ABC, as part of the Family Business Estate Tax Coalition (FBETC), June 19 supported the Death Tax Repeal Act of 2013 (S. 1183/H.R. 2429) that would permanently repeal the estate tax.

The ABC Business Partner AIA Contract Documents released seven new documents on June 20, including new BIM and Digital Documents, a new document family called Program Management, and three free guides.  

The Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Construction and Facilities Management (CFM) is requesting comments on the use of a Project Labor Agreement (PLA) for a project in Biloxi, Miss. The project will include the renovation of two buildings at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center.

In testimony June 18 before the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Education and the Workforce Subcommittee on Workforce Protections, ABC General Counsel and shareholder with Littler Mendelson, P.C., Maurice Baskin said the Department of Labor’s (DOL) administration of the Davis-Bacon Act has, “hindered economic growth, increased the federal deficit and imposed an enormous paperwork burden on both contractors and the federal government.”

Economists from ABC, American Institute of Architects and National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) gave their perspectives June 17 about where the construction economy is headed during an online news conference. As a whole, things are improving, but recovery will continue to be slow unless more jobs are created.

The National Labor Relations Board’s (NLRB) August 2011 “Notification of Employee Rights” rule was struck down by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit on June 14, making it the second appellate court to invalidate the rule this year. 

To help members get a greater understanding of their obligations under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), or health care law, ABC Merit Choice Insurance is offering a “Health Care Reform Overview for Contractors.” 

ABC Business Partner General Motors is offering special Fleet Out-of-Stock Bonus Cash now through July 1. 

More than 350 ABC members and chapters traveled to Washington D.C., June 12 to meet their members of Congress. They also heard from Rep. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.), Rep. Andy Harris (R-Md.) and Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) during the ABC Legislative Conference breakfast.

ABC celebrated a victory June 10 after South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley (R) signed a bill (S.438) into law that will prohibit state government entities from requiring contractors to sign a project labor agreement (PLA) with labor unions as a condition of performing work on public construction projects.