ABC Nov. 21 expressed concern over a controversial change in U.S. Senate rules and procedures that will allow the majority party to skirt a filibuster to confirm certain presidential appointments.  Traditionally, 60 votes have been needed to confirm nominees and pass legislation, but by invoking this unprecedented rule change along partisan lines, the majority has lowered that threshold to a simple majority of 51 votes.

The Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released a report Nov. 7 showing a decrease in on-the-job injury and illness rates for the construction industry in 2012. The total number of recordable cases declined to 3.6 incidents for every 100 full time employees (FTEs), down from 3.8 in 2011. 

The Affordable Coverage Coalition, of which ABC is a member, Nov. 21 sent a letter urging members of congress to support H.R. 3367, the Small Business and Family Relief Act, bipartisan legislation that would delay the health insurance tax for two years.

ABC member companies took the top 10 spots on Engineering News-Record’s 2013 Top 400 Contractors list.  Those firms included: 

ABC has teamed up with Synergis Engineering Design Solutions, a Platinum provider of Autodesk products, to bring customized BIM training and design exclusively to ABC contractor members to make them more productive, efficient and profitable. The training is part of a larger effort known as Project Virtual. 

ABC congratulated its member companies that were awarded top honors for the Construction Users Roundtable’s (CURT) Construction Industry Safety Excellence (CISE) Awards and Workforce Development Awards at CURT’s Nov. 12 national conference in Tucson, Ariz. 

Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) Nov. 19 filed a request for an injunction in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia against an Aug. 27 rule from the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) that drastically alters federal contractors’ existing affirmative action and nondiscrimination obligations for individuals with disabilities. The rule is schedule to go into effect March 24, 2014.

ABC, as part of the Waters Advocacy Coalition, responded to a draft scientific report by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on the connectivity of water, which the EPA said is intended to guide a forthcoming proposed rule that would expand its jurisdiction under the federal Clean Water Act (CWA). The proposed rule has not been released publically, but is under review by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).

As part of the Employers for Flexibility in Health Care (E-FLEX) Coalition, ABC Nov. 7 submitted comments to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in response to Sept. 9 proposed rules on information reporting by applicable large employers on health insurance coverage offered under employer-sponsored plans and information reporting of minimum essential coverage.

On Nov.8, OSHA proposed a rule that would require employers to submit specific injury and illness data electronically to OSHA on a quarterly or annual basis.