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�鶹��Ƶ recently participated in a roundtable discussion with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Acting Administrator Andrew Wheeler to commemorate the one-year anniversary of the Smart Sectors Partnership and highlight initial successes. �鶹��Ƶ took the opportunity to express support of EPA’s efforts to improve the clarity and speed of the permits it issues. �鶹��Ƶ understands that state agencies issue most environmental permits; however, states use EPA’s permits/programs as a model. Improvements EPA makes can have a positive impact on state-issued permits. To this end, EPA is working on a policy for how the agency assesses the adequacy of state pollution control programs. Click here to see EPA’s priority goals and latest action plan.

Each year, �鶹��Ƶ seeks nominations for qualified and motivated individuals from the �鶹��Ƶ Environmental Forum to serve on the steering committee for the forum. Would you like to play a leadership role in �鶹��Ƶ of America’s environmental advocacy, education and outreach efforts?

Submitted by: Jane C. Luxton and Amanda L. Tharpe

�鶹��Ƶ Supported Revisions Included

Forty-five states and the District of Columbia added construction jobs between September 2017 and September 2018...

On October 17, 2018, the Trump Administration unveiled its Fall 2018 Unified Agenda of Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions mapping out federal agency priorities for the coming months. This bi-annual publication informs the public of regulations under consideration or planned by federal agencies. The present agenda includes several submissions by labor agencies.

Over the last year and a half, the Federal Government has initiated a fast-paced agenda for reviewing and revising environmental policies. �鶹��Ƶ has tracked and responded to relevant changes through the pre-proposal and proposal processes. The Fall Unified Agenda, released this week, signals that the agencies have no plans to slow their pace.

The White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) recently released a new memorandum (Memorandum M-18-25), in coordination with the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) and the Federal Permitting Improvement Steering Council, establishing a brand new “accountability system” to track and score federal agencies performance in meeting the President Trump’s two-year timeline for completing environmental reviews and authorization decisions on “major infrastructure projects.” The memo requires, and outlines the procedures by which, all agencies that have a role in environmental approvals for infrastructure must regularly track and measure their performance in meeting a list of goals that aim to expedite and improve infrastructure permitting. Agencies must submit tracking information to OMB and the Federal Agency Portal of the “Federal Infrastructure Permitting Dashboard.” OMB will score each agency’s performance, issue reports, and “consider each agency's performance during budget formulation and determine whether appropriate penalties... must or should be imposed.”

�鶹��Ƶ submitted comments this week, individually and as part of a construction coalition, to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) requesting that construction industry drivers be exempted from hours of service (HOS) rules.

The cost of many products used in construction climbed 7.4 percent over the past year due to double digit increases in commonly-used construction materials, according to an analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America of new Labor Department data. Association officials noted that the cost increases come as many construction firms are already grappling with shortages of skilled craftsmen essential for projects but have limited ability to increase prices for their services.