November 2018
Online Registration Now Available! Don’t Miss SUBExcel 2019 This March in Nashville
ASA has launched online registration for SUBExcel 2019, which will take place March 6-9, 2019, at the Renaissance Nashville Hotel in Nashville, Tenn. ASA is using a new online platform for the event, which we hope you’ll find to be much easier to navigate and complete the registration process! Visit www.subexcel.com to read about ASA’s annual national convention and watch a brief video under “Description,” then read a brief “Welcome” message from 2018-19 ASA President Courtney Little, ACE Glass Construction Corp., Little Rock, Ark. You can see who is sponsoring ASA and which companies will be exhibiting at the convention, and you can check out the preliminary program. You can also view “Hotel” details and access the direct link to book your hotel reservations.
Please Note: If you wish to participate in the “Music City Pub Crawl,” this is an additional $75/person cost that is not included in the registration fee. Please select this fee for each registrant needing a ticket.
Free Dec. 11 ASA Webinar Examines How to Improve the Change Order Process
In the complimentary Dec. 11 ASA webinar, “Improving the Change Order Process,” presenter Ron Churchey, Shapiro & Duncan, will explain how to reduce the number of changes by doing better design and coordination and setting expectations early.
In the webinar, Churchey will also discuss how to limit open-ended flow down, how to prepare “approvable” change order proposals, and how to vet change proposals before they are submitted.
Churchey has served as vice president of construction for Shapiro & Duncan since 2010. He plays a critically important role on the leadership team by ensuring all projects are completed on time, within budget and in accordance with company’s quality standards.
This webinar will take place from noon to 1:30 p.m. Eastern time. Registration is complimentary for ASA members and nonmembers. Register online.
ASA’s Manual Charts State Anti-Indemnity Laws
How does your state handle indemnity? Find out with ASA’s Anti-Indemnity Statutes in the 50 States. This manual is a resource for identifying which states have anti-indemnity laws and indicates which states prohibit indemnity for partial fault or sole fault of the indemnified party. Furthermore, the manual indicates in which states a party is prohibited from requiring a subcontractor to name it as an additional insured, thereby closing the additional insured loophole.
Anti-Indemnity laws are important to subcontractors because too often contractors and owners shift risk to the subcontractors that subcontractors can’t control. Specifically, “hold harmless” and “additional insured” provisions in a construction subcontract seek to hold the subcontractor accountable for worksite accidents or other losses that are not the fault of the subcontractor. These “hold harmless” and “additional insured” provisions are problematic to subcontractors because they may unfairly shift the financial responsibility for claims to the subcontractor or its insurance company. As a result, a party who is indemnified by the subcontractor may use less care to avoid injury or loss because the indemnified party is not liable for its own actions. This carelessness may result in more accidents on the worksite that could have been avoided.
Many states have enacted laws that address at least some of the issues in shifting the burden of liability to a subcontractor. Forty-one states have some form of law which prohibits a construction contract that requires a subcontractor to indemnify another party for its negligence (but some of these states limit the application of the law, for example, only to public projects). Only 27 states prohibit a subcontractor from indemnifying another party for its sole or partial fault; 14 states only prohibit a subcontractor from indemnifying another party for its sole fault. Only six states prohibit a party from requiring another party to name it as an additional insured under a policy of insurance.
The ASA-member law firm and ASA general counsel, Kegler, Brown, Hill and Ritter, Columbus, Ohio, prepared the manual. The ASA Anti-Indemnity Statutes in the 50 States is available under “Insurance and Risk Management” in the Member Resources section of the ASA Web site.
SBA Announces Decrease in Surety Bond Guarantee Fees
The U.S. Small Business Administration on Sept. 4 announced the first fee decrease in Surety Bond Guarantees in 12 years. The fee decrease will be in effect for guaranteed bonds approved during fiscal year 2019, taking effect Oct. 1 and ending Sept. 30, 2019.
The Surety Bond Guarantee program is reducing the surety fee from 26 percent to 20 percent of the bond premium charged to the small businesses and reducing its contractor fee from $7.29 per thousand dollars of the contract amount to $6.00 per thousand dollars of the contract amount.
“Reducing the SBG program fees will not only directly help small businesses, but also will incentivize surety companies and their agents to increase support for small businesses in the marketplace,” said Peter C. Gibbs, acting director, Office of Surety Guarantees.
Under its SBG program, the SBA guarantees bid, payment and performance bonds for small and emerging contractors who cannot obtain surety bonds through regular commercial channels. SBA guarantees contracts up to $10 million, including the streamlined QuickApp application for those up to $400,000.
The SBA’s guarantee gives sureties an incentive to provide bonding for small businesses and, thereby, assists small businesses in obtaining greater access to contracting opportunities. Currently, there are 34 participating sureties and over 350 active agents in the SBG program. On average, completed surety bond applications are reviewed and processed in less than two days. The program is currently outperforming its previous year results yielding 27,000 jobs supported, 3,000 final bonds, and $1.7 billion in final bond contract amounts in fiscal year 2018. To learn more, visit www.sba.gov.
Applications for ASA’s Certificate of Excellence in Ethics Are Due Dec. 7, 2018
The deadline to submit your application for ASA’s Certificate of Excellence in Ethics is Dec. 7, 2018. The ethics certificate is not an awards competition, but rather a program recognizing subcontractors for their commitment to ASA values like quality construction and a safe and healthy work environment. Details, resources, and the application are located under “About ASA” on the ASA Web site.
Nominations for ASA’s Subcontractor Advocate Awards Are Due Dec. 31
Nominations for ASA’s Subcontractor Advocate Awards are due to ASA headquarters no later than Dec. 31, 2018. These awards spotlight organizations and individuals who dedicate themselves to advocate before government on behalf of subcontractors, specialty trade contractors and suppliers. Nominees do not have to be affiliated with ASA and there is no fee for nominations. Judging will be conducted by a working group of the ASA Task Force on Government Advocacy. Judges will consider each of the following factors when assessing the entry:
- Importance of the issue/objective to the interests of construction subcontractors and specialty trade contractors.
- Use of analytical skills to develop and implement a plan to pursue a successful outcome.
- Effort and success in developing support for the issue/objective within and outside of the construction industry.
- Degree of opposition to the issue/objective within and outside of the construction industry.
- Cost-effective use of resources, including dollars and time.
- Demonstrable success with the government advocacy or campaign.
- Quality of the presentation.
ASA will present the 2018 Subcontractor Advocate Awards in conjunction with ASA’s convention, SUBExcel 2019, which will take place March 6-9, 2019, in Nashville, Tenn.
SESCO White Paper Helps Employers Determine If They Must Comply with Affirmative Action and Specific Anti-Discrimination Rules
Having a federal government contract or subcontract can trigger the need to comply with serious affirmative action obligations and burdensome record-keeping requirements imposed on “covered” federal government contractors. It is critical that a business know if particular contracts trigger these obligations so that it can properly evaluate the true benefits and burdens of such contracts.
A business should not learn of these obligations for the first time in a government audit that could result in significant financial costs. A white paper from SESCO Management Consultants, “Guide to Determining Covered Federal Government Contractor Status,” can help employers evaluate all the costs and burdens, in addition to the benefits, and make intelligent business decisions based on full information.
“The costs of compliance can be significant, and costs of noncompliance even more so, such as to make any profits from government contracts illusory,” said Jamie Hasty, vice president, SESCO, a human resource consulting firm.
Under an arrangement with ASA, SESCO provides a free “hotline” to discuss day-to-day employment issues such as policy development, employee challenges such as disciplinary actions, terminations, or workers’ compensation issues, compliance to federal and state employment regulations, and many other management and human resource matters.
For more information, contact Hasty at jamie@sescomgt.com or (423) 764-4127. The white paper is available for free under “Workforce and Professional Development” on the ASA Web site.
##
