By a bipartisan vote of 211 to 209, the House May 17 passed an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act that prohibits federal agencies from mandating PLAs on federal construction contracts authorized by the NDAA.

ABC celebrated a major victory May 14 when the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia overturned a National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) “ambush” elections rule because it was adopted without the statutorily required quorum of NLRB members.

The U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Appropriations on May 16 passed an amendment via voice vote to the Military Construction and Veterans Affairs Appropriations bill for fiscal year 2013 that prevents federal agencies from requiring contractors to sign anti-competitive and costly project labor agreements (PLAs) as a condition of winning federal construction contracts.

The Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Council on May 3 proposed an amendment to the FAR that will further the implementation of President Obama’s Executive Order 13495, or the Nondisplacement of Qualified Workers Under Service Contracts.

The ABC Eastern Pennsylvania Chapter May 11 signed a partnership agreement with the Philadelphia, Allentown and Wilkes-Barre Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) offices at its training center in Harleysville, Pa.

The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) has announced that the fourth and final comment period on its proposed 2012 update to its LEED green building rating system will be open until May 28.

ABC members interested in participating in the Construction Users Roundtable (CURT) 2012 Workforce Development Awards must submit their application to ABC by July 6, or directly to CURT by July 13.

ABC members that register now to attend the 2012 Legislative Conference, to be held July 10 in Washington, D.C., will hear from U.S. House of Representatives Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio). In addition, first-time attendees and young professionals under 40 can get $150 off registration fees. To register now, visit www.abc.org/legcon.