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Tag: advocacy

After Recent Building Failures, IIBEC Recommends Wilmington, North Carolina, Establish a Facade Inspection Program

October 10, 2024

On October 7, 2024, IIBEC sent a letter to the mayor of Wilmington, North Carolina, and the city council recommending that they consider establishing a building facade inspection program in light of two recent building failures. The letter was signed by IIBEC Executive Vice President and CEO Pallasch; IIBEC Region II Director Nicholas Tribble, RRO; and IIBEC Carolinas Chapter President Scott Singleton, PE, RRC.

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IIBEC Educates Florida City About Problems Associated with Job-Order Contracting

September 26, 2024

Earlier this month the city of Tampa, Florida, released an internal audit of its recently enacted cooperative purchasing job-order contracting (JOC) program. IIBEC, in a letter signed by its Executive Vice President and CEO Brian Pallasch, and IIBEC Florida Chapter President Ricardo Moncada, took the opportunity to educate the Internal Audit Department about problems associated with JOC for design and construction services. Along with the letter, the RCI-IIBEC Foundation report, An Analysis of Unit-Price Procurement, and IIBEC’s Safeguarding Taxpayer Funds During Procurement of Design and Construction Services policy recommendations also were sent to the department. 

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GSA Releases Updated Design Standards in Move Toward Zero Emissions

August 08, 2024

On August 5, 2024, the US General Services Administration (GSA) released an update to the federal design standards to advance building efficiency, reduce emissions, and increase resilience. Updated every three years, the Facilities Standards for the Public Buildings Service (P100) establish mandatory design and construction standards and performance criteria for 300,000 federal buildings nationwide.

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IIBEC Calls on Baltimore City Council to Protect the Primacy of the Designer of Record

July 10, 2024

On June 28, 2024, IIBEC sent a letter to the Baltimore City Council concerning Council Bill 21-0160, which mandates that all new construction (commercial and residential) and additions must install a cool roof. An earlier version of the bill only applied to buildings partly financed with city funds, but just before the city council voted on passage it was amended to include all residential and commercial roofs.

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Michigan Panel Passes IIBEC-Backed QBS Bill

June 23, 2024

On June 18, 2024, a Michigan legislative panel approved legislation that would expand the use of qualifications-based selection (QBS) for the selection of architect and engineering design (A/E/D) professionals, sending it to the full House for a vote.

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IIBEC Opposition Helps Defeat Anti-QBS Bill in Illinois

June 09, 2024

IIBEC, in conjunction with other design and construction groups, succeeded in killing legislation in Illinois that would sidestep the qualifications-based selection (QBS) of architects, engineers, and design professionals. Introduced in the Illinois state senate in late April, S. 3932  would have amended the state procurement code to allow state agencies and school districts to use job order contracting (cooperative purchasing) to procure construction services—which, as defined in the bill, include architecture/engineering/design services.

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Bob Card Testifies Before Washington State Legislature on Code Council Process Bill

February 01, 2024

Bob Card, F-IIBEC, RBEC, RRC, RWC, REWC, REWO, and former IIBEC president, testified January 30, 2024, before a Washington state House committee in support of legislation that would streamline the State Building Code Council’s process for considering new model codes. In mid-January IIBEC identified a pair of fast-moving bills pending before the Washington state legislature—SB 6291 and HR 2465—that would improve how the code council works and therefore increase the probability that the state would update its codes on a regular basis, a policy position IIBEC supports. IIBEC teamed with its Puget Sound Chapter to send a letter endorsing  SB 6291 to Washington’s State Government & Elections Committee, which was scheduled to hold a January 26 hearing on the bill.

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Department of Labor Expands Injury, Illness Reporting Requirement for Certain Large Employers

December 10, 2023

The Department of Labor recently announced a new rule that requires large employers in high-hazard industries like construction to electronically submit injury and illness data. The final rule takes effect January 1, 2024. Specifically, the rule requires businesses with 100 or more employees in designated industries to submit case-specific information from the OSHA Form 300 Log and the OSHA Form 301 Incident Report. The data must be electronically submitted through OSHA's Injury Tracking Application. (Determine if your company is required to report these data and read more about recordkeeping and the injury tracking application.)

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North Carolina Republicans Override Veto of Bill Overhauling Construction Code Commission

August 25, 2023

On August 16, 2023, North Carolina Republicans flexed their legislative supermajority muscles and created six new laws by overriding Democratic Governor Roy Cooper’s vetoes of those bills. Of the six bills, House Bill 488 reformed the way construction codes are developed. H.B. 488, backed by the North Carolina Home Builders Association, was opposed by many other construction, design, safety, and environmental organizations. IIBEC sent a letter to every member of the North Carolina legislature urging them to let the veto stand and take up the reform effort again in the next session.

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