The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) on July 8 announced the Administration's intent to "push ahead with full implementation" of a rule requiring federal contractors to use the E-Verify system to verify employees' authorization to work in the U.S.  The E-Verify rule will apply to federal solicitations and contract awards government-wide beginning September 8.  At the same time, DHS announced its intent to issue a new regulation rescinding a rule establishing procedures for employers to follow upon receipt of a "no-match letter" from the Social Security Administration (SSA) or DHS.For background information on E-Verify and No-Match, click here.AGC will monitor all related litigation and legislation and will report on significant developments.Meanwhile, further guidance on immigration compliance is available in an MP3 download of a live educational session held at AGC's Annual HR Professionals Conference in June 2008.  An immigration law update will also be provided at AGC's next HR Professionals Conference, which will take place October 27-29, in Atlanta, GA.  Click here for conference details and registration.  For additional resources and for information on immigration reform efforts, click here.For more information, contact Denise Gold at (703) 837-5326 or goldd@agc.org.

The theme for the Fall AGC BIMForum meeting, to be held on October 8-9, 2009 in Philadelphia, Pa., will be "BIM as the Evolving Standard of Care: Driving Process Transformation for Designers, Contractors and Owners."  The BIMForum Leadership is submitting this call for proposals to solicit ideas for presentations that explore the depth and breadth of this topic.  Click here for more details about the Fall AGC BIMForum Call for Presentations!

U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan announced July 1 that more than $2.7 billion of the State Fiscal Stabilization Fund under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009 is being made available early to help states as they face increasing budgetary pressures.According to the Department's press release, "State Fiscal Stabilization Funds (SFSF), which total more than $48 billion, represent nearly half of the $100 billion set aside for the Department of Education as part of the stimulus bill.  The SFSF is intended to augment state education budgets and drive reform.  Of the $48 billion available in SFSF, approximately $8 billion is designated as part of a government services fund which is intended to provide states with maximum flexibility in addressing budget shortfalls and is available for education, school modernization, public safety or other government services."  Click here to read the entire release.

In an All-Agency Memorandum issued on May 29, 2009, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) Employment Standards Administration's Wage and Hour Division (WHD) provided guidance to contracting agencies on the applicability of Davis-Bacon labor standards to federal and federally-assisted construction work funded in whole or in part under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA).  The memorandum provides a summary of the prevailing wage labor standards applicable to construction projects funded under Division A of the ARRA, highlights federal agencies' responsibilities in implementing Davis-Bacon labor standards, and provides links to online resources for additional information.For more information, click here, or contact Denise Gold at (703) 837-5326 or goldd@agc.org.

Monday, July 27 - 4:00-5:00pm ET Join AGC and The Family Business Institute for a free webinar and learn how you can better your business and life through lessons learned from a case study done by the Harvard Business Review.In this one hour webinar, gain insight from other CEOs on: Business Development - from hiring the right people to setting and achieving goalsMarketing Planning - a subset of your overall business plan and what works best for the construction marketSupporting Business Development and Marketing - what else should be top priorities in a tough marketTo learn more and register for this free webinar click here!

Nearly 100 attendees participated in the AGC Building Contractors Conference held June 10-13, 2009, at The Homestead in Hot Springs, Va.  This Conference brought together many of the top building construction firms, specialty contractors, service and supply companies and owners to focus on the theme "Guiding Your Firm Through Challenging Economic Times" through informative presentations, interactive panels and dynamic discussions.  Many presentations from the conference are now posted at www.agc.org/homestead. Presentations included:The Current Health and Future Outlook of the Capital and Credit Markets-Rob Nichols, The Financial Services ForumStrategy in the Eye of the Storm-How Contractors Can Weather the Storm-Scott Winstead, FMI CorporationEconomic Stimulus: Impact and Implementation-Chuck Hardy, U.S. General Services Administration & Paul Parsoneault, U.S. Army Corps of EngineersTools for Tough Times PanelWhat Contractors Can Do To Reduce Their Carbon Footprint-Christopher Gorthy, DPR Construction, Inc. Not Business as Usual-Changes to Labor Laws are Here...With More on the Way-Steve Shapiro & Dirk Haire, Holland & KnightBuilding Information Modeling: An Owner's Perspective-Allen Ware, Intel Corporation &  Mike Pape, University Mechanical & Engineering Contractor (UMEC) Prepared for the Worst: Contingency Planning for a Project Shutdown and/or an Owner Default-Milton Smith, McGriff Seibels & Williams, Inc.The Current State of the Surety Industry-Todd Loehnert, Wells Fargo Insurance ServicesUtilization of the JA Biz Town to Enhance the Construction Industry's Education Alternatives-Tom Weise, Intel (Retired) & Joyce Richards, Junior Achievement, ArizonaAttendees also had several opportunities to participate in committee meetings and network with their colleagues at evening receptions, continental breakfasts, a keynote luncheon and the golf tournament.  Be sure to save the date for the next AGC Building Contractors Conference taking place January 20-23, 2010, at the Caribe Hilton in San Juan, Puerto Rico.  More information and registration will be available soon.AGC would like to thank the following Platinum and Associate Sponsors for their support of the AGC Building Contractors Conference: CMiC, National Association of Surety Bond Producers, Advenser, Akerman Senterfitt, Bama Painting and Wallcovering and SkySite Aerial Photography.For more information, contact Mike Stark at (703) 837-5365 or starkm@agc.org.

"Turning Points in Construction" - July 23, 2009 - 2:00-3:30pm (EDT)The 2009 Market Insights Series, presented by Reed Construction Data, the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC) and the American Institute of Architects (AIA), is a free quarterly webcast series delivering the most up-to-date information on current and forecasted construction activity.Join expert economists Jim Haughey, Ken Simonson and Kermit Baker for "Turning Points in Construction," a free 90-min. webcast focused on the key factors affecting the recovery of the construction industry. Register here!

On June 10, 2009, ConsensusDOCS released 11 new standard construction contract documents, including a Federal Subcontract (bringing the catalog total to 90+ documents addressing all project delivery methods).  In direct response to customer feedback, the new release also incorporates a software feature allowing users to choose whether or not to print the ConsensusDOCS endorsing organization logo box on their contracts.  The new ConsensusDOCS documents are listed below:235 Standard Short Form Agreement Between Owner and Contractor725 Standard Agreement Between Subcontractor and Subsubcontractor752 Standard Subcontract Agreement for Use on Federal GovernmentConstruction Projects481 Design-Build Certificate of Substantial Completion482 Design-Build Certificate of Final Completion781 Subcontract Certificate of Substantial Completion782 Subcontract Certificate of Final Completion812 Trade Contract Interim Directed Change813 Trade Contract Change Order814 Trade Contract Certificate of Substantial Completion815 Trade Contract Certificate of Final CompletionSubscribers can upgrade for FREE to ConsensusDOCS powered by DocuBuilder version 6.3. AGC Members receive a 20% discount when purchasing through the AGC Bookstore (www.AGC.org/Bookstore).

AGC's State Law Matrix has been updated and is now available!  The update includes new information on immigration and statute of repose issues.  AGC's State Law Matrix is the most comprehensive, definitive and concise publication available regarding a wide range of state law issues that can affect your public or private construction project.  State Law Matrix is an essential resource you should use before completing any construction contract to improve compliance and enforceability under state law.  State Law Matrix is available as a complete subscription package or by region.  The complete package includes all regions listed below:   Northeast Region: CT, DE, DC, MA, MD, ME, NH, NJ, NY, PA, RI, VT, WV   Midwest Region:   IA, IL, IN, KS, KY, MI, MN, MO, ND, NE, OH, SD, WI   Southern Region:  AL, AR, FL, GA, LA, MS, NC, OK, PR, SC, TN, TX, VA   Western Region:   AK, AZ, CA, CO, HI, ID, MT, NM, NV, OR, UT, WA, WYAGC Members receive special pricing:Complete Package (All Regions):Retail Price: $295.00     Member Price: $195.00Individual Region:           Retail Price: $145.00     Member Price: $95.00To purchase or find more information about State Law Matrix, please visit www.AGC.org/Bookstore.

AGC of America, Airports Council International-NA and the Airport Consultants Council successfully held the Airport Project Delivery Systems Summit IV on June 3-4, 2009 in Savannah, Ga.  Airport owners, contractors and designers gathered to hear the latest on project delivery and airport construction issues such as APDS contracting, GMAX contracting tactics, challenges and solutions for FAA grant projects, academic vs. real life approaches to choosing an APDS and emerging trends in airport construction.  Speakers included representatives from major airports, FAA, general contractors, design firms and law firms.  This two-day summit has been held for the past four years, and planning for the 2010 summit will be underway soon.