Prince George’s County Abandons Anti-Competitive, Budget-Busting Project Labor Agreement on Laurel Library
Another taxpayer-funded project subject to a government-mandated project labor agreement (PLA) in the Washington, D.C., region has run into trouble. The Baltimore Sun reported that a union-favoring PLA required by Prince George’s County on the construction of the new library in Laurel, Md., has been scrapped because it caused delays, increased costs, and reduced competition from local contractors and […]
Gov. O’Malley Issues Executive Order Encouraging the Use of Apprenticeship Programs and Local Hiring Plans in Maryland Public Contracting
On Monday, Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley (D) issued an executive order that changes how state government procures taxpayer-funded construction contracts. According to an O’Malley administration press release, Executive Order 01.01.2013.05 (pdf) issued Sept. 23, 2013, directs entities “under the control of the governor” that procure contracts for construction services to adopt new procurement guidelines: “The procurement […]
Maryland Cozies Up to Project Labor Agreement Schemes
Free enterprise is under attack in Maryland and the merit shop contracting community, which employs 88.6 percent of the state’s construction workforce, will be denied a fair opportunity to compete for construction contracts due to the rise of special interest favoritism. Two recent media reports highlight how Maryland lawmakers and the administration of Gov. Martin O’Malley (D) are capitulating to Big […]
First Project under Prince George’s County’s New Pro-PLA Policy a Disaster
Prince George’s County’s first attempt to implement a wasteful and discriminatory project labor agreement (PLA) mandate under a November 15, 2011, policy (read the Prince George’s County press release on the policy here) is poised to be a costly disaster for county residents. Bids have been submitted for a fire station construction project in Brandywine, Md., […]
Bids for Maryland’s Cheltenham Juvenile Detention Center Tainted by Big Labor Favoritism
Today the ABC Maryland Joint Legislative Committee issued this release in response to the Maryland Department of General Services’ (DGS) decision to include a provision in a Nov. 11, 2011, request for proposal (RFP) regarding a juvenile detention center in Cheltenham, Md. (Prince George’s County) that unfairly favors construction managers (CMs) promising to mandate a […]