Related Links: Dodge Data & Analytics report (07/22/2015) June construction starts fell 15% from the previous month’s level, to a $620.2-billion annual rate, with part of the downturn due to a huge liquefied natural gas facility in Texas that got under way in May, Dodge Data & Analytics has reported.On the brighter side, Dodge’s latest monthly report on new construction, released on July 22, also showed that starts for January through June rose 23% year over year. But Dodge noted that, excluding the impacts of big electric utility and natural gas facilities, overall first-half construction starts climbed 11% compared with

Related Links: Text of final FHWA rule The Federal Highway Administration has issued a final rule spelling out the requirements for the first federal inspection program for highway tunnels.The new National Tunnel Inspection Standards, published in the Federal Register on July 14, are similar to the nearly 50-year-old national requirements for bridge inspections.The tunnel inspection rule is to take effect on Aug. 13.The new standards, which stem from a provision in 2012’s Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act, call for state and local agencies that own such tunnels to carry out routine examinations of that infrastructure at

Related Links: House Approves 5-Month HighwaTransit Stopgap Senate Committee Approves Six-Year Highway Bill The transportation construction industry’s attention is riveted on the Senate as key lawmakers work out details of a long-term highway-transit authorization bill.Negotiations will go into the weekend, one participant says, and Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), a central player, has said he plans to have a July 21 vote, probably a procedural one, on the measure.As construction officials watch the developments, several important questions remain unanswered: How long will the Senate bill be? How much funding will it authorize? What revenue-raisers will it include to offset the

Enlarge As federal highway and transit programs’ funding authority nears a July 31 expiration, Congress is laboring to find a fix. House Republicans proposed a five-month extension, and the Senate has moved a key part of a six-year bill through committee. Construction and state transportation officials don’t want to see funds cut off. But it is unclear whether the two chambers can strike a deal in time.To keep funds flowing, House Ways and Means Chairman Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) and Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Bill Shuster (R-Pa.) on July 13 rolled out an $8.1-billion stopgap provision that would run through

The Occupational Safety & Health Administration will delay fully enforcing its new rule for construction in confined spaces to give firms more time to comply with its training requirements.The rule takes effect on Aug. 3, but OSHA will postpone full enforcement to Oct. 2. It said it is responding to requests for more time to train workers and other actions.The Associated Builders and Contractors was among those seeking the added time. Chris Williams, ABC safety director, said, “The extension will provide valuable time ... to distribute our training resources, along with those provided by OSHA, to educate our member companies

Related Links: Shuster-Ryan statement on new bill Ways and Means summary of bill's funding offsets Text of bill The House has passed an $8.1-billion measure to keep federal highway and transit programs operating through Dec. 18, aiming to get the extension enacted before a current stopgap expires on July 31.The 312-119 vote on July 15 leaves the next move up to the Senate.After the vote, House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) said in a statement, "This bipartisan action will keep construction workers on the job and pave the way for further efforts on long-term infrastructure plan."In announcing the House proposal, which

Photo courtesy Caterpillar Inc. Ex-Im assistance has helped suppliers like Caterpillar ink deals that would otherwise go to competitors. Related Links: Capitol Hill Fight Looms For Ex-Im Bank Reauthorization U.S., Private Sector Commit Billions to African Electric Power Construction-equipment makers and other business groups are hoping that Congress will act soon to renew the U.S. Export-Import Bank’s charter, a move that would enable the bank to resume approving new loans and other aid to spark overseas sales of U.S.-made goods and services.Congress failed to reauthorize the bank by June 30, when its authorization lapsed, which meant that it had to

Related Links: Bureau of Labor statistics release with data tables AGC Chief Economist Ken Simonson's analysis ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu's analysis Construction's total workforce was flat in June, but the industry's unemployment rate declined from May's level and showed strong year-over-year improvement, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said.The latest BLS report on the nation's employment picture, released on July 2, showed that construction's June jobless rate edged down to 6.3% from the previous month's 6.7%.June's figure also was markedly better than 8.2% a year previously, marking the 57th straight month of year-over-year jobless-rate decreases for the industry. The BLS

Related Links: Commerce Dept./Census Bureau release with data table AGC Chief Economist Ken Simonson's comments and analysis ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu's comments and analysis Construction spending edged up 0.8% in May from April’s level but climbed a more robust 8.2% year over year, the Commerce Dept. has reported.The latest monthly figures finished construction projects, which Commerce’s U.S. Census Bureau released on July 1, showed that the value of projects put in place in May totaled an annual rate of $1.036 trillion, adjusted for seasonal variations.Ken Simonson, Associated General Contractors of America chief economist, observed that May's 8.2% year-over-year increase

Enlarge Related Links: Senate Panel's Highway Bill Wins Praise (ENR 6/29/2015 issue) [subscription] ARTBA analysis of DRIVE Act With another surface-transportation extension likely this month, construction officials continue to push for a longer-lasting measure to end the dribs-and-drabs funding they have endured for several years. They welcome the six-year, $277-billion highway bill that the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee cleared unanimously on June 24. But they are acutely aware that the Highway Trust Fund is about $90 billion short of the money to fund the bill fully. Where to find the dollars remains a mystery.As they look at the