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| CompGroup AGC offers workers' compensation coverage exclusively for commercial construction contractors and sub-contractors. Through our partnership with Texas Mutual Insurance Company, the state's leading writer of workers' compensation insurance, CompGroup AGC is able to offer competitive rates, responsive customer service, expert claim handling and extensive loss prevention training and safety programs. |
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UPCOMING CHAPTER EVENTS
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Health Insurance Promotional Event - July 12
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INDUSTRY VICTORIES at the CAPITOL as SESSION ENDS
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The 2017 legislative session came to a close in May and lawmakers approved two key bills impacting the commercial construction industry.
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Rep. John Cyrier
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Senate 29-2. We owe a big thank you to Rep. John Cyrier and Sen. Bryan Hughes for getting this bill through the Legislature and on the governor's desk.
The bill allows recovery of attorney's fees for successful state breach of contract claims under $250,000. Under current law, they're barred. This bill takes effect immediately.
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Rep. Bohac
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House Bill 3270
ultimately prevailed on the last night of session after going to a conference committee. The House passed the bill 146-1, and the Senate approved it 30-1. Thank you to Rep. Dwayne Bohac and Senate Education Chairman Larry Taylor for getting the measure over the finish line.
The bill decides when the state's mandatory background check applies to school construction projects. More importantly, for most of our members' job sites, their workers will no longer require a check (e.g., greenfield projects, non-instructional facilities, secure job sites at existing schools). And now that a single standard is clear in statute, reciprocity within a region becomes easier to accomplish.This bill takes effect on September 1, 2017.
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Rep. Paul Workman
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Another key bill,
Senate Bill 1215 dealing with contractor liability for design defects, nearly unanimously passed the Senate and had been in the House for more than a month before last-hour opposition killed the bill. However, the bill was revived to create an interim committee.
Rep. Paul Workman along with Reps. Shine, Oliveira, Hunter, and Kacal organized to salvage the bill and amend it to create a joint interim committee. The group proposed study nearly every issue surrounding construction contracts, including: statute of repose, right to repair, allocations of risk and liability, relationships between parties, insurance, liens, warranties, standards of care, and civil actions. Unfortunately, this bill was vetoed by the Governor on June 15 but he did note that the House and Senate can study topics in the interim without passage of a law and the legislature is free to conduct a study with or without the bill.
Also, a special legislation session is scheduled to begin on July 19 and may address issues impacting our industry, including preventing cities from regulating what property owners do with trees
on private land, p
reventing local governments from changing rules midway through construction projects, and s
peeding up local government permitting processes
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The TBB annual convention meets next week, June 18-21 and will provide attendees with more detailed information about the legislative sessions.
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NEW HEALTH INSURANCE OPTION for AUSTIN AGC MEMBERS
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H
ere at the Austin AGC
we regularly fiel
d inquiries from construction companies looking for
health insurance options
. Recently we learned about an successful insurance
program offered through the Houston AGC, and so we have decided to offer it to contractors here in Central Texas.
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SILICA STANDARD for CONSTRUCTION - SURVEY
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As
you may already know, OSHA
delayed enforcement
of the
Respirable Crystalline Silica Standard for Construction
until September 23, 2017. In the meantime, silica continues to be a hot topic and many members still have questions. AGC of America is taking this opportunity to survey members to determine how equipped they are to comply with the standard, and identify resources and outreach opportunities to meet their needs in this area. The
survey
should take approximately 10-15 minutes to complete. By completing this survey you will give us a better picture of our industry concerns and needs, and help GC of America advocate on your behalf. Thank you for your help!
If you have any questions, please contact our national Director of Safety, Kevin Cannon, at cannonk@agc.org
or (703) 837-5410.
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CONSTRUCTION RESUMES and JOB LISTINGS
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AGC Chapters around Texas have formed a partner website called
texasconstructioncareers.com
to
help you find employment or an employee. Check out the
job bank page
to post yo
ur resume or review potential hires.
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