Related Links: Senate Appropriations Committee press release on military construction-VA bill Senate Appropriations Committee release on energy-water programs bill In its first action on fiscal 2016 spending bills, the Senate Appropriations Committee has recommended large boosts for Dept. of Defense construction and Dept. of Veterans Affairs major projects. It gave a tiny increase to the Army Corps of Engineers civil-works program.The committee on May 21 cleared a measure that would provide $8.1 billion for FY16 DOD construction, up $1.5 billion, or 23%, from this year's appropriations. The same bill includes $1 billion for VA major projects, an 83% boost from
Related Links: Text of two-month transportation bill Congress again has extended authorizations for federal highway and transit programs, but only through July 31, failing to produce the long-term measure with strong funding increases that construction industry and state transportation officials have long been pushing for.Final congressional action on the measure came early in the morning of May 23, when the Senate passed it on a voice vote. The new stopgap is the 33rd extension in six years.The House had approved the bill on May 19. Congress needed to act before its Memorial Day break because the current stopgap was set
Related Links: Dodge Data & Analytics report on April 2015 construction starts Construction starts rose 10% in April from March levels, thanks in part to two megaprojects that got under way during the month, Dodge Data & Analytics reports.Dodge D&A’s latest monthly look at new-construction volume, released on May 21, showed that April starts climbed to an annual rate of $698.7 billion, seasonally adjusted. But excluding $1-billion-plus projects, April’s volume was down 3% from the previous month, the company noted. (ENR is part of Dodge D&A.)The April results received a major boost from an $8.1-billion Sasol petrochemical plant in Louisiana
Related Links: Text of two-month transportation bill The House has approved yet another short extension for federal highway and transit programs, which would keep them going for a brief two-month period at current funding levels.But the measure, which the House passed overwhelmingly on May 19 by a 387-35 vote, also would be the 33rd stopgap in six years, continuing the protracted stalemate over how to find the revenue for what construction industry and state transportation officials most want: a six-year transportation bill with increased funding. The Senate is expected to clear the latest extension by May 22. The White House
Related Links: FRA May 16 statement on safety directives Amtrak May 16 blog post, incl. train-control system background and update Under new Federal Railroad Administration directives, Amtrak is making safety improvements on its Northeast Corridor line, including expanding its use of technology to control train speeds.The orders, which FRA announced on May 16, came four days after Amtrak train No. 188 derailed in Philadelphia, killing eight passengers and injuring scores of others.According to the National Transportation Safety Board, which is investigating the accident, northbound train No. 188 was running at 102 miles per hour—more than double the speed limit—when it
NTSB Scrutiny of May 12 Amtrak train crash near Philadelphia has turned to positive-train-control systems, which can reduce speed on curves automatically. Prior to the crash, Amtrak had PTC equipment installed but not activated, pending tests. Amtrak President Joseph Boardman pledged to have a system in operation by year-end. Related Links: NTSB May 13 briefing on Amtrak accident Fact sheet on Senate commerce-committee rail bill As the investigation continues into the May 12 Amtrak crash that claimed at least eight lives and injured scores of others, increased scrutiny is falling on positive train control, or PTC, a system that can
Related Links: Statement from bill sponsor, Sen. Rob Portman; other comments Letter from groups that support the bill, including list Legislation to expedite permitting for a wide range of infrastructure projects has advanced in the Senate. The bill, which the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee cleared on May 6, is based in part on the 2012 MAP-21 highway-transit law's project-review provisions, says sponsor Rob Portman (R-Ohio).The bill goes beyond roads and transit to cover energy, aviation, broadband and other projects, too. It would apply generally to projects exceeding $200 million, up from $25 million in an earlier version.Among the
Related Links: Infrastructure Week Audio of Biden's May 11 infrastructure speech (remarks start at approx 55 minute mark on the timeline) Government, industry and labor-union officials on May 11-15 marked the third-annual Infrastructure Week by speaking about the economic importance of highways, rail lines, waterways, ports and other public works at events held around the U.S. But hovering over all the speeches was deep frustration over the lack of progress in Congress on infrastructure advocates' prime goal: a long-term surface-transportation bill.At the program's May 11 Washington, D.C., kickoff event, attendees heard Vice President Joe Biden declare, "We have to have
Related Links: Bureau of Labor statistics release with data tables ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu's statement and analysis AGC Chief Economist Ken Simonson's statement and analysis Construction’s April unemployment rate plunged to 7.5% from its year-earlier level of 9.5% as the industry added a solid 45,000 jobs, the Labor Dept. has reported.The federal Bureau of Labor Statistics’ report on the nation’s employment picture, released on May 8, also showed that construction’s jobless rate was well below March’s 9.4% figure.The 7.5% rate last month was the industry's best April number since 2006, when the level was 6.9%.The BLS rates aren’t seasonally
Albert A. Grant, 88, who was the American Society of Civil Engineers' first president from the public sector, in 1988, and became an early advocate of engineering sustainability, died in Potomac, Md., on April 2, says ASCE.
