|
Fix for Troubled Pension Plans So Far Eludes Congressional Panel
Disagreements between Republicans and Democrats are bogging down a congressional special committee looking for ways to prevent union-negotiated pension plans and the fund that ensures benefits from going bust.
Congress set a high bar when it directed a 16-member panel to find ways to stabilize the finances of 130 industry-wide pension plans that cover more than 1.3 million current and future retirees.
Five of the eight members from each party on the Joint Committee on the Solvency of Multi-Employer Pension Funds must agree on a proposal by Nov. 30. That’s the deadline Congress gave the bipartisan super committee to report legislation for consideration in the 115th Congress. Click here to read more.
High Opioid Overdose Rate Has Construction Sector Looking for Solutions
Turning back the high fatal opioid overdose rate among construction workers will take a culture change, the head of prevention efforts aimed at union members believes. Cultural changes include encouraging workers to talk about their opioid problems and employers accepting workers back after they’ve been through rehabilitation treatment, Ken Serviss, executive director of the Allied Trades Assistance Program in Philadelphia, told Bloomberg Environment. “The real work begins when a worker returns to work,” Serviss added. The urgent need to prevent deaths was made clear in a new study finding construction industry workers were five times more likely to die from an opioid overdose than other workers. The Massachusetts Department of Public Health study funded by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention focused on opioid overdose deaths among workers in the state. The deaths could be on or away from job sites. Click here to read more.
ODOT’s DBE MSV List Completed – EffectiveIn Lettings After September 1
ODOT announced on March 9 that they would be changing how materials and supplies purchased from DBEs would be counted beginning with projects sold after September 1. ODOT has completed their review of all DBE MSVs and assigned NAICS Code descriptors to their companies. The DBE MSV must have the correct NAICS Code descriptors in order for the materials purchased from them to count for DBE credit. In addition, if an item is drop-shipped at the project, only the DBE MSV’s fee for facilitating the transaction will count toward DBE credit. In order to get the traditional 60% credit for materials and supplies, the DBE MSV must take physical possession of the material, per Notice to Industry guidance, before it makes its way to the project. If the DBE MSV delivers the product with their own vehicle, then the transportation of the material may count as well. If the DBE MSV does NOT deliver the material, the cost of transporting the material to the project will not count towards DBE credit.
The revised text of ODOT’s previously released Notice to Industry is shown here. If you have any questions, please contact Chris Engle.
ODOT’s Terri Barnhart To Retire
After a rewarding career with ODOT, Executive Assistant to the Directors, Terri Barnhart, will be retiring at the end of September. She has worked in a number of offices within ODOT during her career and, as a result, she has worked with many OCA members over the years. Two opportunities to celebrate Terri’s service have been scheduled. To learn more about these events, please click here.
|