Class Date: May 18, 2010
June 1, 2010
The following people passed the Certification Exam.
Donald Abbott
Juan Argueta
Michael Armiger
Craig Baer
Tim Birx
James Bishop
Richard Critchfield
Kim Erwin
Brent Fife
Kyle Forbes
Gary Hill
Gary Hill
Ronald Jones
Kenny Knight
Paul Landavere
Steven Lattea
Carrie Lurz
David Mangold
Fauto Moreno
Marvin Mundy
Patrick O’Neill
Tony Orfanos
Mark Puckett
Scott Reynolds
Norman Ros
David Schmidt
Gregory Teague
Josh Watt
Government Employees
Sushmita Miitra
Lisa Porter
Breakfast Meeting with SHA Administrator, Neil Pedersen
May 11, 2010
| Jun |
| 4 |
| 7:30 am |
A breakfast meeting with Neil Pedersen, Administrator, State Highway Administration will be held at the BWI- Hilton Hotel, on Friday, June 4, 2010, 7:30 a.m. – 10:00 a.m.
Register online or print/fax registration form.
We are asking our members to submit any questions or topics of interest for discussion prior to the meeting in preparation for answers during the Q & A time of the program.Please submit your questions to Jim Russ by May 24.
MdQI News
June 4, 2010
The MdQI Spring/ Summer Newsletter is attached.
Please mark your calendars for the 7th Highway Construction and Engineering Career Day event. It is scheduled for October 19, 2010 in Frederick, MD. Sponsorship opportunities are available for all industry companies to support this event. Please contact Barry Catterton or the MTBMA office for more details.
Planning for the 2011 MdQI Conference has already begun. Be sure to mark your calendar for our 17th Annual Conference to be held on February 2nd & February 3rd at the Sheraton Baltimore City Center Hotel. More information to follow.
NEW USDOT DBE PROGRAM PROPOSED RULE
June 4, 2010
MTBMA was sent the following email and is forwarding the message below for your information:
Please note that comments on this proposed rule will be accepted through July 11, 2010. Comment instructions and a link to the full proposed rule are located at the end of the message.
Small businesses would benefit from a proposed rule that would help more economically and socially disadvantaged businesses participate in federal highway, transit and airport construction projects, while making the states and agencies that run the Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) Program more accountable, U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said today.
“When we help small businesses, we’re helping get the economy going,” said Secretary LaHood. “This is an important rule that can help small businesses owned and controlled by women and minorities.”
The proposed rule would require greater accountability from state and local transportation agencies. Those that fail to meet established goals to include disadvantaged business enterprises in their spending plans must analyze the reasons for the short-fall and offer corrective actions.
In addition, the proposed rule would prevent DBEs from being removed from the program prematurely. It would raise the personal net worth limit for DBE owners from the present $750,000, to an inflation-adjusted $1.3 million. This personal net worth limit was set in 1989 and has not been adjusted since.
The proposed rule would also add safeguards to make sure that prime contractors fulfill commitments to use DBE subcontractors. State and local agencies would have to conduct post-award monitoring of each contract for this purpose, and prime contractors could not dismiss DBE subcontractors without good cause.
Among the other provisions, the proposal would reduce burdens on small businesses seeking DBE certification in more than one state. Any state would have to accept another’s existing certification, unless it found good reason not to. Currently DBEs must seek certification in each state in which they wish to do business.
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s DBE Program helps for-profit small businesses in which socially and economically disadvantaged individuals own at least a 51 percent interest and control management and daily business operations to compete for government contracts. It does this by requiring state and local transportation agencies to establish goals for DBE participation.
Recently, Secretary LaHood created a high level task force to look at the DBE program and develop recommendations to improve the administration of the program. Secretary LaHood praised the efforts of the task force.
“The Department’s Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization has done great work leading this initiative so far. And we hope to achieve even more.”
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s proposed rule to improve the DBE Program appeared in the Federal Register on May 10th . Public comment can be received through July 11, 2010.
Click here to download the proposed rule: Disadvantaged Business Enterprise: Program Improvements.
DISCONTINUANCE OF FORM FHWA-47
June 4, 2010
Attached is a copy of a Federal Register publication of the Final Rule that eliminates regulations which require contractors on National Highway System projects of $1 million or more to submit Form FHWA-47. Effective on February 3, 2010, Section 635.126 of title 23, Code of Federal Regulations, is removed and reserved.
This action completes the agency’s efforts in discontinuing the reporting requirements for Form FHWA-45, Bid Price Data; Form FHWA-47, Statement of Materials and Labor Used by Contractors on Highway Construction Involving Federal Funds; and Form FHWA-810, Bid Tabulation Data. The decision to discontinue these reporting requirements is documented in a May 22, 2007, policy memorandum that can be viewed at: http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/federalaid/052207.cfm.
Currently, SHA includes a federal spec (Form 1273) in all federally funded projects that contains this requirement. Since SHA is not allowed to alter this form, SHA is including a notice of the elimination of this requirement. It is our understanding that FHWA is in the process of modifying this form, so hopefully this will be temporary.
FRAUDULENT CCR LETTERS
June 4, 2010
Current and potential U. S. Department of Transportation (DOT) contractors have recently been receiving fraudulent letters purporting to be issued by DOT. These fraudulent letters request that contractors resubmit their Central Contractor Registration System (CCR) banking information to DOT. If you receive such a letter, please DO NOT complete the requested CCR worksheet that is attached to the letters and DO NOT release any information to the facsimile number cited in the letter. Please be aware that no Federal agency requires any confidential information to be submitted to verify CCR registration. The CCR is a legitimate government system. However, to register, contractors are required to go directly through the CCR website and never through a third party. There is no requirement to send information directly to any Federal agency. For information on how to register in the CCR, please visit the website www.ccr.gov.
WHO PAID FOR THAT TWEET?
June 4, 2010
Proposed rules would require disclosure notices on campaign social networking website
By Annie Linskey, The Baltimore Sun
June 2, 2010
The state elections board is poised to begin regulating candidates’ Facebook pages and Twitter accounts, a move that officials say is intended to enhance transparency – and help voters distinguish the real campaign messages from the fake ones.
“With the way information can go viral, it is important to know who is the source of the posting,” said Jared DeMarinis, director of the State Board of Elections. “In tight elections, misinformation could swing the outcome.”
A push to pass the new rules in time for the current election cycle could place Maryland among the first in the country to oversee how campaigns use social networking sites. California and Wisconsin are considering similar measures but have faced opposition from groups that fear an infringement on First Amendment rights.
The board is to vote on the rules today, but final approval from a state legislative committee will still be required. DeMarinis says he is fast-tracking the approval process in hopes of getting the rules in place for November.
The proposal would require campaigns to add the standard disclosure sentence that is now mandatory for printed materials to blogs, online advertising and social networking sites. The sentence gives the name of the campaign committee paying for that material and the name of the treasurer. Continue Reading Complete Article…
Class Date: May 26, 2010
June 4, 2010
The following people passed the Certification Exam.
Charles Ambrose
John Amiet
Jeffrey Baker
Gerald Clark
Michael Doner
Martin Donohue
Jackie Harvey
Brian Hinkle
Zack Horchar
James Houseman
John Kern
Kevin Maloney
Telmo Marques
Michael Murdock
Eric Parrish
Victor Pinto
Anthony Polito
Rodney Ross
Allen Scott
Mike Thomas
John Toporzycki
Luis Vicente
Douglas Walter
Brendan White
Government Employees
Steven Hall
Jason Hartner
William Howell
Eric Johnston
Bryan Kirk
Sherri Michael
Bernard Miller, Jr.
Keena Rucker
Article from Roll Call: Rahall: Extra Funding Means More Jobs
June 9, 2010
Rahall: Extra Funding Means More Jobs
June 7, 2010
By Rep. Nick Rahall
Special to Roll Call
There are few people today who would argue against the value of constructing America’s Transcontinental Railroad. The ribbon of steel that bound us together as a nation like never before cost $50 million at the time it was built. In today’s dollars, one estimate pegs the cost of that project at $900 million – still a pretty good deal. As a catalyst for almost every sector of our economy for the next century, it was the deal of deals.
Today, the transportation sector accounts for 11 percent of our gross domestic product, about $1.1 trillion annually, and supports one in eight jobs. Yet when it comes to investing in the completion and maintenance of our national network of concrete ribbons – our National Highway System and transit needs – we seem as stalled as a Model T in the mud.
As vice chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, I believe all options must be on the table for funding this critically important national need. We must ensure a dedicated pool of federal revenue sufficient to meet the growing needs of our aging transportation system. It should include a formula of fairness to commerce and commuter alike – from our most rural corners to our cities. Resolving the funding issue will allow several pieces of the puzzle to fall into place.
Crafting a transportation bill sooner rather than later would yield three fairly immediate results: It would create jobs, save money and spur the economy. Upgrading and maintaining our domestic transportation system would help to defend America’s competitive position internationally.
Congress has long recognized the importance of transportation for creating jobs and keeping our country competitive.
For example, about 45 years ago, Congress made the promise to 13 Appalachian Regional Commission member states to complete the Appalachian Development Highway System. The idea was to provide access leading to economic development for Appalachia, thereby connecting the region more fully, especially economically, to the rest of nation. The commission has estimated that completion of the Appalachian Development Highway System would yield benefits more than three times the cost of constructing the system.
I recently supported committee Chairman James Oberstar’s (D-Minn.) efforts to preserve an equitable distribution of funds to the ADHS in this last highway bill extension, because – like the chairman – Members of Congress, from the poorest state up, recognize the link between economic development and transportation.
Another important component of the bill is funding University Transportation Centers. These centers serve a critical role in sharing information and research needs, as well as prospects, and can further define the importance of transportation in economic development.
I am proud to say the U.S. Department of Transportation’s University Center research program at Marshall University’s Appalachian Transportation Institute – dubbed the Rahall Transportation Institute – is at the forefront of linking transportation infrastructure to economic development across the Appalachian states.
The institute did an elegant little commodity-flows study that brought a railroad, Norfolk Southern, knocking at southern West Virginia’s door to open new job opportunities in my Congressional district and others. The endeavor is part of a multimillion-dollar public-private effort to enlarge tunnels along its rail lines through Virginia, West Virginia and Ohio. That work is scheduled to be completed later this year, clearing the way to transport double-stack intermodal containers from Virginia’s ports to the Central Ohio Valley and on to Chicago and markets to the west.
The rail operator saves energy, shippers save costs and job-producing opportunities seize advantages from the new shipments, such as the proposed intermodal center at Prichard, W.Va.
The cargo-transfer terminal in Prichard will give shippers in the tri-state region of West Virginia, Kentucky and Ohio multi-modal access to highway and rail. It will not only increase shipping and freight job opportunities, but it will give our industries access to modern, efficient freight container service, as well as access to international markets.
Examples like these can be found in Congressional district after district across our country – transportation building jobs. To keep up the good work, Congress should consider some broad foundations on which to build as we write a robust surface transportation authorization bill.
It is essential that we do a multiyear transportation bill large enough to meet our critical needs and to stimulate jobs. Everyone loses when we have a series of short-term transportation and infrastructure patches that do not address our national long-term needs.
Certainly, one of the greatest American assets is our National Highway System, and I will vigorously reject efforts to devolve programs back to the states.
The development of a national multi-modal transportation policy will keep America moving. It is my hope that we can further integrate intermodalism with our planning and programs, and that certainly includes the rail industry.
Additionally, we should be prepared to mobilize the manpower needed to make this improved and long-sustained transportation system a reality. What better resource to tap than our veterans for such an undertaking? I am working with my colleagues to recognize the value of veterans’ service experience with the billions of dollars in contract authority this bill will provide.
By coming together and pooling our minds, our muscle – and yes, our money – we, resourceful and inspired Americans, can tackle age-old challenges and craft creative solutions that will ensure our nation a sound defense and competitive edge for years to come.
In all things dealing with public policy, as we crunch numbers and streamline formulas, we cannot for an instant lose sight of the human element as central to our purpose – right now that main goal is and must remain to create jobs.
To view the article online: Roll Call – Rahall: Extra Funding Means More Jobs
Class Date: June 8, 2010
June 15, 2010
The following people passed the Certification Exam.
Donald Coulling
Steven Dorsey
Khairuddin Farhad
Mark Gibson
Dennis Kelliher
Jeffrey Lawrence
Dave Morrison
David O’Brien
Margie Phipps
Eric Routh
James Salvino
Cristina Sawdargs
Sean Stinchcomb
Kevin Wilsey
Government Employees
Calvin Brooks
Charles Garrett
George Gibson
Raymond King
