Related Links: Transcript of oral arguments in Unite Here Local 355 v. Mulhall Link to briefs in case During oral arguments on Nov. 14 in one of the most important labor cases before the U.S. Supreme Court this term, the justices seemed skeptical about the claim that employers' “neutrality” agreements with unions violate federal labor law.The case, Unite Here Local 355 v. Mulhall, centers on whether an employer's agreement to remain neutral during a union organizing campaign is legal under the Labor Management Relations Act (LMRA). Neutrality agreements are widely used in the service and hospitality industries and sometimes in

Related Links: ACEEE analysis of Shaheen-Portman bill's impact Senators Optimistic About Prospects for Energy-Effiency Bill Construction officials were optimistic this spring, when a Senate committee approved an energy-efficiency bill with features deemed favorable to the industry. However, the measure may not make it to the Senate floor for a full vote by the end of the calendar year, observers say.For one thing, time is limited. The Senate is scheduled to be in session for only about a dozen days before the end of December. "I think it will fall into next year," says Steven Nadel, executive director of the American

Related Links: ICCB settlement agreement with Justice Dept. US DOJ press release on settlement (11/7/2013) Ex-Corps Engineer Sentenced for Iraq Contract Bribe Plan (enr.com 3/13/13) In the latest development in a lengthy federal contracting probe, an Iraqi construction company has paid the U.S. government $2.7 million to resolve allegations that it bribed a former Army Corps of Engineers official to win U.S. contracts in Iraq, the Dept. of Justice has said.DOJ announced on Nov. 7 that Iraqi Consultants and Construction Bureau (ICCB), headquartered in Baghdad, had reached the settlement of alleged violations of the False Claims Act.The department also noted

Related Links: Nov. 1 Executive Order on Climate Change Panel Climate Change Plan Offers Opportunities for Innovation President Obama has issued a directive that establishes a task force comprising state, local and tribal leaders to recommend ways to address the impact of climate change. One goal is to make infrastructure more resilient.In a Nov. 1 executive order, Obama said the 26-member panel, whose members include California Gov. Jerry Brown (D) and Carmel, Ind., Mayor James Brainard (R), would advise the administration on reducing barriers to fund resilient infrastructure, modernizing federal grants to support local efforts and developing data and other

Related Links: U.S. District Judge Reggie Walton's Oct. 29 Memorandum American Coal Ash Association's Coal Ash Facts A federal judge has given the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 60 days to set a date for finalizing a coal-ash regulation. In an Oct. 29 memorandum, Reggie Walton, a district judge for the District of Columbia, said EPA must submit a proposal to the court for setting a release date for the controversial rule. The EPA proposed the regulation in 2010.Environmental groups have argued that coal ash should be designated a hazardous waste under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). But construction

Photo by AP Wideworld House budget panel Chairman Ryan (left) and Senate committee Chairman Murray must strike a deal by Dec. 13. Related Links: Text of Rep. Paul Ryan's Oct. 30 statement at conference committee meeting Text of Sen. Patty Murray's Oct. 30 statement On Oct. 30, House and Senate lawmakers finally sat down at the negotiating table to try to hammer out a compromise budget blueprint for fiscal year 2014. If the talks, led by House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) and Senate budget panel Chairman Patty Murray (D-Wash.), succeed, the product will be the first budget resolution

Photo Courtesy of Butte County, Calif. Unregulated marijuana cultivation, such as in California's Upper Central Valley, poses a threat to watersheds because of deforestation, watercourse diversion and uncontrolled runoff of pollutants. California officials are considering policies to protect the state's water resources from the growing problems associated with legal marijuana cultivation. The proliferation of farms, both legal and illegal, has exploded in the state due to the loosening of legal prohibitions on the sale of marijuana.After initially declining to place its agency inspectors at risk, the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board approved allowing its field personnel to accompany

Related Links: GC Vows Thorough Probe in Miami Garage Fatalities OSHA Cites Five Firms for Miami Garage Collapse Miami Dade College, the owner of a $22.5-million parking-garage project that partially collapsed in October 2012, filed on Oct. 8 a lawsuit against the general contractor, its insurer and six subcontractors. Alleging breach of contract, the suit claims that Ajax Building Corp., Liberty Mutual Insurance and the other firms failed to "undertake to correct or complete the project or to compensate MDC."While under construction, a quarter of the five-story, 520,000-sq-ft structure suffered a progressive collapse on Oct. 10, 2012, killing four workers.

Related Links: Rep. Waxman's Letter to OMB FracFocus Chemical Disclosure Registry Controversy remains over long-delayed Environmental Protection Agency guidance for writing permits for hydraulic fracturing that uses diesel. Some Democrats in the House of Representatives are eager to see the guidance finalized, but both industry and environmental groups have concerns, for different reasons.In an Oct. 25 letter, Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) asked the Office of Management and Budget to expeditiously review EPA's guidance, proposed in draft form in May 2012, and reject "any industry efforts to weaken or delay it." The new guidance would require U.S. oil and gas companies

Related Links: Construction Coalition Objects to OSHA's Proposed Silica Rule (ENR 9/9/2013 issue) OSHA Proposes Tougher Limit for Silica-Dust Exposure (enr.com 8/23/2013) The Occupational Safety and Health Administration is giving industry groups, unions and other parties more time to file comments on its proposal to tighten the exposure standard for airborne silica.On Oct. 25, OSHA said it is extending the comment-period deadline by 47 days, to Jan. 27. A coalition of construction-industry groups objects to the proposed, more stringent exposure limit.OSHA announced the proposal on Aug. 23 and published it on Sept. 12.