The resignation of the top official in the Environmental Protection Agency's South and Southwest region—the heart of oil and gas country—is providing further ammunition to GOP lawmakers who have been vocal critics of the agency.Al Armendariz, EPA's Region 6 administrator, resigned after a two-year-old video in which he used the word "crucify" to describe his enforcement approach to firms that break environmental laws became public and caused a national stir.Armendariz, appointed by President Obama in 2009, sent a letter to EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson on April 29 apologizing for the remarks. Jackson accepted his resignation on April 30.In the 2010

After a year-long wait, the Senate has approved Lt. Gen. Thomas P. Bostick to be the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' 53rd commanding general. The Senate confirmed Bostick as Corps chief on April 26, more than 12 months after President Obama nominated him.Bostick's path was slowed by holds put on his nomination by at least two senators, David Vitter (R-La.) and Rand Paul (R-Ky.). Bostick has been serving as the Army Deputy Chief of Staff. His earlier assignments have included leading the Corps division in Iraq.Planning has begun for a ceremony, tentatively in late May, at which Bostick will assume

Related Links: Engineering News Record The U.S. Supreme Court justices seemed to be skeptical of the federal government's view during the April 25 oral arguments in a closely watched case, Arizona v. United States.Although the case is limited to an examination of four provisions of an Arizona law granting state police broad powers to detain and arrest suspected illegal aliens, the ramifications of a ruling in favor of the state are broad, says Ana Avendaño, assistant to the president and director of immigration and community action at the AFL-CIO. A ruling upholding the provisions would give employers greater ability to

Photo By Bruce Buckley Building-trades President Sean McGarvey gives his first major union address since taking over after the sudden death of his predecessor on April 8. Photo By Bruce Buckley President Obama told union members that Congress should pass transportation funding legislation "right away." Job creation in an election year was the top priority for speakers and attendees at the construction unions' annual legislative conference in Washington, D.C., on April 30. Members of the AFL-CIO's Building and Construction Trades Dept. looked for signs of optimism not just from keynote speaker President Obama but also from newly elected President Sean

Related Links: House Passes 3-Month Transport Bill White House veto warning for House 3-month bill After more than two years of twists and turns, false starts and a near-stop, House and Senate lawmakers are getting ready to begin negotiations on a new surface-transportation authorization bill. The House opened the door to a joint conference committee with the Senate on April 18, when it approved a three-month highway-transit bill. House negotiators will bring that measure to the table; Senate negotiators will bring the two-year, $109-billion bill that it passed in March.Senate leaders named their 14 conferees on April 24. They include eight

The Environmental Protection Agency’s top official in the South and Southwest region—the heart of oil and gas country—resigned on April 30 after remarks he made in 2010 about crucifying energy companies that break environmental laws became public and sparked a national controversy. Al Armendariz, appointed to the EPA post by President Obama in 2009, sent a letter to the agency's Administrator, Lisa Jackson, on April 29 apologizing for the comments, which were recorded on video, and part of his description of how he approached enforcing the region’s environmental laws. His resignation became effective on April 30. On the video, Armendariz

Photo courtesy of SAIC Newly fractured or refractured wells typically emit pollutants such as benzene and methane into the air for days until they are vented, burned off or captured. Related Links: Details of the EPA regulation NRDC report, "Leaking Profits" New Environmental Protection Agency standards that aim to cut air pollution from oil and natural gas produced through hydraulic fracturing have received tempered praise from industry groups and mixed reviews from environmental organizations. The energy industry prefers the rule's Jan. 1, 2015, compliance date to an earlier EPA proposal's tighter deadline. Environmental organizations call the regulation, announced on April 18,

Related Links: Summary of Senate committee's energy-water appropriations bill Summary of House Appropriations Committee energy-water bill (excludes amendments) Senate and House appropriations committees are taking different stances on fiscal year 2013 funding for Army Corps of Engineers civil works and Dept. of Energy defense environmental cleanup programs, with the Senate panel recommending small hikes and the House committee calling for modest reductions.Amendments added to the House committee’s energy and water programs bill, which the panel cleared on April 25, have drawn criticism from architecture industry and environmental groups.The Senate Appropriations Committee’s energy-water measure, which it approved April 26, would increase

Related Links: Links to DOT releases on the five projects Background on TIFIA credit-assistance program The U.S.  Dept. of Transportation has selected a total of five major transportation projects in four states to apply for federal loans to help finance their construction.DOT announced on April 24 that it will permit two projects in California and one each in Colorado, Texas and Virginia to apply for loans, loan guarantees or other credit assistance under its Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (TIFIA) program. The department next will review the loan applications for the five projects.TIFIA has become popular among states and in

The fallout over a costly 2010 General Services Administration conference continues to roll over the agency, as congressional committees grilled current and former GSA officials about their roles in the spending scandal.At the first of several hearings on GSA, the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee on April 16 heard a former acting GSA regional administrator and key figure in the controversy, Jeffrey Neely, decline to answer questions, citing his Fifth Amendment rights six times. Lawmakers focused on an $822,000 GSA Public Buildings Service (PBS) conference that an April 2 inspector general's report termed "excessive and wasteful." The day the