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Legislative, Regulatory and Other News at a Glance for Grassroots Action
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Currently thirty-five legislatures are in session: California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Federal, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Wyoming.
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As the first week of the 116th Congress concludes, government agencies remain closed. Negotiations between the White House, Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senator Minority Leader Chuck Schumer to re-open the federal government ended abruptly on Wednesday with both sides blaming each other for the shutdown. In the meantime, federal agencies, such as the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), remain closed leaving small businesses without the means to secure loans or surety bonds. Meanwhile, Tom Donahue, President of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, one of the most powerful business groups in Washington, called on "our leaders to pass a significant infrastructure package this year" during his remarks at 2019 State of the Business Address. Moreover, t
he Chamber will be offering cash prizes totaling $25,000 to those who can come up with the most viable ideas for a long-term sustainable funding source for infrastructure.
The Chamber supports an increase of 25 cents per gallon in the federal gas tax
to make significant investments in the country's roads and bridges in order to keep the Highway Trust Fund solvent. In addition, Representative
Earl Blumenauer (D-OR-3rd) is prepared to re-introduce the Rebuild America Act, which would raise the gasoline and diesel taxes by 25 cents, phased in over 5 years, index the cost to inflation, and express the sense of Congress that it should replace the gas tax with a more sustainable funding source within 10 years of this
legislation.
If you have not had an opportunity to review NASBP's 2019 Government Relations, two priority issues, Title 41 (removing the indexing of the Miller Act from inflation) and requiring bonds on P3 agreements will be included in a comprehensive bill supported by the Construction Industry Procurement Coalition. Once the bill is ready for introduction, the Coalition will begin to seek sponsors from both chambers of Congress. The Prior Approval Coalition (PRAC), which NASBP is a member, has decided not to pursue legislation in the 116th to repeal the Federal Election Commission's (FEC) rule requiring trade associations to obtain written authorization from its members before it may solicit them for a PAC contribution. Because of the current makeup in the House and the leadership declaring that its first efforts in H.R. 1 is to address ethics and campaign finance, PRAC has decided to explore challenging the FEC's rule in the Courts. We will continue to keep everyone abreast of all of these issues moving forward.
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Montana Draft Bill 986
MT D 986 (Lynch) amends
Mont. Code Ann. §18-2-302 by raising the bond threshold from $50,000 to $150,000. The d
raft bill 986 was introduced on 12/14/2018 and is currently awaiting committee assignment. NASBP members were made aware of the bill and are ready to engage.
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Arkansas House Bill 1041
AR H 1041 (Ladyman) raises the threshold for bid bonds from $35,000 to $50,000, however, the Arkansas Little Miller Act bond threshold remains at $20,000. The Arkansas legislature convenes on January 14th, 2019.
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Wyoming House Bill 108
WY H 108 (Larsen) expands the WY Little Miller Act (WY. Code. Ann.
§16-6-112) to require bonds for construction projects on University of WY and WY Community Colleges. The surety industry is reviewing the bill.
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Public-Private Partnerships
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Indiana Draft Bill
IN Draft Bill revises P3 statutes to require bonds on P3 construction agreements. The surety industry along with its Indiana members are working on a final bill that will be introduced later this session. We will keep NASBP members apprised once the bill is formerly introduced.
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Virginia House Bill 1667
VA HB 1667 (Kilgore) expands the time-frame to take action on a performance bond from one year to five years after the date of substantial completion and the expiration of all warranties. HB 1667 also eliminates the application of the discovery rule. Currently, a five-year statute of limitations only applies to VDOT work. HB 1667 was referred to the House Committee on Courts of Justice on 01/09/2019. The same bill was introduced last year and failed to advance.
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