Beacon Hill Institute

Study: Project Labor Agreement Mandates Inflate Cost of New Jersey School Construction by 16.25%

0 October 2, 2019  Federal Construction, Open Competition Works, School Construction, State & Local Construction

A study released in August by the Beacon Hill Institute found that New Jersey schools built under controversial government-mandated project labor agreements cost 16.25% more than schools that were bid and constructed through fair and open competition, free from PLA requirements. The study, which looked at 107 schools built in New Jersey since 2002, found that those built under […]

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Project Labor Agreements Raise Costs on Ohio Schools 13 Percent, Study Finds

0 May 25, 2017  Open Competition Works, School Construction, State & Local Construction

A study by the Beacon Hill Institute has shown that when mandated by the government on taxpayer-funded construction projects, project labor agreements (PLAs) increase the costs of construction 13.12 percent. The study examined 88 schools across Ohio that were built since 2000 and found government-mandated PLAs cost $23.12 per square foot more (13.12 percent) than projects built […]

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The Truth About Project Labor Agreement Research

0 May 1, 2014  Open Competition Works

Lobbyists calling for the increased use of government-mandated project labor agreements (PLAs) have been referencing work by Kotler, Phillips, Belman, Bodah and Le that is critical of quantitative research that demonstrates the negative impact of anti-competitive PLA requirements on construction costs and taxpayers. These attacks, which have been referenced and discussed in inaccurate and biased PLA feasibility studies produced by Hill […]

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Keystone Research Center Studies Promoting Pennsylvania Project Labor Agreements Can’t Be Trusted

1 February 23, 2014  Featured, School Construction, State & Local Construction

Proponents of discriminatory and costly government-mandated project labor agreements (PLAs) have concocted some wild schemes to help misguided and corrupt lawmakers steer taxpayer-funded contracts to their union workers and unionized contractor political supporters with little competition and public scrutiny, but this latest caper from Bristol Township, Pa., is remarkable and deserves to be exposed. In August 2013, when […]

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Told You So: Project Labor Agreement on Connecticut High School Increased Costs and Reduced Competition

0 April 2, 2013  School Construction, State & Local Construction

In 2012, the merit shop contracting community and city employees predicted Meriden, Conn., would face increased costs and reduced competition if the city council mandated a union-favoring project labor agreement (PLA) on $220 million worth of contracts to renovate two local high schools. (TheTruthAboutPLAs.com covered the controversy here and here). Despite the warnings, testy public […]

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Boston Globe Editorial Blasts Government-Mandated Project Labor Agreements and Patrick Administration

0 July 24, 2012  State & Local Construction, Transportation & Infrastructure

An editorial in today’s Boston Globe decimates flimsy arguments in favor of government-mandated project labor agreements (PLAs) and skewers Mass. Gov. Deval Patrick (D) for requiring PLAs on major state projects, including the Whittier Memorial Bridge, which TheTruthAboutPLAs.com covered last week (“Project labor agreements: Mass. taxpayers lose again,” 7/24/12): Although it lacks any compelling reasons for doing so, […]

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Who Is Hill International and Why Does It Promote Government-Mandated PLAs?

1 July 19, 2012  Federal Construction, School Construction, State & Local Construction

Who is Hill International and why does it consistently support and promote anti-competitive and costly government-mandated project labor agreements (PLAs)? In short, Hill International is a corporate PLA pimp. Read on to learn why this isn’t hyperbole. Many local, state and federal entities in charge of taxpayer-funded construction contracts are required by law or directed […]

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Beacon Hill Institute Responds to Attacks on Project Labor Agreement Research

0 July 22, 2011  Federal Construction, Uncategorized

Dr. David Tuerck, Executive Director of The Beacon Hill Institute (BHI) and Professor and Chairman of the Department of Economics at Suffolk University, asked TheTruthAboutPLAs.com to post the following note and related correspondence to U.S. Congress in response to attacks by Dr. Peter Phillips, economics professor at the University of Utah, on BHI’s research on the impact of government-mandated […]

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MWAA Officials Overlook Cause of Potential Phase 2 Project Labor Agreement Cost Increases

0 July 6, 2011  State & Local Construction, Transportation & Infrastructure, Uncategorized

Recent correspondence from Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority (MWAA) officials indicate that despite months of education and discussion with local stakeholders and the business community, MWAA does not fully understand the potential negative economic impact of its April 6 resolution mandating a union-favoring project labor agreement (PLA) that contractors are required to agree to in order […]

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