty amounts which must be made by August 1, 2016
and will be tied to the Consumer Price Index increases arising since
October 1990 – the last time penalties were increased – a 26 year
"catch-up" all at once!
It is anticipated that these increases will cause OSHA imposed penalties to
escalate about 70%. Employers could be looking at citations
classified as "Willful" and "Repeat" going from a
maximum amount of $70,000 to approximately $125,000 per infraction and
"Serious" violations increasing from $7,000 to approximately
$12,500.
These
increases are part of provisions within the Federal Civil Penalties
Inflation Adjustment Act. The Act requires not only OSHA, but all
other federal agencies with civil monetary penalties to update their
penalty structure and to increase these penalties each year automatically –
without following rule making procedures. Click here to read this article in its entirety.
Still
Waiting to Make Reservations for the Dominican Republic?
We still have a handful of rooms
available, but per our contract with the resort, we must decrease the
number of unreserved rooms. If you have not made your reservations
yet, please contact OCA by Tuesday, December 22. After this date,
most, if not all, unreserved rooms will be released. Contact Rachel
Sirca with questions about convention details.
Membership to Vote on Board Term Limits
An important meeting will be held during
Winter Conference that all members are urged to attend. In accordance
with the constitution of the Association, the Annual Membership Business Meeting
will be held on the morning of December 8 at 8:00 a.m. in the Hilton Sports
Bar.
In addition to hearing a Washington, D.C.
report from Richard Juliano of ARTBA, the members in attendance will be
asked to vote on a change to the Association’s constitution. The
question before the members is whether to place a term limit on Board of
Director positions. Each Board member is elected for a 3-year
term. Currently, there are no limits on the number of terms an
individual may be nominated for the office. Under the proposed
change, Board members would be limited to three terms. This limit
would be waived for those who are sitting members of the Executive
Committee at the end of their third term. For existing Board members,
the limitation will apply at the conclusion of their current term in
office.
The full verbiage of the changes can be
found by clicking here. Any questions regarding the proposal can be
addressed prior to the vote. We hope you are able to take part in the
Annual Membership Business Meeting.
Ohio House Holds
Hearings on Controversial Unemployment Compensation and Right To Work
Bills
In
the waning weeks of session before the end of the year holiday recess begins,
the Ohio House has taken on two very controversial bills that OCA is
concerned about.
House Bill 394 (Sears, R-Toledo) is a bill that would change
the way Ohio’s Unemployment Compensation system is funded and the benefits
it would pay out to the unemployed. Please click here to see the bill and its analysis.
As you may know, during the “great recession” the state
had to borrow more than $1.6 billion from the federal government to cover
unemployment compensation for employees, because the state’s fund was
underfunded and had been for years. The state has been paying those
funds back to the federal government but still owes $775 million, which
should be paid off by the end of 2017. Because of the debt and the
fact that the state doesn’t have a minimum safe level of reserves,
employers are being penalized by a requirement to pay more in federal FUTA
tax for every person they employ who qualifies for unemployment
compensation. Click here to read this article in its entirety.
City of Columbus
Expanding use of Bid Express
The City of Columbus recently
announced that expand the use of Bid Express for advertising and receiving
construction bids. By mid-January, all departments will be using Bid
Express. Training will begin in January, and it will be necessary to
sign up for an account. For more details and instructions, please
click here.
Mayor
Vetos PLA For Sewer Work In Binghamton, NY
The mayor of Binghamton, N.Y.
vetoed a city council measure on November 30th that would have allowed the
city to begin negotiating with building trades unions on a project labor
agreement covering the reconstruction of a local sewage treatment facility.
Mayor
Richard David (R) vetoed Council Resolution 15-119 on the grounds that
having an open bid process for the Binghamton-Johnson City Joint Sewage
Treatment Plant would ensure a “fair and level playing field” for both
union and nonunion contractors to compete for work.
The
Binghamton City Council Nov. 18 passed the resolution on a 4-3 vote, with
all the Republican council members opposed to the measure.
David
said having a PLA in place would have ensured that local workers are
offered jobs on the project, but it would also have prevented many nonunion
Binghamton companies from bidding on the project. Click here to read more.
Support
Apprenticeship- Our Future Workforce
OCA’S
Workforce Development Taskforce has prioritized the recruitment and
retention of our industry’s future workers. One of our goals is the
modernization and improvement of our Apprenticeship and Training
programs. We hope to ultimately improve any and all processes of
education, training and apprenticeship that will help to steer and the best
and most capable candidates toward rewarding careers in the construction
industry. All of us must work together to insure the success of our
Apprenticeship and Training programs. Simply making a commitment to
hire and utilize Apprentices is one way OCA contractors can help to insure
that we are properly preparing our future workforce. Our
Apprenticeship Programs need to know what types of skills and how many
workers are needed. Following are some vacancies on the Laborers’
local Apprenticeship sub-committees. Contractors are needed for input
on local employment and skill demands. We ask that you review this
information and volunteer to serve if you can.
The Laborers’ JATC sub-committee of Middletown, Dayton
and Lima would like to add a highway contractor (or two), to assist in
workforce development.
In addition, the Laborers’ JATC sub-committee of
Zanesville/Newcomerstown has a need for an employer representative.
Currently, Justin Hitchins (Beaver Const.) and Chuck Hathaway (Hathaway
Const.) serve on the committee.
Finally, we also have an opportunity for a contractor
representative in the Warren/Youngstown local.
If you are
willing and able to serve on any of the above listed Apprenticeship
sub-committees, please contact Mark Potnick in the OCA office.
Opportunities in Transportation
Safety
We are looking for
questions for an Ask
the Owner Q&A with
ODOT!
The Ohio Department of
Transportation continually strives to improve the standards and processes
in which work is performed in Ohio. In 2016 there will be a new
specification book published and ODOT is embarking on an extensive Asset
Preservation Management program. Also, the Department is moving toward
electronic change order approvals and there are changing requirements with
regard to DBE goals. These, and many more, changes are coming in 2016. ODOT
wants to help engineering firms, contractors and other owners remain
current by answering YOUR
questions, giving direction and assisting with where to find answers.
Please submit your Ask the Owner questions
here www.ohioatssa.com by January 1,
2016. Then join us at Opportunities in Transportation Safety on March 3, 2016
to hear the answers.
Proposed I-9
Changes Intended to Reduce Errors
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services is seeking public comment on a
new draft Form I-9 used to verify
eligibility to work in the U.S.
According
to a Nov. 24 announcement from the USCIS, many of the proposed changes are
aimed at reducing technical errors and helping users complete it after they
download it from the agency's website. Along those lines, the new form
would:
·
check certain fields to ensure information
is entered correctly;
·
provide additional spaces to enter multiple
preparers and translators;
·
include drop-down lists and calendars;
·
provide instructions on the screen that
users can access to complete each field;
·
include buttons allowing users to access
the instructions electronically, print the form and clear the form to start
over;
·
provide a dedicated area to enter
additional information that employers currently have to enter in the
margins of the form; and
·
generate a quick-response matrix barcode,
or QR code, once the form is printed, that can be used to streamline audit
processes.
The USCIS
said it also is proposing to:
·
require employees to provide only other
last names that they have used when completing Section 1, rather than
listing all other names used;
·
streamline the certification in Section 1
for certain foreign nationals; and
·
separate the instructions from the form
itself to bring it in line with the USCIS's practices.
Comments
are due by Jan. 25, 2016. Text of the draft I-9 is available at http://src.bna.com/bgH, and the USCIS's
Federal Register notice at http://src.bna.com/bgI.
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