President Biden’s Project Labor Agreement Executive Order Will Increase Costs to Taxpayers and Exacerbate Construction Industry Skilled Labor Shortage
Yesterday, Associated Builders and Contractors issued this press release in reaction to President Biden’s long-rumored executive order (see White House fact sheet) pushing government-mandated project labor agreements on certain federal construction contracts. This policy is bad news for taxpayers and the construction industry. President Biden’s Pro-PLA Executive Order Will Increase Costs to Taxpayers and Exacerbate […]
Biden Administration Circulates Draft Pro-Project Labor Agreement Executive Order For Federal Contracting
TheTruthAboutPLAs.com can confirm recent media reports that the Biden administration is circulating a draft executive order to federal agencies that will modify and expand President Obama’s Executive Order 13502, issued in February 2009, which encourages federal agencies to require project labor agreements on a case-by-case basis on federal construction projects exceeding $25 million in total […]
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 […]
Philly Mayor Opens Door to Waste and Discrimination with Pro-PLA Executive Order
Philadelphia Mayor Michael A. Nutter issued Executive Order 15-11 on Nov. 29, 2011, re-establishing the use of anti-competitive and costly union-favoring government-mandated project labor agreements (PLAs) on city projects costing more than $5 million. According to Philly’s press release, the order does not mandate PLAs on all projects, but it creates a PLA evaluation procedure that opens the door […]
Federal Judge Dismisses Lawsuit Against Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad’s Open Competition Executive Order
Despite the attempts of lawmakers in California to override the will of local voters and their elected officials, not all of the news on wasteful and discriminatory project labor agreement (PLA) mandates from the states last week was bad. On Sept. 7, a federal District Court judge in Iowa dismissed a lawsuit filed by the […]
Illinois: Where Raising Taxes Isn’t Enough
Illinois taxpayers are having a rough go of it lately. While leaders in many states have reshaped their state governments to use public funds more efficiently and provide some relief to taxpayers, Illinois lawmakers have decided to go the other way on this issue. Illinois lawmakers went after people’s pocketbooks directly in early 2011, enacting […]
Dissolve the State of Project Labor Agreements from Our Regulation Nation
On Jan. 18, President Obama issued an executive order, Improving Regulation and Regulatory Review, urging federal agencies to review and fix costly federal regulations that “stifle job creation and make our economy less competitive.” In an opinion editorial published in The Wall Street Journal (“Towards a 21st Century Regulatory,” 1/18/11), President Obama wrote: “Sometimes, those rules have gotten out […]
PLAs Are Political Payback To Big Labor
There is a textbook example of PLAs being used as political payback to Big Labor from politicians that need union support brewing in Iowa right now. This is a story about America’s most politically endangered incumbent governor and the unrealized dreams of one special interest group – Big Labor. When Democrats took over Iowa’s state […]
Iowa Governor Culver Issues Executive Order Encouraging PLAs
Iowa Governor Chet Culver (D) today issued Executive Order 22 (pdf) at the Iowa Building and Construction Trades conference in Des Moines. This order encourages state agencies to consider wasteful and discriminatory project labor agreements (PLAs) on state construction costing over $25 million. This order is very similar to President Obama’s Executive Order 13502, issued in […]
100 Days of the Obama Presidency: Remembering Executive Order 13502: Promoting Project Labor Agreeements
Today, April 29, marks the 100th Day of President Barack Obama’s presidency. This week the media has been churning out 100 day reviews of the Obama administration on diverse topics ranging from the Foreign Policy to Labor such as National Journal’s 4/25 piece, “Labor Holds Its Fire. Despite Setbacks, Labor Leaders Have Greeted the New […]