Passage of SB 1 Huge Victory for Industry, But Work Continues


success that saw the passage of SB 1 – the Road Repair and Accountability Act – which will generate $52.4 billion over


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10 years to be used on infrastructure improvement projects up and down the state. AGC of California has worked


incredibly hard to advocate for the passing of this bill, not only for the billions in annual funds, but for the tens of thousands of jobs these projects would create and sustain for the next decade. Of course, with SB 1 comes some


opposition to the 12-cent gas tax increase, registration fee increases, and fees for electric cars to pay their fair share – but the fact that our state’s legislators stuck by this important bill to avoid drawing funds from education, health care and other pots shows courage on their part. In addition to giving our thanks to all who voted in favor of SB 1 and to Kate Mergen, Felipe Fuentes and others on our team who helped spotlight the bill, AGC of California also thanks all our members who attended rallies, called their legis- lators and/or sent in letters to voice their concerns. Without that statewide effort, we could not have passed this bill. Tose who attended the 2017 Legis-


lative Summit also had the pleasure of hearing Governor Jerry Brown speak about the transportation bill, and we cannot thank Governor Brown enough for his time, as his insight was quite educational. Speaking of the Summit, we set a new


attendance record. Members participated in division, PAC 120 and state board meetings. If you have yet to participate in the Capitol Walks, I strongly encourage you to do so next year, as the dozens


www.AGC-CA.org


his year opened with a remarkable


of individuals who attended this year had the opportunity to meet face-to- face with legislators. While we strive to maintain the highest level of advocacy in the industry in this state, there is power in members speaking directly with their district legislators. Moreover, we had the opportunity to promote our recently- launched Go Build California initiative at the Capitol, which represents a major effort to promote the careers available in the construction industry. Any support we can receive from our elected officials would only strengthen our efforts to build up our workforce once again. Outside of SB 1, we’re staying on top


of Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) requirements and will not stop fighting for fair and reasonable require- ments. Caltrans initially discussed cutting one-third of the DBE pool while simultaneously increasing the DBE goal from 12.5 percent to 17.6 percent. We have since submitted a counter to their disparity report, which Caltrans is reviewing. While we started the year with


a major statewide success, we’re now keeping an eye on an issue receiving plenty of national attention. Currently, several city and state officials are proposing to blacklist contractors who are considering submitting bids to participate in the construction of President Donald Trump’s southern border wall. It is our belief that barring contractors from future public works projects based on, in some cases, as little as implied interest is unfair and illegal, perhaps unconsti- tutional. Elected officials cannot punish business owners by limiting their ability to conduct business based on personal/ political beliefs. Tough the issue could quite possibly


be one of our greatest challenges of the year, or in recent memory, as always, we will not stop advocating for what is right and what is fair for our members. Tom Holsman


CEO, AGC of California


Published bi-monthly for members of the Associated General Contractors of California


3095 Beacon Boulevard West Sacramento, CA 95691 (916) 371-2422 www.agc-ca.org


Publisher


Al Rickard Association Vision (703) 402-9713 arickard@assocvision.com www.associationvision.com


Editor


Carol A. Eaton Eaton Communications (707) 789-9520 eatonc@comcast.net


Graphic Designer/Production


Carole Tieme Tieme Creative Media (410) 610-2950 carole@thiemecreativemedia.com www.thiemecreativemedia.com


Correspondence


Address editorial and circulation correspondence to: California Constructor, AGC of California, 3095 Beacon Blvd., West Sacramento, CA 95691 (916) 371-2422 or call Carol Eaton at (707) 789-9520 or eatonc@comcast.net.


Copyright 2017


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