Business Groups Oppose NDAA Proposal
A coalition of business groups, including Associated Builders and Contractors, oppose a new requirement in the National Defense Authorization Act proposed by U.S. House Financial Services Committee Chairwoman Maxine Waters in late 2020.
Under the proposed Corporate Transparency Act, the responsibility of large banks and institutions to verify the identities of account holders would shift to small businesses, creating burdensome reporting mandates. Specifically, ABC and business groups oppose an overhaul of anti-money laundering regulations, including a requirement to report all ownership information to the Treasury Department.
DOL Appeals FLSA Ruling
Secretary of Labor Eugene Scalia is appealing a ruling by the Southern District of New York on Sept. 9, 2020, that invalidated part of the Labor Department’s final rule on joint labor status. The court found in favor of the states that filed suit—California, Colorado, Delaware, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Washington, Vermont, Virginia and the District of Colombia—because the DOL’s interpretation of the rule conflicts with the Fair Labor Standards Act.
The court’s ruling concluded that the statute was arbitrary and ignores board definitions, such as the fact that “employer” cannot be read apart from “employee” and “employ.” The DOL’s other revisions, however, remain in effect.
Maryland Governor Attends Opening of Education Academy
The ABC Greater Baltimore Chapter hosted the grand opening of its Construction Education Academy on Oct. 27, 2020. Located at the historic A. Hoen & Co. Lithograph Building (which had been abandoned for more than four decades prior to a redevelopment initiative from the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development in tandem with Project C.O.R.E.), the facility will enable the training of up to 5,000 skilled workers each year, doubling current capacity.
Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, Maryland House Speaker Adrienne Jones, Senate President Bill Ferguson and Sen. Cory McCray attended the event, at which Hogan announced the significant achievement that the Maryland Apprenticeship and Training Program officially has 11,000 registered participants—the highest rate in state history.
NCCER and BYF Announce 2020 Contest Winners
NCCER and Build Your Future have announced the winners of the Careers in Construction Month pledge drawing, as well as the I BUILT THIS! video contest winners.
The winners of the Build Your Future drawing and the schools they have nominated for those scholarships are:
- ABC Florida Gulf Coast, Sickles High School
- Ohio Ceiling and Partition, Penta Career Center
- Worley, Channelview High School Welding Program
The I BUILT THIS! video contest, which takes place during CICM, showcases outstanding construction projects from the perspective of trainees, students and instructors. The winners are:
- Dylan Buzzard of Carroll County Career and Technology Center (secondary first place)
- Dakota VanCleve of Carroll County Career and Technology Center (secondary runner-up)
- James Snyder of Pikes Peak Community College (post-secondary first place)
- Raul Sanchez of Shapiro & Duncan and ABC of Metro Washington (post-secondary runner-up)
- James Amos of William Chrisman High School (people’s choice)
These winners and their programs will receive more than $20,000 total value in prizes, tools, gift cards and more. The 2020 contest was sponsored by DeWalt, Stanley, Irwin, Lenox, Pearson and Harbor Freight Tools for Schools.
To watch the videos and learn more about the competition, visitwww.byf.org/i-built-this.
ASCE Seeks Public Comments on New Standard
The American Society of Civil Engineers is conducting a public comment period on the new standard activity ASCE/COS 73-XX Standard Requirements for Sustainable Infrastructure. The requirements as described in the standard are intended to guide sustainable infrastructure development through the entire lifecycle process.
The public comment period will run from Dec. 4, 2020, to Jan. 25, 2021.
