From 2000 to 2011, the merit shop construction community helped local leaders and voters across the state understand that government-mandated project labor agreements (PLAs) deprive taxpayers of the opportunity to get the best construction at the best price. Eight local communities enacted bans on PLA mandates, including three that did so through citizen initiatives.

Union bosses could feel the ground shifting under them, but were not going to take an assault on their monopoly lying down. As a major political contributor to most of the Democrats in the legislature’s majorities, Big Labor used its leverage to get state legislators to approve S.B. 922 in the closing days of the 2011 legislative session.

This bill was a clear special interest handout. From a policy standpoint, it nullified PLA mandate bans in localities controlled by the state government and was designed to deprive charter cities (i.e., cities where voters opted for local control by adopting a city charter) of state funding for future construction projects unless city leaders could consider the use of a PLA mandate.

If the policy wasn’t bad enough, this language was amended into an unrelated bill during the twilight of the legislative session, depriving taxpayers of the time to learn what the Democrats were really trying to pull, and then passed on party-line votes.

It turns out that Democrats in the legislature and their Big Labor allies moved the 2011 bill so quickly that the statute was not as air-tight as they wanted. Luckily for them, that is an easy fix for a state in which Big Labor calls the shots. On April 25, Gov. Jerry Brown (D) signed S.B. 829, which is designed to strip charter cities of state construction funds if the city cannot institute a government-mandated PLA.

Here are more details from a press release issued by Associated Builders and Contractors’ (ABC) Golden Gate Chapter:

Gut and Amend Bill interferes with local control for California Charter

Livermore, CA– Today, the Governor signed Senate Bill 829 (Rubio-Fresno), which intends to cut off all state funds from charter cities that ban Project Labor Agreements (PLAs). This is a follow-up bill to the original Union-Backed Senate Bill 922 signed by the Governor in 2011, intended to End Local Project Labor Agreement Bans or Fair and Open Competition ordinances for taxpayers at local governments.

SB 829 is the latest attempt by labor-backed lawmakers in Sacramento to limit state funds paid to any charter city that enacts restrictions on costly PLAs – including initiatives approved by voters. After heavy lobbying by labor unions and with minimal public debate, a maneuver called “gut and amend” was used to pass this bill in the State Senate last Thursday. The bill was passed on a straight party line vote.

“The bill has serious constitutional defects. However, that has not stopped some in the Legislature from backing what should be a non-starter. SB829 is a power grab by Sacramento politicians that will certainly be overturned by the courts,” said Nicole Goehring, Government Affairs Director, Associated Builders and Contractors Golden Gate Chapter.

SB829 is an attempt to undercut Proposition A in San Diego and similar Fair and Open Competition reforms gaining traction across the state. The bill was backed by the State Building & Construction Trades Unions in an attempt to gain state control of local construction money and block savings for local taxpayers.

Proposition A – the Fair and Open Competition Initiative – is on the June ballot in San Diego. It will prevent the City Council from imposing mandatory project labor agreements (PLAs) on city-funded construction projects and requires the Mayor to post construction contracts on-line for public review.

Senator Doug La Malfa and Assemblymembers Bill Berryhill, Connie Conway, Linda Halderman, Shannon Grove and Jim Nielsen among others in the State Legislature are to be applauded for opposing SB 829 and defending the rights of charter cities to exercise local control.

“We owe our duty to the constitution, not the unions,” said Assemblymember Shannon Grove, who spoke against the bill on the floor of the state Assembly. Grove represents part of the Central Valley where fair and open competition in construction is considered the best value for taxpayers.

###

The Problem with Project Labor Agreements

All construction work done under a Project Labor Agreement (PLA) must be performed by union-only signatory construction workers. The PLA will force non-union contractors and their workers to pay union dues, pay into union benefit programs, require all employees to be hired through a union-hiring hall to get work, and would allow for union-only apprentices on the project. By unnecessarily limiting bidders and following outdated and inefficient union work rules, union-only PLAs consistently drive up costs to the taxpayers. Several academic studies indicate PLAs increase the cost of construction between 10 percent and 20 percent when compared to similar projects not subject to union-only PLAs.

ABC of California also issued a statement.

Here is some great video of Sens. Anderson and Wyland, both Republicans from the San Diego area, speaking out against this bill:

There is also good video of Assemblywoman Shannon Grove (R) correctly characterizing the bill as unconstitutional.

This is just another example of how California is broken. When you put special interest groups in the driver’s seat, taxpayers get left behind.

Let’s just hope San Diego voters can see through the smokescreen on June 6.

Read more from TheTruthAboutPLAs:

• WSJ Editorial Blasts California SB 922
• California Governor Signs Union-Backed Senate Bill 922, Intended to End Local Project Labor Agreement Bans
• California Governor Jerry Brown Will Decide Fate of Local Voter Rebellions Against Project Labor Agreements
• All California posts

On Friday, March 23, Meriden Record-Journal op-ed writer Eric Cotton authored a strong piece urging the city not to require a wasteful and discriminatory PLA on two future school construction projects.  Here are the highlights from his op-ed “Skip the PLA“:

The local building trades unions are looking for an exclusive deal that would guarantee they receive the lion’s share of $220 million in renovation work, overriding the normal bidding process. In return, the city would get access to qualified union contractors, a guarantee of no work stoppages and assurances that 30 percent of the work would go to local residents, if possible.

But there’s already an abundance of qualified contractors available. With jobs in the construction industry so scarce, it won’t be difficult to find good people — union or non-union — to work on the high schools. Strikes and other work stoppages are also unlikely. And city officials are already looking into other ways of setting goals for hiring local workers.

There’s little need, at least from the city’s perspective, for a project labor agreement, or PLA.

<Snip>

The city has to protect the interests of taxpayers. Residents can hardly afford to shoulder additional costs from the high school projects as they struggle to make ends meet. Controlling costs is a big part of making sure the renovations go smoothly and it starts with the competitive bidding process. But PLAs, by their very nature, eliminate competition.

“When you eliminate competition, prices go up,” Petro said.

The unions argue that non-union companies are welcome to bid on PLA projects, which is true. But those companies would need to abide by the terms of the agreement, which means they have to rely on the unions to provide most of the workers, all but a few essential supervisors. That makes submitting an accurate bid nearly impossible since the non-union companies will be using workers they’re unfamiliar with. Fringe benefits are also handled differently in union and non-union situations, putting non-union shops at a disadvantage when bidding on PLA projects. This effectively eliminates them from the equation.

Since Meriden happens to have a lot of non-union contractors, that could make it more difficult to meet local hiring goals.

<Snip>

At any rate, in this climate, the city will be better off handling the school projects through the normal bidding process and with union and non-union contractors ultimately working side by side at Platt and Maloney.

Mr. Cotton is exactly right.  PLAs have a long history of reducing competition, which leads to increased construction costs, and not guaranteeing a local workforce.

PLA mandates also discriminate against the 80 percent of Connecticut’s construction workforce that chooses not to join an union and won’t have the opportunity to fairly compete for projects funded by their own tax dollars.

We urge the Meriden City Council to stand firm against Big Labor’s pressure and say no to PLA requirements on future school construction.

Here is the recap.

On March 10, a public forum to discuss whether a PLA mandate is appropriate for two school projects that are expected to cost approximately $200 million was held in Meriden, Conn. Of note, Congressman Chris Murphy and state House Speaker Chris Donovan appeared to speak in support of the PLA mandates. Both officials are candidates for higher office – Murphy is running for the U.S. Senate and Donovan is running for Murphy’s seat in the U.S. House of Representatives.

It should come as no surprise that both have taken union campaign contributions.  Here is an interesting bit of information from the Record-Journal in Meriden:

Through Dec. 31, Donovan had brought in $708,815 in campaign contributions, according to OpenSecrets.org, a website maintained by the Center for Responsive Politics. Of that amount, about $124,000 came from organized labor, including trade unions such as the Service Employees International Union, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Sheet Metal Workers Union and the Plumbers and Pipefitters Union. In total, industrial unions have contributed more than $30,000 to Donovan’s war chest, while building trade unions have given $22,500. Of his 20 largest donors this year, 12 are unions.

<snip>

Of the $3.4 million Murphy has raised for his Senate campaign, nearly $300,000 has come from unions, with more than $70,000 coming from building trade and industrial unions.

The merit shop construction industry was well represented at this event by Lelah Campo, president of the Connecticut Chapter of Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC), who called this more of a campaign event than an opportunity to learn the facts about PLAs.

This issue has arisen in part because of a petition to the Meriden City Council (initiated by union bosses) seeks a community workforce agreement mandate (a PLA by another name) on the construction of the two school projects. The City Council may not be required to take action on the petition because of a problem with its drafting. Regardless, the unions have successfully brought the issue to the forefront and the council is likely to consider a PLA mandate.

If adopted, this mandate will have a chilling effect on merit shop participation on these projects. In order to work on projects where contractors must agree to a PLA in order to perform work, contractors typically must recognize unions as the sole representative of their employees, hire from union hiring halls, pay into union pension and benefit plans, and follow wasteful union work rules.

From a practical standpoint, PLA mandates unfairly tip the scales in favor of unionized contractors. Merit shop employees, who make up nearly 80 percent of Connecticut’s construction workforce, are deprived of the opportunity to fairly compete for contracts and build projects funded by their own tax dollars.

In addition, these mandates have been found to increase construction costs.  A September 2004 study conducted by the Beacon Hill Institute at Suffolk University in Boston found that the use of PLAs on school construction projects in Connecticut increased the cost of the projects by nearly 18 percent.  The report concludes that the presence of a PLA increased the projects’ final base construction costs by $30 per square foot relative to non-PLA projects.

Unfortunately, the Meriden schools are not the only PLA threat in the state right now.

The Connecticut General Assembly’s Labor and Public Employees Committee held an informational hearing in Hartford on Monday, March 19, to learn more about wasteful and discriminatory PLA mandates.

Here is a great recap from CT News Junkies on what likely prompted the hearing:

The existence of PLAs, an issue that doesn’t come before the legislature very often, has come up in the wake of a January Connecticut Supreme Court decision. The decision gave standing to Electrical Contractors, Inc. (ECI), a nonunion Hartford company, that sued the Hartford Board of Education after winning a bid, but declining to sign a PLA for two school construction projects.

The Superior Court that first heard the trial decided that ECI did not have standing to bring the lawsuit, but the decision was overturned by the Supreme Court. It’s now back in trial court.

While the actual case may not be decided for years, the ruling on ECI’s standing creates the opportunity for other contractors to sue on account of PLAs.

Here is video of a few minutes of testimony by ABC Connecticut Chapter President Lelah Campo:

ABC was not the only group to speak out against PLAs at this hearing.  Connecticut’s Minority Construction Council wrote a strongly worded letter to voice its opposition to PLA mandates.  Here is an excerpt:

Not only do PLAs harm minority contractors who are not union contractors, they also harm non-union employees because if these employees work on a PLA project they must pay union benefits and become union members for each PLA project worked on. It is not fair for employees to pay into a union pension program they will never be able to collect from because they will never vest. This constitutes an unfair windfall for the union. Under current prevailing wage laws, fringe benefits are paid directly to the employee if the contractor he/she works for does not have benefit plans. It is better for employees under prevailing wage laws to be able to directly receive compensation in their paychecks for benefits rather than have their money go to a union’s irretrievable benefits program. The union benefits are payable to the union, even if the non-union employee is covered under the employer’s existing program (i .e., paying twice for the same benefit but only being able to collect to collect on one).

PLAs also harm minority contractors because the contractor has to get some or all of his/her employees from a union hall as opposed to directly hiring all employees. Consequently, a contractor is forced to bid a job without knowing his workforce or their work habits, because there is a great chance the minority contractor’s employees will come from the union hall as opposed to their regular workforce. Under this setup, the employee’s loyalty is to his union hall as opposed to the contractor. I can give you anecdotal evidence to support the harm suffered by minority contractors under a PLA because of union issues.

The merit shop construction community is concerned the General Assembly may take some action to undercut the ECI lawsuit or promote the use of anti-competitive and costly government-mandated PLAs on state and state-funded projects. Doing so would send a clear signal that Connecticut’s lawmakers are in the pockets of union bosses and special interests, and not looking out for the interests of taxpayers and free enterprise.

TheTruthAboutPLAs.com will be following the situation in Connecticut closely.

But this case is noteworthy from the perspective of TheTruthaboutPLAs.com because the elected official voted for Project Labor Agreements ten years apart on two different local government boards in two completely different geographic regions.

In 1998, Nadia Lockyer (then named Nadia Davis) was elected to the board of trustees of the Santa Ana Unified School District in Orange County. In March 2000, she was part of the 4-1 board majority that voted to require contractors to sign a Project Labor Agreement for $145 million in school construction funded by the district’s Measure C. As reported in the March 15, 2000 Los Angeles Times:

The bricks and mortar for the largest school building project in Orange County history will be laid exclusively by union hands, Santa Ana Unified board members decided Tuesday night. In a controversial decision that continues a spate of victories for labor interests, all but one of the five board members voted to support a Project Labor Agreement, which would open bids to the $145 million in school-building plans only to union companies or nonunion contractors who hire through union hiring halls.

Despite this accomplishment for union special interests, Ms. Davis lost her re-election campaign in 2002 as the district was caught up in numerous controversies, including mismanagement of the district’s construction program. Eventually she ended up in the San Francisco Bay Area, and in 2010 she was elected as Nadia Lockyer to the Alameda County Board of Supervisors.

Different place, different year, but same contempt for the taxpayer and the merit shop contracting community. Her accomplishments to date on the Alameda County Board of Supervisors were described on February 17 by a San Francisco Chronicle columnist:

… largely an unknown, even after her election. Since her arrival on the Board of Supervisors, Lockyer has worked on general assistance policy issues and helped craft a project labor agreement for the construction of a new Superior Court building.

Remember the axiom: behind every push for a Project Labor Agreement is an elected official dreaming of higher office.

With her second victory in using a local government to force contractors to sign union Project Labor Agreements for taxpayer-funded construction, Supervisor Nadia Davis Lockyer is again locking in future labor union endorsements and preparing for a fine career in the California State Legislature, or maybe even U.S. Congress or statewide office.

Her climb to the top will simply happen in Alameda County rather than in Orange County.

One such example occurred in California, where union efforts helped get Robert Calone appointed to the Governing Board for the Contra Costa Community College District.  Mr. Calone’s day job is Recording Secretary for the Plumbers and Steamfitters Local 159.

While it’s possible that civic duty motivated Mr. Calone to apply for this office, it is also pretty clear that the construction unions have a revenue stream to develop.  And thanks in part to Mr. Calone, Big Labor will have a virtual monopoly on community college construction for the next five years.

But in all of the excitement over securing nearly all of the community college’s construction work in the next five years for Big Labor, it appears that Mr. Calone may have forgotten to take care of a small detail – properly completing his ethics disclosures.

Here is the press release from the Golden Gate Chapter of Associated Builders and Contractors issued on January 10:

FPPC Complaint filed against Contra Costa Community College District Trustee for Failure to File Form 700 Timely and Report Income

The Fair Political Practices Commission has confirmed receipt of a complaint filed for possible violations relating to Robert Calone, who holds the office of Governing Board member for the Contra Costa Community College District.

California Government Code §87202(a) states that “Every person who is elected to an office specified in Section 87200 shall, within 30 days after assuming the office, file a statement disclosing his or her investments and his or her interests in real property held on the date of assuming office, and income received during the 12 months before assuming office.”

Robert Calone failed to file a statement within 30 days (he did it 200 days after assuming office, after the public requested his Form 700 from the college district). When he filed his statement, he failed to report income.

Finally, by filing his Form 700 late and then omitting a source of income on the late Form 700, Robert Calone concealed his financial interest in a controversial contract that was approved on December 14, 2011 by the Governing Board of the Contra Costa Community College District. Only the intervention of the public in exposing Robert Calone’s failure to submit a Form 700 and his failure to report his employment income prevented him from voting on a contract for which his loyalties and allegiance were divided and influenced by his paid employment as an instructor for an organization that was signatory to the contract.

“Mr. Calone, the Recording Secretary for the Plumbers and Steamfitters Local 159, was appointed to the Board for the sole purpose of enacting a union-only Project Labor Agreement for District construction projects, thereby creating a monopoly on District work that will result in reduced competition and increased costs for public contracts funded by taxpayer dollars” stated Matt Heavey, a local citizen who filed the complaint.

A copy of the complaint can be viewed here.

Here at TheTruthAboutPLAs.com, we believe sunshine and transparency are the best medicine for public corruption.

Regardless of whether Mr. Calone violated the letter of the law, this one doesn’t pass the smell test.

Government-mandated PLAs have a negative impact on local construction workers and taxpayers.  These special interest handouts to Big Labor line the pockets of union bosses at the expense of average Americans.

Californians throughout the state have learned about PLA mandates and said “No Thanks” time and again.  Despite Gov. Jerry Brown and the California Legislature’s attempt to slow down the fight against PLA mandates, merit shop contractors, their workers, taxpayer advocates and ordinary citizens are gearing up to bring the message of fair and open competition to the people of Sacramento!

Visit www.fairandopencompetitionsacramento.com to learn more about the effort to ban government-mandated PLAs on projects funded by the city of Sacramento.

This ballot initiative will be similar to those passed by overwhelming majorities in Chula Vista, Oceanside and San Diego.  By putting an end of PLA mandates, citizens can be sure they are getting the best construction at the best price.  Always.

Considering that San Diego County voters approved a Fair and Open Competition charter amendment with 76 percent of the vote in November 2010, it was no surprise that signature collection for this ballot measure was easy. Project labor agreements have been a familiar issue of concern to citizens in San Diego County since the notorious union extortion of Gaylord Entertainment in 2007 and 2008 for a project labor agreement using the threat of objections under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). In the end, Gaylord abandoned its proposal to build a $1.2 billion hotel and conference center on the bayfront of the City of Chula Vista, and unions solidified a reputation in San Diego for underhanded tactics in pursuit of monopoly control of work.

In June 2010, 56 percent of voters in the City of Chula Vista approved a Fair and Open Competition ordinance, and 54 percent of voters in the City of Oceanside approved a charter containing a Fair and Open Competition provision.

Ban on Labor-Friendly Contracts Will Be on 2012 Ballot – San Diego Union-Tribune – September 21, 2011 (breaking news)

New Initiative Sets Stage for Latest Labor, Business Battle – www.voiceofSanDiego.org – September 21, 2001

‘Fair and Open Competition’ initiative qualifies for San Diego ballot – San Diego Daily Transcript – September 22, 2011 (Article notes that the Fair and Open Competition measure is the first qualified by San Diego citizens for the city ballot since 1998 – thirteen years ago.)

This is also a good opportunity to review the numerous times that California media availed itself of the opportunity to can the entire package.

For those not following this issue, California State Senate Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg and Assembly Speaker John Perez changed two bills unrelated to construction or labor issues and through a “Gut and Amend” process, transformed them into vehicles to overturn the will of both local elected officials and taxpayers in a number of communities throughout the state.

The legislative leadership took a bill about tuberculosis screening (Senate Bill 922) on the Friday before Labor Day and turned it into a bill that nullifies current and future bans on PLA mandates by local governments and cuts off state funds for charter cities that ban government-mandated PLAs.

Two other bills were amended at the last minute and without much public scrutiny to meet Big Labor’s demands.  The first, A.B. 436, requires certain local governments to pay fees to the state for labor compliance, unless these governments require their construction contractors to sign a PLA, in which case they don’t have to pay the fees to the state.

Another, S.B. 790, includes an unrelated tack-on provision that allows utilities to pass through to ratepayers the costs of mandatory payments in PLAs to Labor-Management Cooperative Committees, mysterious and unaccountable slush funds authorized by an obscure federal law from 1978.

These bills are designed to undercut the eight California communities to ban PLA mandates on taxpayer funded projects.  Several of these communities adopted these bans through ballot initiatives that were overwhelmingly approved.

Here at TheTruthAboutPLAs.com, we urge Gov. Brown to veto these bills.  That is pretty obvious.  But we aren’t the only ones.  State and local media has covered these, and other bad bills on their way to the governor’s desk, extensively.  It turns out that other people are concerned about some of the garbage coming from the California Legislature also.

(Cartoon Credit: Bakersfield Californian)

Here is a round-up of media coverage on this issue:

News Media Coverage of Senate Bill 922 Since Passage in the California Legislature:

1.      Raft of labor-backed bills are a challenge for Jerry Brown– Sacramento Bee – September 12, 2011; in Fresno Bee – September 13, 2011

2.      Bills that Need to be Vetoed – Modesto Bee (editorial) – September 12, 2011

3.      EDITORIAL: Meet the boss – North County Times (editorial) – September 13, 2011

4.      Not every bill warrants that signature – Merced Sun-Star (editorial) – September 13, 2011

5.      Four bills need Gov. Brown’s veto– Oakland Tribune, Contra Costa Times, other San Francisco Bay Area local newspapers (editorial) – September 13, 2011

6.      Brown Ought to Use His Veto Pen Without Mercy – Sacramento Bee (editorial) – September 13, 2011

7.      Follow the Yellow Brick Road – www.CalWatchdog.com – September 14, 2011

8.      FORUM: Legislature cares little about local control – North County Times (powerful opinion piece by Oceanside City Councilman Jerry Kern about his personal experience at the state capitol opposing Senate Bill 922) – September 15, 2011

9.      Late amends leave advocates punched in the gut – Capitol Weekly – September 15, 2011

10.   Proposed legislation could cost cities millions – North County Times – September 11, 2011

11.    California Legislators: Gut and Amend is Gutless and Abusive – California Political Review – September 14, 2011

12.     Brown would be wise to veto many of the bills before him – Fresno Bee (editorial) – September 15, 201

13.     600 bills on Jerry’s desk – Sacramento Bee – September 17, 2011

14.     Senseless Bills – Riverside Press-Enterprise (editorial) – September 17, 2011

15.    Four Bills the Governor Should Veto – Woodland Daily Democrat – September 16, 2011

16.    Four for Brown’s veto pen – Vallejo Times-Herald – September 18, 2011

17.   New Initiative Sets Stage for Latest Labor, Business Battle – www.voiceofSanDiego.org – September 21, 2001

Receiving the most attention is Senate Bill 922, a bill created on September 2 as a “gut and amend” bill and authored by the Assembly Speaker and Senate Pro Tem. This bill terminates local government policies that prohibit mandates for contractors to sign Project Labor Agreements. To compel California’s 120 charter cities (cities with full authority over their purely municipal affairs) to end their policies, the bill deprives these cities of state funding for projects if they maintain or enact policies that prohibit mandates for contractors to sign Project Labor Agreements.

Votes on this bill were strictly on party lines. Other than the few legislators who did not vote on SB 922 for unknown reasons, every Democrat in the legislature voted for SB 922 and every Republican voted against SB 922. No Democrat was willing to buck the political power of the unions and defy the caucus leaders in the Assembly and Senate, even if some recognized the inappropriate interference of the state government in the affairs of local governments. Realize that many Democratic state legislators were recently serving themselves in local government and complaining about state mandates and the state’s manipulation of local government policies.

Not surprisingly, numerous construction trade associations representing both union and Merit Shop contractors are asking Governor Jerry Brown to veto of SB 922, along with broader business organizations. But the brazen usurpation of local government authority by the state under SB 922 has also upset local government officials, even those who are neutral or even supportive of Project Labor Agreements.

“SB 922 is an unnecessary interference in local community decision making,” states a veto request from the California State Association of Counties. The League of California Cities also opposes SB 922: “Regardless of your position on PLAs, SB 922 is a bad bill and should be opposed. This is one more example of state legislative interference in what should be a local issue.” Numerous individual local elected officials have also sent veto requests to the governor.

Eight local governments have enacted policies to ban Project Labor Agreements, including three where voters solidly approved ballot measures to ensure Fair and Open Competition.

PROPOSITION G for CITY OF CHULA VISTA – JUNE 8, 2010
YES: 18783 55.75% (56%)
NO: 14906 44.25%

PROPOSITION K for CITY OF OCEANSIDE – JUNE 8, 2010
YES: 14951 53.79% (54%)
NO: 12846 46.21%

PROPOSITION A for SAN DIEGO COUNTY – NOVEMBER 2, 2010
YES: 614744 75.80% (76%)
NO: 196315 24.20%

As confirmed by these votes (as well as by polling), most California voters recognize that Project Labor Agreements are a costly scheme engineered by union lobbyists and politicians to give unions monopoly control over taxpayer-funded construction projects.

With ballot measures soon to qualify for the June 2012 ballot to establish Fair and Open Competition policies in the City of San Diego (Ban on labor-friendly contracts targeted for ballot – San Diego Union-Tribune – September 7, 2011), in the City of Sacramento, and in the County of Sacramento, union lobbyists have turned to the California legislature to bail out their unpopular strategy of using government-mandated Project Labor Agreements to cut competition and gain market share.

Learn more about these bills here.

News Media Coverage of Senate Bill 922 Since Passage in the California Legislature:

1.      Raft of labor-backed bills are a challenge for Jerry Brown– Sacramento Bee – September 12, 2011; in Fresno Bee – September 13, 2011

2.      Bills that Need to be Vetoed – Modesto Bee (editorial) – September 12, 2011

3.      EDITORIAL: Meet the boss – North County Times (editorial) – September 13, 2011

4.      Not every bill warrants that signature – Merced Sun-Star (editorial) – September 13, 2011

5.      Four bills need Gov. Brown’s veto– Oakland Tribune, Contra Costa Times, other San Francisco Bay Area local newspapers (editorial) – September 13, 2011

6.      Brown Ought to Use His Veto Pen Without Mercy – Sacramento Bee (editorial) – September 13, 2011

7.      Follow the Yellow Brick Road – www.CalWatchdog.com – September 14, 2011

8.      FORUM: Legislature cares little about local control – North County Times (powerful opinion piece by Oceanside City Councilman Jerry Kern about his personal experience at the state capitol opposing Senate Bill 922) – September 15, 2011

9.      Late amends leave advocates punched in the gut – Capitol Weekly – September 15, 2011

10.   Proposed legislation could cost cities millions – North County Times – September 11, 2011

11.    California Legislators: Gut and Amend is Gutless and Abusive – California Political Review – September 14, 2011

12.     Brown would be wise to veto many of the bills before him – Fresno Bee (editorial) – September 15, 201

13.     600 bills on Jerry’s desk – Sacramento Bee – September 17, 2011

14.     Senseless Bills – Riverside Press-Enterprise (editorial) – September 17, 2011

15.    Four Bills the Governor Should Veto – Woodland Daily Democrat – September 16, 2011

16.    Four for Brown’s veto pen – Vallejo Times-Herald – September 18, 2011

Despite the gutting and amending of this bill immediately before Labor Day weekend, numerous construction trade associations, business groups, taxpayer organizations, local government associations, and local government officials went on record in opposition to the bill, starting with a hastily-scheduled Assembly Business and Professions Committee hearing on Tuesday, September 6.

State Senator Michael Rubio (D-Bakersfield), who plans to run for Congress, appeared before the committee to cheerlead for this sloppy last-minute creation of the State Building and Construction Trades Council and its affiliate construction unions. Senate Bill 922 passed this committee and then passed the Assembly Appropriations Committee on September 7 on party-line votes. (All Democrats supported the bill; all Republicans opposed it).

Meanwhile, faxes began pouring into legislators’ offices from contractors, business owners, and ordinary California taxpayers objecting to Senate Bill 922 and its union-backed partners, Assembly Bill 436 (gutted and amended on Wednesday, August 30) and Senate Bill 790.

Assembly Bill 436 requires certain local governments to pay fees to the state for labor compliance, unless these governments require their construction contractors to sign Project Labor Agreements, in which case they don’t have to pay the fees to the state. The state leaves those contractors (and the unions) to do whatever they do when no one with official authority is watching. It passed on the Senate floor on a party-line vote (Democrats in support, Republicans opposed) on September 7.

Senate Bill 790 includes an unrelated tack-on provision that allows utilities to pass through to ratepayers the costs of mandatory payments in Project Labor Agreements to Labor-Management Cooperative Committees, mysterious and unaccountable slush funds authorized by an obscure federal law from 1978. The bill (about community choice aggregation programs for electric consumers) was uncontroversial and headed toward unanimous approval until this provision (inserted at the request of union lobbyists) tainted the bill. It passed the Assembly floor on September 8, after the presiding chairman of the Assembly denied the request of Assemblywoman Shannon Grove (R-Bakersfield) to show physical evidence of such payments and then cut off her oral statement. See the video here: Assemblywoman Grove tries to discuss a controversial provision of SB 790 and is shut down by opposing leadership before being able to speak.

Then the news media became aware of these bills. Here are articles and editorials about at least one of these bills (and in some cases, all three bills):

1. Editorial: Gut-and-amend bill needs to be stopped – Sacramento Bee – September 7, 2011

2. Legislature moves to overturn bans on local labor friendly agreements – San Diego Union-Tribune – September 7, 2011

3. Kevin Dayton: Construction Unions Set Up State Legislature to Crush Fair and Open Competition Policies at Local Governments – www.FlashReport.org (op-ed) – September 7, 2011

4. Union Bias – Riverside Press-Enterprise (editorial) – September 8, 2011

5. Legislature’s Rhetoric on Jobs is Empty – San Diego Union-Tribune (editorial) – September 8, 2011

6. Labor bills introduced as session nears end – Orange County Register (editorial) – September 8, 2011

7. Banning Project Labor Agreement Bans in California – www.PublicSectorInc.com – September 7, 2011

8. Opinion: SB 922 Undermines Basis of State/Local Government Relationship – www.PublicCEO.com – September 8, 2011

9. Unions attempt to push through Senate Bills by going to puppet legislators – San Diego Daily Transcript (op-ed) – September 6, 2011

10. Dan Walters: Fun, games mark California Legislature’s final week – Sacramento Bee (columnist, run in numerous state newspapers) – September 8, 2011

11. Legislation Boosts Union Trust Fund – www.CalWatchdog.com – September 8, 2011

12. Dan Walters: New legislative bills grow in the dark – Sacramento Bee (columnist, run in numerous state newspapers) – September 9, 2011

13. Union ‘Gut and Amend’ Bills Slice Open California – www.FoxandHoundsDaily.com – September 9, 2011

14. A Bad Bill Sneaks through Legislature – Modesto Bee (editorial) – September 8, 2011

15. Bill OK’d that could expedite stadium (also reports on SB 922 moving through legislature) – San Diego Union-Tribune – September 10, 2011

 16. Senate approve bill boosting NFL stadium in L.A. (also reports on SB 922 moving through legislature)  – Orange County Register – September 10, 2011

UPDATE: All three bills passed the California legislature and wait for Gov. Brown’s approval.

Fax Gov. Brown TODAY and urge him to VETO all three bills.