Industry officials say the president’s plan to cut back on Dept. of Defense spending, while short on details, is likely to mean cuts in military construction programs. But they say the reductions are not unexpected, given the nation’s tepid economy and huge national debt.Defense Secretary Leon Panetta and President Obama announced the DOD’s new budget strategy on Jan. 5 at the Pentagon. The comprehensive defense review was conducted as a result of the enactment of the Budget Control Act of 2011, which, among other things, requires the DOD reduce spending by $465 billion over 10 years.Obama said the strategy “will

The U.S. Supreme Court on Jan. 9 heard oral arguments in a wetlands case that could have ramifications for the construction industry.The case pits an Idaho couple, Chantell and Michael Sackett, who planned to build a new home on a tract they had bought, against the Environmental Protection Agency, which issued a compliance order directing the couple to restore wetlands on that property. As they listened to the arguments by each side, several of the justices appeared to be sympathetic toward the Sacketts.A ruling in favor of the Sacketts would undermine EPA’s ability to control pollution and the destruction of

Related Links: Business Groups Challenge New NLRB Rule NLRB Members Vote in Favor of Streamlining Union Election Process President Obama on Jan. 4 said he will recess appoint three individuals to serve on the National Labor Relations Board—two Democrats and one Republican. The appointments bring the nation’s top labor panel back to a full complement of five members.The appointees are Sharon Block, a Democrat, currently the deputy assistant secretary for congressional affairs at the U.S. Labor Dept. and previously an aide to former Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) on the Senate’s labor committee; and Republican Terence Flynn, currently chief counsel to

A coalition of industry groups and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce filed a lawsuit in federal court on Dec. 20 to block implementation of a new National Labor Relations Board rule that they say would speed up the union election process.The rule by the nation’s top labor panel would, among other things, consolidate all appeals of regional director decisions to the Board into a single post-election request for review. Parties can currently appeal regional director decisions to the board at multiple stages in the process. “This rule is about giving all employees who have petitioned for an election the right to

Environmental advocates were quick to praise the Environmental Protection Agency for releasing standards to reduce mercury and other pollutants emitted by powerplants. But industry groups say the final rule, issued Dec. 21, will force the early retirement of a number of coal plants and could cause electrical reliability problems as a result.The EPA’s mercury and air toxic standards (MATS) will require the most heavily polluting powerplants to reduce emissions of mercury, arsenic, acid gas, nickel, selenium and cyanide within the next four years. The EPA says utilities can rely on “widely available, proven pollution controls that are already in use

Related Links: Text of the bill State Dept.'s Dec. 12 statement on Keystone XL pipeline Resolving a heated dispute, the House and Senate have cleared a bill to extend, through February, the current payroll tax cut for individuals and require the Obama administration to decide soon whether to let the controversial Keystone XL crude-oil pipeline move ahead.The stopgap measure, which the chambers approved in brief morning sessions on Dec. 23, was signed the same day by President Obama. Other provisions extend, through February, unemployment insurance benefits and prevent a cut in Medicare payments to doctors. Brian Turmail, a spokesman for the Associated

The House has rejected a Senate-passed bill that would extend the about-to-expire payroll tax cut for individuals, setting the stage for a end-of-year showdown between the two chambers.The Senate on Sept. 17 had approved a $33-billion package, which the Obama administration supported, to continue the tax reduction for two months past its current Dec. 31 expiration date.But House Republican leaders, who say they want a year-long extension for the tax break, pushed through a bill on Dec. 20 that in effect rejected the Senate measure by calling for a conference to reconcile the House- and Senate-passed bills.After the vote, House

Related Links: Text of omnibus spending bill (title by title) House Appropriations Committee summaries of omnibus and disaster relief bills Design and construction firms that focus on federal work now know how much funding many key government programs will receive through next fall, thanks to a massive, newly enacted fiscal 2012 omnibus spending package. But as industry officials examine the results for construction accounts scattered through the $915-billion omnibus, they mostly see bad news: Most programs were cut from 2011 levels, though a few line-items did score increases.The new package includes funding for the Depts. of Defense, Energy and Veterans Affairs--among

Construction of bridges and other infrastructure over western rivers would be more difficult if the U.S. Supreme Court decides in favor of hydroelectric powerplant owner and operator PPL Montana in the company's case against the state of Montana, the state's attorney, Gregory Garre, told the justices on Dec. 7, during oral arguments in the case.On the other hand, if the court rules for the state, about 1,000 existing dams on U.S. rivers, including some dams that have been operating for more than a century, could be subject to back rent, PPL allies contended in briefs filed earlier.In the case, PPL

A federal appellate court didn't fully satisfy industry or environmentalists with its ruling in a case concerning federal rules that govern cement kilns' air emissions.In its Dec. 9 decision, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit sided partly with the petitioner, Portland Cement Association (PCA), by blocking one Environmental Protection Agency standard. The court also agreed partly with EPA by letting two other rules stand.The ruling by a three-judge panel deals with two final EPA rules issued in 2010: National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollution (NESHAP) and New Source Performance Standards. NESHAP applies to particulate