Construction Officials Urge Biden Administration to Focus on Progress When It Comes to New Federal Investments in Infrastructure, Semiconductor Plant and Green Energy Construction Projects

With bipartisan support, the Senate passes AGC-backed legislation to repeal a new Waters of the U.S. (WOTUS) rule expanding federal permitting jurisdiction over wetlands and more construction projects, bolstering AGC litigation—which has expanded to 26 states—against the rule.

*****MAY 31 UPDATE: AGC-backed lawsuits have now halted the Biden administration’s WOTUS rule in 27 states. The Supreme Court has also weighed in and delegitimized the “significant nexus” test that the agencies used in the Biden administration’s WOTUS rule. Check out the updated AGC articles on the states where the rule is blocked and on the May 25th decision from the Supreme Court.*****

The most significant construction cases include claims related to scope gaps, design changes, delay damages, lost productivity, cumulative impacts, and bad administration, according to John Sebastian of the law firm Watt Tieder who was one of three presenters on ConsensusDocs’ recently held a webinar on 10 Risk Management Maxims that Will Change your Approach to Project Delivery. Owner maladministration includes not responding to requests for information (RFIs) in a timely manner, and not responding to time extension requests. “The big cases always have indecision at their root cause. The worst decision is indecision,” Mr. Sebastian said, adding that “indecision in itself is a decision and ultimately becomes a big piece of what litigation disputes fight about.” The ConsensusDocs risk management webinar shared many important lessons learned from the battlefield of construction projects gone wrong that wound up in litigation.

AGC is pleased to announce the appointment of new members to serve on its Environmental Committee. Members of the committee have direct access to federal regulatory officials, influence over AGC’s environmental agenda, and a means to exchange valuable information with one another and industry peers. Join us in welcoming the new members.

AGC Tells EPA Why Contractors Need Protection from Superfund’s Liability Framework