Related Links: California Releases Full Bay Delta Plan California Bay Delta Plan Undergoes More Changes California Gov. Jerry Brown (D) unveiled a significantly down- sized plan to restore his state's Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, a major water resource for both agricultural and urban users. A revised environmental impact report will be circulated in June."Bold action is imperative. We've listened to the public and carefully studied the science. This revised plan is the absolute best path forward," says Brown.The previous $25-billion Bay Delta Conservation Plan (BDCP) faced difficulty in permitting some 110,000 acres of habitat restoration over 50 years. Under the new
Enlarge Image Courtesy OSHA Crane operators repeatedly checked the "Repair" box for cables and resulted to using exclamation points to alert superiors of the need for repairs. They continued to operate it until the boom cable broke more than a month after this daily report. (Click to enlarge) A federal administrative law judge has upheld “willful violation” of workplace safety laws at a Tennessee construction site and increased the fine against Mountain States Contractors LLC to $60,000.The Occupational Safety and Health Administration initially levied a $56,000 fine after a crane collapsed after its main boom cable broke at bridge replacement
Related Links: Big River Steel Decision in Nucor v. Big River Big River Steel in Osceola, Ark., is speeding up construction after successfully defending against a legal challenge from one of its chief competitors, local neighbor Nucor. Osceola's mayor is pleased."Everything looks good for this plant now," says Dickie Kennemore. "Nucor didn't make us too nervous. You have to remember that the biggest investor in Big River is [the] Koch brothers, and they're bigger than Nucor."The $1.1-billion project also has had significant support from state lawmakers. A $125-million bond package helped to finance the work and locked in Osceola as
Related Links: Dept. of Justice press release 03/23/2015 Ex-Bechtel VP Pleads Guilty to Federal Kickback Charges Former Bechtel Corp. vice president Asem Elgawhary has been sentenced to 42 months in federal prison for taking $5.2 million in kickbacks on electric-power contracts in Egypt from 1996 to 2011, the Dept. of Justice says.Judge Deborah K. Chasanow imposed the sentence on March 23 in federal district court in Greenbelt, Md., and also directed Elgawhary to forfeit $5.2 million.Elgawhary, 73, of Potomac, Md., pleaded guilty last Dec. 4 to mail fraud, conspiracy to launder money and interfering with federal internal revenue laws.DOJ said
Photo courtesy Ocelleye LLC Currently, there are no regulations pertaining to commercial drones. Related Links: Coming Soon: More Drone Insurance Options Drone Users Await U.S. Regulations Unmanned aircraft systems—aka drones—have taken off in the civilian world. Nearly $17 million worth of drones were bought on eBay last year. Drones have come dangerously close to passenger aircraft, so it's no wonder that the Federal Aviation Administration fears disaster—thousands of tiny helicopters with spinning rotors and cameras are flying through the air.Despite the concerns, however, the FAA knows that drones will become a vital part of the commercial environment. Congress demanded that
Related Links: U.S. Attorney's Office press release on agreement, via FBI D.C. Cuts Forrester Payment by $1M Over MBE Joint Venture (enr.com 6/5/2013) [subscription] In a settlement with the federal government, Forrester Construction Co., Rockville, Md., has agreed to pay $2.15 million to resolve a criminal probe into alleged fraud concerning the firm’s use of small disadvantaged businesses on more than $145 million in contracts with the District of Columbia. Under a non-prosecution agreement, which federal officials announced on Dec. 15, Forrester admitted that it failed to abide by D.C.’s regulations concerning Certified Business Enterprises or CBEs. The government said
A former Bechtel Corp. vice president has pleaded guilty to federal charges that he took $5.2 million in kickbacks on electric-power contracts in Egypt over a 15-year period, the Dept. of Justice has said.Asem Elgawhary, 73, a former Bechtel principal vice president, pleaded guilty on Dec. 4 in federal district court in Greenbelt, Md., to one count each of mail fraud, conspiracy to engage in money laundering and interfering with administration of tax laws.Elgawhary’s attorney did not immediately reply to an ENR request for comment.DOJ said that, from 1996 to 2011, Elgawhary was general manager of Power Generation Engineering and
Related Links: Transcript of 12/1/14 oral arguments Supreme Court's New Term Includes Two Key Cases The U.S. Supreme Court justices asked tough questions of both sides during Dec. 1 oral arguments in a case that centers on the government’s authority to issue interpretations of its own regulations without public input.The case could have significant implications for construction employers and small businesses that face real costs to comply with federal regulations.The case stems from an interpretive rule, issued by the Labor Dept. in 2010, that requires mortgage banks to pay loan officers overtime under the Fair Labor Standards Act.The Mortgage Bankers
Related Links: Justice Dept. News Release on SAIC Settlement 2010 Federal Appeals Court Decision on SAIC Case Science Applications International Corp.—now Leidos Holdings Inc.—has agreed to pay $1.5 million to resolve a federal False Claims Act, or FCA, lawsuit alleging conflicts of interest related to the company's work for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission more than 10 years ago. The U.S. Dept. of Justice, which announced the agreement on Oct. 21, said the settlement resolves the claims and that there is no determination of liability.SAIC signed contracts in 1992 and 1999 with the NRC to help develop a regulation for the
Photo courtesy of ABA construction forum Construction attorneys at American Bar Association Chicago meeting shared strategies for ID'ing untruthful trial participants and covering added risk in teaming arrangements and project delivery, Related Links: American Bar Association Forum on the Construction Industry Teaming arrangements on many projects are creating new legal hurdles, such as protection of proprietary information, equipment ownership and the departure or termination of team members, according to Dallas attorney Charles E. Hardy."It can get expensive if you're not protected," he said during the fall meeting of the American Bar Association Forum on the Construction Industry.The former counsel for
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