Related Links: OMB sequester report, including program-by-program cuts Federal construction programs have taken a hit totaling several billion dollars under mandatory spending cuts that took effect March 1. Among the construction accounts absorbing the biggest reductions in the budget “sequester” are Dept. of Energy environmental cleanup at former nuclear weapons plants, Environmental Protection Agency water infrastructure and military construction.Cuts to major construction programs will amount to more than $4 billion, according to an initial ENR review of a March 1 Office of Management and Budget report to Congress on the sequester.That amount is in line with an early February Associated

Related Links: Link to National Coordinating Committee for Multiemployer Plans commission's report Link to two PBGC reports on multiemployer pension plans A commission comprising industry and union officials, including a large construction contingent, has called for short- and long-term actions, ranging from minor tweaks to major changes, to bolster the ailing multi-employer pension system.The National Coordinating Committee for Multiemployer Plans panel's Feb. 19 report may help shape bills on multi-employer pension rules. Marco Giamberardino, National Electrical Contractors Association executive director for government affairs, says, "The goal is to see legislation pass before the end of this year."The report says there

Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy In his State of the Union speech, the president proposed a $40-billion 'Fix It First' plan to repair bridges, other infrastructure. Related Links: Text of Obama's State of the Union address White House background document on State of the Union proposals Construction officials were pleased to hear President Obama make a pitch in his State of the Union speech for more federal funds for infrastructure. But the proposed $50-billion infusion is similar to one Obama floated in 2011 and 2012. Congress didn't adopt those earlier proposals; with federal spending still under heavy pressure,

Related Links: US DOT press release on New York funding announcement Obama Signs $50.5B Measure For Post-Sandy Relief, Rebuilding (enr.com, 1/30/13) New York state and local agencies have received $287 million in emergency federal highway aid to reimburse them for costs of repairing roads and bridges damaged by Hurricane Sandy and other storms.U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, who announced the funding action on Feb. 15,  said $250 million of the total will go for Sandy-related work.  The rest is for repairs stemming from earlier storms. The aid is part of the $2 billion allocated in the recently enacted Sandy spending

Related Links: FTA Federal Register notice outlining funding plan U.S. DOT press release Federal transportation officials are moving quickly to release $2 billion in aid to cover recovery costs for transit systems in New Jersey, New York and other eastern states that suffered major damage from Superstorm Sandy.The Federal Transit Administration announced on Feb. 4 that it will use $2 billion of the $10.9 billion it received in the recently enacted post-Sandy spending bill to reimburse local transit agencies for operating and capital costs they incurred after the massive storm struck in late October.FTA Administrator Peter Rogoff said, “We are

Related Links: Justice Dept. press release Granite Construction Co. has agreed to repay the federal government $367,500 in a settlement with the Justice Dept. regarding alleged overbilling on federal construction projects.The settlement, which Justice announced on Feb. 8, centers on prices that federal officials claim Granite inflated on projects financed by the Dept. of Transportation and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers between 2006 and 2008.The settlement agreement states that Granite disclosed the potential overcharges to the Justice Dept. in October 2009.A Granite spokeswoman said in an emailed statement, "This was an inadvertent and honest mistake which was confirmed by

Related Links: House-Passed Debt-Limit Bill Awaits Senate Vote (ENR 2/4/13) New Fiscal Fights Ahead After 'Cliff' Deal (enr.com 1/9/13) A newly enacted bill has averted, for the time being, a default on the federal government's financial obligations, but mandatory spending cuts still are due to take effect on March 1.President Obama signed a bill on Feb. 4 that allows the government to borrow what it needs through May 18. The Treasury Dept. had warned that, without further action, the U.S. would breach its $16.4-trillion debt ceiling.To stave off the March 1 spending reductions for a few months, Obama on Feb.

Photo Courtesy of U.S. Army Corps of Engineers User fees paid into the trust fund that finances harbor dredging vastly exceed spending, giving the fund an estimated $8-billion balance. Related Links: Link to Senate 1/31/13 WRDA hearing (Webcast, prepared statements, testimony) After TIFIA's Success, Will WIFIA Be Next? (ENR Blog: 11/16/12) Congress is just starting to write a new Water Resources Development Act, or WRDA, but it is already clear that one focus of the bill, which will map policy and authorize funds for the Army Corps of Engineers civil-works program, will be cutting the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund surplus

Courtesy of REI Related Links: Transcript of remarks by Obama, Salazar, Jewell at White House 2/6/13 Jewell biographical sketch President Obama has picked Sally Jewell, president and CEO of outdoor equipment and apparel retailer Recreational Equipment Inc., as his nominee to be the Dept. of the Interior secretary. The choice was a surprise because Jewell had not been among those rumored as a candidate for the top Interior post.Jewell has strong environmental credentials. She also has a mechanical engineering degree and worked early in her career as an engineer for energy giant Mobil in the Oklahoma and Colorado oil fields.In

PHOTO COURTESY OF U.S. DEPT. OF TRANSPORTATION Related Links: LaHood to Leave Top DOT Post (enr.com 1/29/13) LaHood biographical sketch Ray LaHood, who announced Jan. 29 he would be stepping down as head of the Dept. of Transportation, looked back on his four years as DOT Secretary in a telephone interview Feb. 4 with Tom Ichniowski, ENR’s Washington bureau chief.LaHood also discussed his decision to leave DOT and hinted that President Obama will have “bold things to say" about infrastructure in his second term. An edited version of the interview follows.What do you see as your major accomplishments in the