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Presents Case to Senate Committee

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has announced that the agency will support Hurricane Harvey and Irma relief efforts in a number of ways, including by relaxing federal contractors’ requirements on a temporary basis. As part of the initiative, the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) will be temporarily suspending certain requirements on federal contractors to allow “businesses involved in hurricane relief the ability to prioritize recovery efforts.”

A U.S. Department of Labor administrative law judge (ALJ) has held that the employer, not the workers, primarily benefited from lodging used by itinerant workers hired to work on a federal dredging project away from their home communities. As a result, the employer was required under the Davis-Bacon Act to cover the full cost of the employees’ lodging expenses.

�鶹��ý of America submitted a letter to the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) Wage and Hour Division (WHD) on September 5 recommending several specific ideas on how to reform and modernize the weekly pay and certified payroll submission requirements as mandated by the Davis-Bacon and related Acts (DBRA).

Construction employment increased by 28,000 jobs in August, following a dip in hiring and spending in July, but contractors face a lack of experienced workers, according to an analysis of new government data and a new workforce survey by the Associated General Contractors of America. Association officials said construction job growth would have been even higher but a majority of firms report having a hard time finding qualified workers.

On August 29, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) informed the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) that it is initiating a review and immediate stay of the effectiveness of the pay data collection aspects of the EEO-1 form that was revised on September 29, 2016, in accordance with its authority under the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA). OMB’s decision follows �鶹��ý’s regulatory recommendations, specifically that the new EEO-1 requirements were unnecessary and burdensome. “Among other things, OMB is concerned that some aspects of the revised collection of information lack practical utility, are unnecessarily burdensome, and do not adequately address privacy and confidentiality issues,” the office said in its memo to the EEOC.

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As part of EPA's compliance assistance for the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) construction stormwater program, EPA created a "Do I Need A Permit?" flowchart to help construction operators determine if and from whom they need to get NPDES permit coverage for their construction activities. EPA also updated the Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan (SWPPP) template and Inspection and Corrective Action Report templates for the new 2017 Construction General Permit (CGP). These fillable templates help construction site operators develop a SWPPP and prepare inspection and corrective action reports that meet the requirements of EPA's 2017 CGP.

On August 29, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) informed the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) that it is initiating a review and immediate stay of the effectiveness of the pay data collection aspects of the EEO-1 form that was revised on September 29, 2016, in accordance with its authority under the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA). OMB’s decision follows �鶹��ý’s regulatory recommendations, specifically that the new EEO-1 requirements were unnecessary and burdensome. “Among other things, OMB is concerned that some aspects of the revised collection of information lack practical utility, are unnecessarily burdensome, and do not adequately address privacy and confidentiality issues,” the office said in its memo to the EEOC.

Thirty-six states and the District of Columbia added construction jobs between July 2016 and July 2017, yet only half the states added construction jobs between June and July amid declining public-sector investments in infrastructure and other construction projects, according to an analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America of Labor Department data released today. Association officials said firms in parts of the country that build infrastructure projects are seeing less demand for their services amid overall declines in public-sector spending.