The U.S. Small Business Administration’s Office of Advocacy released a new guidance document to help small businesses understand their role and participate in the federal rulemaking process.

On Oct. 15, ABC submitted comments as part of the Construction Industry Safety Coalition on the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s Request for Information on Table 1 of the agency’s Respirable Crystalline Silica Standard for Construction.

ABC member and 2003 national chair Eddie Rispone, founder of ISC Contractors, will be the Republican candidate facing off against incumbent Gov. John Bel Edwards (D) in the Nov. 16 general election for Louisiana, according to the results of the state’s Oct 12 primary.

On Oct. 9, the Honolulu City Council passed a highly contentious ordinance that will require the city to negotiate a “community workforce agreement” with the Hawaii Building and Construction Trades Council, the Hawaii Construction Alliance and their affiliated labor unions for certain public works projects. The city says the ordinance will apply to “critical city projects” in which the city has a particular interest in timely and cost-efficient project completion. The CWA will largely apply to critical road, wastewater, drainage and park improvement projects.

The AQC program recognizes and honors construction firms that document their commitment to excellence in five key areas of corporate responsibility: quality, safety, craft and management education, talent management and diversity and community relations.  A company that meets the criteria set forth in the program and has earned STEP Gold, Platinum or Diamond status in ABC’s safety management system is formally designated an Accredited Quality Contractor.     

On Oct. 4, the National Labor Relations Board announced an extension of the comment period on its proposed rule that would amend the NLRB’s representation election regulations. The deadline for submitting comments has been extended from Oct. 11 to Dec. 10, 2019.

On Sept. 27, the DOL issued a final rule on overtime, which updates and revises the “white-collar” overtime exemption regulations under the Fair Labor Standards Act.  The final rule goes into effect on Jan. 1, 2020.

On Sept. 26, the U.S. Senate voted 53-44 to confirm Eugene Scalia as secretary of labor.

On Sept. 24, in a 4-3 decision, the Ohio Supreme Court upheld ABC-supported legislation passed by the Ohio Legislature that prohibited residency requirements for contractors working on public construction projects.  

On Sept. 25, the U.S. House Committee on Education and Labor held a markup on H.R. 2474, the Protecting the Right to Organize, or PRO, Act.  During the markup, representatives debated the merits of the bill and sought to add and remove provisions. Each amendment submitted by Democrats passed, while those submitted by Republicans failed via a party line vote.