In what will be the most closely watched ruling of the U.S. Supreme Court's term, the justices announced on Nov. 14 that they will take up a case that challenges the constitutionality of the 2010 law that revamps the nation's health-care system.

The Senate on Nov. 10 overwhelmingly approved legislation to repeal a federal mandate that government agencies withhold part of their payments to contractors.  Construction industry groups and other business organizations, which had been lobbying heavily for the repeal, applauded the 95-0 vote.The withholding requirement, scheduled to go into effect in 2013 , would have required federal, state and certain local agencies to withhold 3% of the dollars they owe to their contractors.The House had approved a  version of the repeal bill on Oct. 27  with bipartisan support.But the Senate added a non-controversial amendment to the bill to provide tax credits

Courtesy of U.S. Senate Photo Studio Senate committee Chairman Boxer (R) and Republicans Inhofe (center) and David Vitter worked out bipartisan agreement on new, two-year highway authorization Courtesy of U.S. Senate Environment and Public Works Committee Large crowd looked on as Senate panel voted 18-0 to approve highway bill Related Links: Summary of committee bill Text of bill (excludes amendments approved at Nov. 9 committee markup) The two-year-long quest for a multi-year surface transportation bill still goes on, but it has taken a step forward with the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee’s approval on Nov. 9 of a two-year,

Construction industry groups cheered the House's Oct. 27 approval of legislation to repeal a mandate that government agencies withhold 3% of contract dollars from companies doing that work. But their focus quickly turned to the Senate, where they hope lawmakers will agree to the House measure and send it to the White House to be signed. A majority of the Senate recently voted for a different withholding-repeal bill, handicapping the prospects there for the House-approved measure.The House's strong 405-16 vote for the repeal bill has given the industry a lift. Geoff Burr, Associated Builders and Contractors vice president of federal

The U.S. Senate on Nov. 1 approved a package of appropriations bills that includes funding for the Dept. of Transportation at levels similar to levels enacted in fiscal 2011. The Senate cleared the measure by a 69-30 vote. H.R. 2112, which bundled three separate appropriations bills into one large package funding the the departments of agriculture, justice, commerce, housing and urban development and transportation through fiscal 2012, does not include the steep cuts in funding for federal highways that was approved by the House Appropriations Committee on Sept. 8. The White House Office of Management and Budget says it supports

The uncertain future of federal transportation funding loomed large over the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials' annual meeting, held in Detroit on Oct. 13-17. Under the theme “Leading in Lean Times,” directors of state departments of transportation discussed ways to weather the choppy financing environment.“In regards to our aging infrastructure, there's generally a pessimistic view of the future funding picture,” said Malcolm Dougherty, Caltrans acting director. U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, addressing the attendees, called on them to urge Congress to pass a multi-year highway-transit bill. “Passing the surface transportation bill will put America back to work,”

Engineers and contractors could end up holding the bag if the finances of state and local governments continue to deteriorate, risk experts warn.Government clients can be especially hard to collect from because they are unlikely to place money in escrow accounts. Private-sector protective measures, such as filing a pre-lien against assets, may not apply to public owners. Yet contractors and prime consultants may remain liable for paying subcontractors, consultants and suppliers.That was the grim assessment at the American Council of Engineering Companies' Oct. 19-22 fall conference in Las Vegas, where a panel explored ways of safeguarding against deadbeat government clients.

Related Links: ENR Sept. 26, 2011 story: Construction Pushing to Repeal 3% Withholding Requirement on Government Projects In a victory for engineering and construction groups, the House has overwhelmingly approved a bill to repeal a mandate that government agencies withhold 3% of the value of contracts from firms carrying out that work.The House passed the measure on Oct. 27, by a 405-16 tally.Shortly before that vote, the House also cleared a related bill, which would more than offset the estimated $11-billion revenue lost by repealing the 3% requirement, thus avoiding an increase to the overall federal deficit. That revenue-raising bill, approved

The Senate has approved a bill aimed at improving the safety of oil and gas pipelines, after one lawmaker dropped his objections to the measure.The measure, which the Senate passed unanimously on Oct. 17, would raise the cap on civil penalties in pipeline accidents and require new pipelines to have automatic or remote-controlled shut-off valves.Under the bill, maximum civil penalties would rise to $250,000 a day with a cap of $2.5 million for a series of violations, from the current $100,000 a day and $1 million cap.It also would authorize $479 million for the Dept. of Transportation’s pipeline-safety agency over

Despite threatened spending cuts, the General Services Administration plans to keep a Coast Guard headquarters project on track for a fiscal 2013 opening, says Public Buildings Service Commissioner Robert Peck. The $350-million, 1.2-million-sq-ft project is part of a $3.4-billion Dept. of Homeland Security complex planned for southeast Washington, D.C.GSA sought $212 million in 2012 for the DHS plan, including $76 million for the Coast Guard HQ. But a House panel zeroed out 2012 GSA new construction; Senate appropriators approved $65 million. If GSA gets zero, Peck says, “We're still going to open that [headquarters] in 2013.” If it gets $65