House Defends Principles of Fair and Open Competition with Passage of Amendment Restricting Government-Mandated PLAs on NDAA Authorized Projects
It was a historic week for the merit shop contracting community in the U.S. House of Representatives. Thursday, by a bipartisan vote of 211 to 209, the House passed an amendment offered by Rep. Roscoe Bartlett (R-Md.) and cosponsored by Rep. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2013 [...]
U.S. House Appropriations Committee Passes Amendment Restoring Fair and Open Competition on MilCon/VA Construction Contracts
The U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Appropriations on May 16 passed an amendment via voice vote to the Military Construction and Veterans Affairs (MilCon/VA) Appropriations bill for fiscal year 2013 that prevents federal agencies from requiring contractors to sign anti-competitive and costly project labor agreements (PLAs) as a condition of winning federal construction contracts. [...]
Diverse Coalition of Construction Industry Associations and Employer Groups Oppose Government-Mandated Project Labor Agreements
A diverse coalition of construction industry associations and employer groups oppose government-mandated project labor agreements (PLAs) and anti-competitive PLA preferences used by federal agencies as a result of President Obama’s pro-PLA Executive Order 13502 and related regulations. During the 112th Congress, these groups have sent numerous coalition letters to the House and Senate in support of legislation [...]
Coalition Supports Legislation Creating Fair And Open Competition For Federal Construction Contracts
Jan. 25, Sen. David Vitter (R.-La.) introduced the Government Neutrality in Contracting Act (S. 119) (pdf), a measure that will protect taxpayers and ensure fair and open competition on government construction contracts by prohibiting the government from mandating anti-competitive and costly project labor agreements (PLAs) on federal and federally assisted construction projects. Today, the following groups [...]
Momentum Builds for Passage of Proposition A in San Diego County
San Diego County voters are preparing to vote YES on Proposition A, which would amend the county charter to prohibit the county government from entering into contracts that require construction companies to sign Project Labor Agreements with unions. On October 9, the San Diego Union-Tribune noted that Proposition A “might be the easiest decision on [...]
Sen. Collins and Coalition Oppose Project Labor Agreement Final Rule
On Thursday, a coalition of organizations opposed to government-mandated project labor agreements (PLAs) sent a letter to all Hill offices concerning the final rule issued by the federal government that will open the door to waste and discrimination in federal contracting. The Federal Acquisition Regulatory (FAR) Council’s final rule, released April 13, implements President Obama’s Feb. 6, 2009 pro-PLA Executive [...]