These two weeks have shown, once again, just what it is we are up against in our fight against PLAs here in California.
Over this time period there have been or will be
20 PLAs brought up for consideration. From school districts and counties to Ports and private development, it's a never ending fight to protect your right to work. (see below)
This is why we need your help more than ever!
These 20 threats alone are worth more than $10 billion to contractors who might wish to bid on them. But the effort to keep these, and other projects, PLA-free are being fought using pennies in comparison. If you would like us to be able to keep up our fight please consider supporting CFEC today with a donation. You can give that support right now using a credit card
here or you can mail us a check to PO Box 1627, Poway CA 92074.
Thank you for your consideration!
Here is a summary of most of these recent PLA threats:
School Districts
Martinez Unified School District: The MUSD Board of Trustees took up the discussion of PLAs
at their board meeting this past Tuesday. CFEC and our allies have been working on this threat for over a year including CFEC's Eric Christen having made a presentation on the negative effects of PLAs. The good news is a PLA WILL NOT be used on their upcoming Building K project! The bad news is there appears to be some support for a future discussion on using PLAs on other projects. Stay tuned!
Salinas Union High School District: We warned the oblivious school board at SUHSD about what a PLA would mean for them and now they have witnessed the results firsthand. The project that had been targeted as a test-case for PLAs was budgeted at $72 million. The winning bid came in at $79 million. Well done trustees. Well done.
San Diego Unified School District: Arguably one of the worst run school district's in California, which is saying something, SDUSD has of course placed a PLA on all of its construction bond work. On top of the previously reported failures the PLA here has led to increased costs and reduced bidders, there now comes
this devastating story about how, despite having spent $1 billion, the district's buildings are actually in worse shape.
Fremont Unified School District: This district's early experience with a test-case PLA has led to the never before tried "Craig's List" search for hiring someone
to oversee this agreement. When you are having to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars to manage a PLA why not advertise the position on a website that prostitutes use. It's fitting.
Grossmont-Cuyamaca Community College District: Signatures continue to be collected for the recall of Trustee Edwin Heil, one of the GCCCD Trustees who supports a PLA for the District's construction bond. If you are interested in getting involved in this effort, please contact Bill Baber at
[email protected].
Counties
Napa County: Last week the Napa County Board of Supervisors voted to place on the ballot a sales tax measure that would raise monies for, among other things, a new jail in the county. Unfortunately these same Supervisors are on record as supporting a PLA that we fear will be placed on this project.
CFEC's Eric Christen was quoted in this article discussing how the contracting community will, along with other local stakeholders, be working to derail this tax measure unless the Supervisors agree to fair and open competition language in the measure. Stay tuned!
Santa Clara County: The county currently has a county-wide PLA for all projects over $10 million. Apparently there are still too many projects slipping by for union tastes so they have now asked their puppets on the Board of Supervisors
to lower that threshold to $5 million. This issue was taken up at their February 22nd meeting.
Monterey County: Last month the Monterey County Board of Supervisors voted to begin "negotiations" with local big labor special interests on a PLA for the Interlake Tunnel Project. Negotiations, of which CFEC has requested and been approved to participate in, have begun and unions have made it clear from the outset that they have no intention of "negotiating" anything other than a boiler plate PLA. You can read the staff's summary of the meeting
here, which is hilarious.
Cities
Stockton: The City of Stockton, which has just recently come out of bankruptcy,
and whose city council voted unanimously to "negotiate" a city-wide PLA, will begin its "negotiations" on March 17th. The meeting will give those interested in having fair language included in the PLA, a chance to air their concerns. If you are a local contractor who would like to attend this meeting in Stockton
on Thursday between
1:00pm-3:00pm then please contact CFEC for more details. Let your voice be heard!
Brentwood: The Brentwood City Council
voted unanimously to negotiate a PLA on its new library at its March 9th board meeting. The city has now reached out to stakeholders to hear from them their opinions on PLAs and what should and should not be included in them. CFEC and ABC NorCal have requested to be part of these meetings to fight for fair language within the PLA.
Fremont: The City of Fremont
will be discussing placing a PLA on Phase 1 of its new Downtown Civic Center project at their meeting on Tuesday, March 15.
Please contact the city council today to let them know why a PLA would not be in their best interest.
Special Projects
The Pinole- Hercules Water Pollution Control Plant: The Pinole City Council will vote to award this project, which is covered by a PLA that resulted in it losing six of its eight pre-qualified bidders while increasing its cost by $4 million, to Kiewit Infrastructure West.
Bay Area Rapid Transit: On March 10th the BART Board of Directors voted to place a PLA on nine major projects over the next five years.
Sacramento Regional Wastewater Treatment Plant Upgrades: The $500 million EchoWater Project went out to bid PLA-free. But after union pressure caused by two bid packages going union-free, the owners have now retroactively placed a PLA on the project. ABC NorCal is now trying to become part of any PLA "negotiations". Stay tuned.
San Francisco Bay Restoration Authority: A PLA is being considered for the large amount of work that would take place should nine bay area counties approve a massive parcel tax in the June elections.
CFEC and its allies spoke at the SFBRA's Board of Directors meeting two weeks ago about the downside of a PLA. With other stakeholders ranging from Ducks Unlimited to the Santa Clara Water District voicing opposition to the PLA, the board was forced to postpone the PLA vote until such time as a sub-committee could be formed to address some of the issues raised by these groups. Stay tuned!
Marin Clean Energy: Labor Issues Solution's Kevin Dayton explains
in this excellent article just how unions hold up any green energy project in California until a PLA can be "agreed" to. The latest greenmail target for unions is the Marin Clean Energy Project.
