AGC Central District Report: District meeting, Feb. 8 | Safety Forum, Feb. 22 | Build Washington Awards

Central District Membership Meeting -- Tuesday, Feb. 8th
$1.2-Trillion Federal Infrastructure Bill - What It Means for Washington State
Washington state is poised to receive nearly $8.6 billion in dedicated funds from the federal infrastructure bill. Over the next five years, we expect $4.7 billion for highways, $605 million for bridges and an additional $1.8 billion in public transportation spending, and potentially more in grant funding.
Join us on Tuesday, February 8th, when we welcome Senator Patty Murray's staff to discuss details of the bill's impact on construction projects in the Central region. We’ll welcome Central Washington regional outreach director Raquel M. Crowley who will deliver the most recent information on how funding will be distributed and give details on the grants program to fund local infrastructure projects. This is one not to miss! Register via Teams.

WSDOT fish-passage informational forum

February 23, 2:30 to 4:30 p.m. | via Zoom
Join us for this informational meeting and forum where various WSDOT representatives -- including fish-passage delivery manager Kim Mueller, WSDOT director of development (acting) Mark Gaines, WSDOT construction director Chris Christopher, along with regional representatives from both Olympic and Northwest regions and others -- will walk through the delivery plan and provide preliminary information on upcoming projects/bundles. There will be ample time for audience members to ask questions of WSDOT panel members, so please bring your questions and ideas. Register today…

MAKE YOUR VOICE HEARD!
Sign-up to receive AGC’s Action Alerts
With the 2022 Legislative Session underway, it's just a matter of time before we will need your help on contacting legislators let them know how a piece of legislation will impact your business. With all Action Alerts, your Government Affairs staff provides a letter that can be sent to you legislators just the way it is, or you can personalize it for your company. You also don’t need to know who your legislators are, as once you put your address in it automatically matches you up.
Click here to sign-up today to receive AGC Action Alerts or to make sure your information is current.
Questions? Please contact Michele Willms.

Supreme Court Strikes Down OSHA's Vaccine ETS
Six-step priority list for employers
(AGC of America) The U.S. Supreme Court on Jan. 13 blocked OSHA’s COVID vaccine-or-testing emergency temporary standard (ETS) from being enforced for the foreseeable future, meaning that your compliance to-do list has gotten significantly shorter – but it has by no means disappeared.
While the Court’s decision means you no longer have to follow the January 10 compliance deadlines, the uncertain status of the ETS has left many employers unsure about what to do now. This article will provide you a practical six-step priority list to guide you on your way during the days ahead. Read more…

SECTOR WATCH
Billions of dollars set to boost US port projects in 2022
(Construction Dive) Federal aid will support future capital improvement programs as the demand for these crucial links in the supply chain continues to grow. Ports from coast to coast are eyeing improvement projects to help alleviate supply chain issues that have plagued businesses since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The focus on port projects in the recently enacted Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act is part of an overall push from the Biden administration to help alleviate the clogged supply chain in the U.S. Read more…

Report: Construction workers receive
$28B a year in public assistance
(Construction Dive) The report analyzed construction workers' families' reliance on programs such as adult and children's Medicaid, the earned income tax credit, temporary assistance for needy families and the supplemental nutrition assistance program.
Analyzing data from six states — Connecticut, California, Illinois, Pennsylvania, Texas and Washington — the report concluded that the industry is bifurcated into "low-road" and "high-road" sectors with strikingly different working conditions. Many of those different working conditions result from employers illegally classifying workers as independent contractors when they should be classified as full-time employees, per Labor Department standards. Read more…

2021 collective bargaining normalizes increases
back to 2019 levels
(Construction Dive) Construction-industry collective bargaining negotiations completed in 2021 resulted in an average first-year increase in wages and fringe benefits of 3.0 percent or $1.74, according to the annual year-end Settlements Report recently released by the AGC-supported Construction Labor Research Council (CLRC). These results are essentially the same as reported in 2019, when the first-year increase was 3.0 percent or $1.73. Last year’s slight drop in the size of negotiated first-year increases – measuring at 2.9 percent or $1.66 – was the first dip seen in a decade. Read more…

$26.5B from IIJA targets bridge repair/replacement project
(Construction Dive) Crumbling bridges are a serious problem in the U.S. A 2021 American Society of Civil Engineers report found that more than a third of the country’s bridges need repairs, 45,000 were classified as structurally deficient and 79,500 need to be replaced entirely. The new program aims to help address some of these deteriorating spans.
The new program is the single largest dedicated bridge investment since the construction of the Interstate highway system, U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said in the release. Read more…

Report: Materials prices soared 20% in 2021
(Construction Dive) The producer price index for inputs to new nonresidential construction — the prices charged by goods producers and service providers, such as distributors and transportation firms — increased by 0.5% in December and 19.6% in 2021 as a whole, according to the release.
The index price for plastic construction products, for example, climbed 1.3% for the month and 34% over 12 months, according to the release. The index for lumber and plywood rose 12.7% and 17.6%.
One key issue, said the AGC in the release, is that the rising materials prices are threatening to set back a strong picture of economic growth and recovery for the construction industry and damage its outlook in 2022. Read more…

The AGC Education Foundation continues to offer virtual continuing-education classes in a live, interactive, remote environment. They're working closely with instructors to maintain high-quality training programs and are finding great success in the virtual environment.

For in-person training in the Central District, please reach out directly to
District manager Celina Venegas-Sanchez.
We will coordinate locations and times according to your needs.

Visit the AGC Education Foundation website for more information
on upcoming classes and programs.