The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) has rescheduled a Listening Session on the proposed changes to DOT’s Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) program rules to Dec. 5, 2013, and has extended the deadline for written comments on the proposed rule changes until Dec. 26. The Listening Session was originally scheduled for Oct. 9, but had to be postponed due to the government shutdown. The Listening Session will now be held at U.S. DOT headquarters in Washington D.C. and is intended to gather information on the potential costs associated with the proposed rules.

AGC sent a letter to budget conferees outlining industry priorities, including fixing the revenue shortfall facing the Highway Trust Fund at the end the current fiscal year. AGC pointed out that the latest Congressional Budget Office projections estimate that without new revenue the HTF will not be able to support any new federal highway and transit funding obligations starting on October 1, 2014. AGC also weighed in on taxes, entitlement spending, sequestration and investment in the nation’s infrastructure. The budget conference was part of the agreement reached to reopen the Federal government and is charged with coming to an agreement on revenue and spending by Dec. 13.

The House Transportation and Infrastructure (T&I) Committee's Special Panel on 21st Century Freight Transportation wrapped up six months of work this week with the release of a report that examines the status of the nation's freight transportation system and made recommendations for improving the system to strengthen the economy. The panel, created by T&I Committee, Chairman Bill Shuster (R-Pa.) and Ranking Member Nick Rahall (D-W.Va.)  was led by Chairman John Duncan (R-Tenn.) and Ranking Members Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.).

One of the technologies the Federal Highway Administration’s (FHWA) Every Day Counts (EDC) initiative is promoting is the use of 3D engineered models for transportation construction. 3D models have been successfully deployed in the design and construction of industrial, office and residential buildings for years. More recently, this technology has been used in planning, designing, and constructing highway projects. AGC is working with FHWA to promote a series of eight webinars developed to assist contractors in adopting this proven technology.

A “Listening Session” scheduled by U.S.DOT seeking comments on proposed changes to the Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) regulations that apply to the Federal-aid highway, transit and Federal Aviation Administration programs will be rescheduled and the deadline for written comments will be extended DOT has informed AGC. The “Listening Session,” originally set for Oct. 9, but cancelled due to the government shutdown, was initiated because comments submitted by AGC, AGC chapters and members, ARTBA and others on the 75-page proposal called into question the real impact of the proposed changes.

Information for Construction Contractors Operating Under the Federal Government Shutdown The fiscal year 2013 appropriations law expired October 1, 2013, the beginning of FY 2014.  The failure by lawmakers to reach an agreement on funding for the new fiscal year resulted in a federal government shutdown.  The shutdown has left contractors wondering how or even if they can continue to perform their federal contracts.  Construction contracts awarded on a fixed-price basis will be substantially unaffected by the shutdown.  However, for most cost-type contracts, time and materials contracts, IDIQ/MATOC/MACC contracts, and those contracts that have yet to be awarded, the shutdown will likely suspend operations completely.  Therefore, it is important for contractors to prepare for the consequences of a government shutdown.

The House and Senate were unable find compromise and pass a continuing resolution (CR) by last night’s 12:00 a.m. deadline. Congress failed to enact any of the twelve appropriations bills that annually are necessary to fund government functions. Therefore, as of today, the federal government has been shutdown, furloughing about 800,000 federal workers and suspending most non-essential federal programs and services. For direct federal construction contracts, the vast majority of ongoing and already awarded contracts are not impacted by the shutdown. However, pending solicitations and awards, including task orders for existing multiple award contracts, will be delayed until the shutdown is over. In addition, agency action on permitting and project management decisions will likely face delays.

This week, the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee held another hearing to monitor implementation of the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century (MAP-21) legislation. The focus of this week’s hearing was the project delivery and environmental streamlining provisions in the law. Representatives of the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), the Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), and the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) each testified. DOT reported that the law requires between 50-60 different rule makings and that it has issued guidance on all of the provisions and is focused on finalizing the priority rules first. DOT also noted that the new categorical exclusion (CE) provision for emergency projects was extremely helpful in moving forward with the repair of the Skagit river bridge in Washington state that partially collapsed after being hit by an oversized truck last year. MAP-21 expanded the types of projects that can be included as a CE, a designation that allows for a more abbreviated and speedy environmental review.

Last year, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued a compliance directive (CPL 02-01-054) to provide guidance to its compliance officers addressing the safe inspection of work sites where workers performing construction work on and/or near roadways or highways are exposed to hazards from vehicular traffic. This is the first time that OSHA has detailed how compliance officers should go about inspecting highway road construction projects. The directive states that highway construction work zone inspections have two focuses-inspections of construction work, and inspections of temporary traffic controls.

In its continuing effort to lay the groundwork for next year’s need to reauthorize the highway and transit programs, the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee held a hearing Wednesday to address the status of the Highway Trust Fund and examine options for providing the revenue needed to keep the trust fund operating. EPW chairwoman Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) opened the hearing by reading from a statement submitted by AGC, which highlights the dire situation facing the HTF at the end of FY 2014 – when there will be an insufficient balance to allow for new federal funding obligations, again calling for continued support for increasing the traditional motor fuels tax, including allowing for inflation adjustments and identifying new revenue sources. Sen. Boxer suggested that she is looking at the idea of replacing the 18.4 cents per gallon tax on gasoline purchases with a sales tax fee paid by oil wholesalers, she believes the option would help close an approximately $20 billion annual shortfall in transportation funding. There was not unanimous support for this idea among Committee members present and Senator Boxer pointed out that this decision is in the hands of the Senate Finance Committee, but is a concept she will encourage the committee to look at.