On April 9, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission issued an updated technical assistance publication that addresses questions regarding the COVID-19 pandemic and its effect on federal Equal Employment Opportunity Laws.

This weekend, Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam (D) signed into law and issued amendment recommendations for legislation impacting Virginia’s construction industry, including two bills permitting prevailing wage and project labor agreement requirements on taxpayer-funded public works projects.

On April 8, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration expanded temporary guidance provided in a March 14, 2020, memorandum regarding supply shortages of N95s or other filtering facepiece respirators due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Join Matt Abeles, ABC vice president of construction technology and innovation, and his guests to explore ways to leverage cutting-edge technology and help ABC member companies succeed in today’s unique construction climate. Three tech-focused webinars are scheduled as part of ABC’s COVID-19 series and will provide unique, innovative insights into a variety of timely topics. 

On April 10, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration issued interim guidance for enforcing OSHA’s recordkeeping requirements (29 CFR Part 1904) as it relates to recording cases of COVID-19.

On April 13, two multi-state coalitions announced the formation of separate task forces focused on reopening their state economies through regional partnerships.

States and localities across the United States are facing an uncertain economic future as the coronavirus pandemic has ground economic activity to a halt across the country and cut off revenue streams that these governments rely on, such as sales and income taxes. Unanticipated state budget expenditures, like emergency funding packages, are also forcing states to reconsider how resources are allocated in their budgets.

Wisconsin held its in-person election on April 7, despite numerous primary postponements and some public criticism. Former Vice President Joe Biden won with 62.93% of the vote, bringing his delegate count to 1,293 (1,991 delegates are needed to secure his nomination).

On April 14, ABC sent an action alert to ABC members asking them to call on their member of Congress to quickly authorize additional funding for the Paycheck Protection Program, which was created under the CARES Act to provide forgivable loans to small businesses. With nearly $350 billion in small business aid estimated to run out this week, ABC is asking Congress to pass a clean bill to increase funds for the PPP, which has been a priority for Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R) and the White House.

The New York State Legislature took action to include an expansion of prevailing wage in the state’s budget for fiscal year 2020-21, which was signed into law on April 3 by Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D). The provision expands the view of what projects are considered “public works” and applies prevailing wage to private projects of $5 million or above in project cost that receive at least 30% of their financing from public assistance. This assistance goes beyond direct public investment to include loan and grant programs and certain tax incentives, greatly increasing the number of projects required to pay prevailing wages.