Inside AGC President’s Message
January/February 2008

The Value of Membership

2007 brought collaboration, partnerships and legislative victories for contractors

By AGC President Steve Massie

AGC marked 2007 with collaboration that brought new contract documents to the marketplace, recognition that safety training continues to be a number one focus among employers, determination to ensure that the White House, Congress and the federal agencies understand the vital issues construction companies face and a renewed commitment to partner with AGC chapters nationwide to deliver unprecedented services to members.

AGC members had the unique opportunity to participate in an event with President George W. Bush in May in Washington, D.C., when he spoke to AGC’s National and Chapter Leadership Conference. This same meeting also provided AGC members with the opportunity to visit their legislators on Capitol Hill and discuss important legislation, including the repeal of 3% withholding, comprehensive immigration reform, highway trust fund solvency and the Water Resources Development Act, passed on a veto override in November.

AGC was the first National Launch Partner for 811, three-digit dialing nationwide for one-call, which went live on May 1. And AGC is at the forefront on emerging issues related to building information modeling and virtual design and construction.

On the environmental front, AGC has worked diligently with its chapters to block harmful emission rules that could cost equipment owners to spend $13 billion over the rules’ lifetime on new machines and/or engine retrofits. AGC submitted 100 pages of detailed comments opposing these emission rules in California and responded to draft model contract language that would require northeastern contractors to reduce emissions from already in-use equipment before bidding on work in that region.

In addition, AGC opposed legislation that would greatly expand the federal government’s control over construction activities that impact waters and wetlands, and testified before Congress on the impacts of changing the jurisdictional reach of the Clean Water Act. 

AGC commented on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s second round of proposed changes to its federal oil spill control regulations, which would ease the compliance burden on construction companies covered by the program. AGC’s environmental leaders flew to Washington, D.C., to meet with the chief of the regulatory branch for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and 15 senior officials from EPA program offices about water, waste and air issues.

We have been steadfast in continuing to strengthen our partnerships with chapters, evident in the nearly 75 chapter partnering agreements signed to date. We are proud of these accomplishments, which offer enhanced benefits to members through a more focused collaboration in marketing, communications, membership, and products and services.

Also this year, AGC Past-President Jim Waltze and I testified at hearings before the National Surface Transportation Policy and Revenue Study Commission about creating a system to address the nation’s aging transportation infrastructure. In our testimony, we called for creation of a highway user rate commission to meet the nation’s infrastructure funding crisis. The commission would, on a regular basis, set the user rate fees at a level necessary to maintain and improve the transportation system, taking some of the debate over funding increases out of the political arena.

Throughout the year, at chapters across the country, AGC members participated in training that enhanced workplace safety, developed the knowledge and skills of field supervisors and received timely, economic outlooks from AGC’s Chief Economist Ken Simonson.

It was also a year of firsts. Our unprecedented industry collaboration with 20 other construction trade associations during the last three years allowed us to introduce Consensus-DOCS to the marketplace in September. The 70-plus collaboratively drafted construction contracts represent the best interests of a project.

This year marked the first time in 50 years that AGC did not endorse the American Institute of Architects’ A201 (2007 edition) General Terms and Conditions document because of concerns that the new edition does not fairly balance risk among all parties, but instead significantly shifts risk to general contractors and others outside the design profession.

AGC develops new ways to deliver value to members and chapters every year, and this year was no exception. Through your continued support and involvement in AGC, we will continue this trend in 2008.