AGC July 6 responded to an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to expand the Agency's Lead Renovation, Repair and Painting Program (RRP) requirements to cover work performed in commercial and public buildings.

The ANPR includes no proposed language.  Rather, the public was invited to respond to over 100 detailed questions and data requests.  Currently there are no limits on the potential scope of regulated commercial and public buildings. Other unresolved questions include: What renovation and repair work should be covered? What activities create the most risk? Should exposure pathways be broadened to include nearby properties?  AGC invited members to help shape the future lead paint rule and solicited input on a variety of important industry-specific issues currently under consideration at EPA.

AGC Comments

As part of a coalition with 15 other organizations, AGC filed comments with EPA maintaining that the Agency lacks the legal authority to adopt requirements for Lead RRP activities in public and commercial buildings.  In the comments, the coalition pointed out that the statute under which EPA would issue the rule grants it the authority to issue guidelines for work practice standards, but not the authority to promulgate such regulations for RRP in public and commercial buildings.

For more detail on AGC's comments on the EPA's ANPR and background on the Lead Paint Renovation, Repair, and Painting Program, please click here.

The AGC of America Specialty Contractors Council (SCC) released a two-page "Best Practices Guidance for Retainage" document in Fall 2009.  Developed by the SCC Executive Committee with input from the more than 1,000 AGC specialty contractor members who responded to an AGC retainage survey, this resource is intended to provide guidance to specialty contractors who face cash-flow issues related to retainage.

The guidance document is available here.  Additional resources include a summary of the AGC retention survey results and the AGC-ASA-ASC Guideline on Retainage from the Guidelines for a Successful Construction Project.  The Guidelines for a Successful Construction Project is a joint effort of AGC of America, the American Subcontractors Association (ASA) and the Associated Specialty Contractors (ASC).

August 11, 2010 | 1:00-3:00pm ET

Join us for this comprehensive program that will provide General Contractors management tips and strategies covering the relationships with subcontractors and suppliers in today's difficult construction economy.

Topics to be covered include:

• Why subcontractors and suppliers may fail
• Best practices for General Contractors to manage their relationships with Specialty Contractors and Suppliers
• How to pre-qualify and screen potential subcontractors and suppliers to assure their ability to perform
• How to manage subcontractors and suppliers to avoid defaults and assure payment of bills
• How to use your subcontract and purchase order forms to protect your company
• How ConsensusDOCS standard contract forms can help your business practices.

To learn more visit: www.agc.org/suppliers.

PowerPoint presentations from the June 2010 AGC Building Contractors Conference in Midway, Utah are now available by clicking here.

Presentation topics include: lean construction case studies, EPA Effluent Limitations Guidelines rule, OSHA's agenda, material prices outlook, sustainable design return on investment, an update on surety issues, and a presentation on the future challenges of growth in construction.

Presentations from past Building Contractors Conferences can be found at www.agc.org/building.