(HARTFORD, CT) – Governor Dannel P. Malloy and Lt. Governor Nancy Wyman are enthusiastically applauding the Connecticut State Senate for voting today to give final legislative passage on a resolution that will create an amendment in the state constitution to guarantee that funding set aside for transportation is used for transportation projects.
Today’s legislative approval means that the question on whether to adopt the constitutional amendment will next go to the voters in a referendum that will be held during the next statewide election in November 2018. Once approved by the voters, it will be ratified into the state constitution.
Governor Malloy said, “The residents of Connecticut deserve a modernized, best-in-class transportation system that promotes growth, attracts businesses, delivers jobs, and makes our state an even more desirable place to live and work. For too long, our state languished in the upkeep of our transportation infrastructure at the expense of businesses, our economy, and our quality of life. We must think big on transportation – there are billions of dollars at stake in productivity, commerce, and economic activity. I think the people of our state agree that protecting transportation funding in a lockbox that cannot be raided and used for any other purpose is the right step forward for our state. I want to thank the members of the General Assembly for their forward-thinking vision in approving this constitutional amendment to help Connecticut move forward to improve our infrastructure. I also want to particularly acknowledge State Representative Tony Guerrera and the leadership in the House and the Senate for their collective efforts in approving this amendment and getting it to the voters.”
Lt. Governor Wyman said, “Stable, consistent transportation funding means improved roads, public transit, and bike/ped options. A transportation lockbox will help us advance our broader goals to increase efficiency in commerce, strengthen industry, and attract a younger workforce. It will also save thousands of driver hours and help reduce pollution, including the health and climate consequences of carbon emissions. I applaud Governor Malloy’s leadership and the legislature for moving this forward.”
The legislation is House Joint Resolution 100, Resolution Approving a State Constitutional Amendment to Protect Transportation Funds. It was adopted by the House of Representatives yesterday.
Construction Industry Adding Jobs at Rapid Clip
Construction employment increased by 11,000 jobs in May to the highest level since October 2008 and average weekly hours set a series high for May as contractors struggled to find enough workers to meet demand for projects, according to an analysis of new government data by the Associated General Contractors of America. Association officials urged lawmakers and other public officials to address the growing shortage of available qualified workers by funding and re-invigorating career and technical education programs.
“Construction firms continued adding new jobs at a faster rate than the broader economy during the past year as demand for their services remains strong,” said Ken Simonson, the association's chief economist. “Even so, they had to keep employees on the job for more hours because they could not find enough qualified people to hire.”
Construction employment totaled 6,881,000 in May, a gain of 11,000 from the April total and an increase of 191,000 or 2.9 percent from a year ago. The year-over-year growth rate was almost double the 1.6 percent rise in total nonfarm payroll employment, Simonson noted. The sector's unemployment rate in May was 5.3 percent, up slightly from 5.2 percent a year ago but one of the lowest May levels in decades.
The economist noted that average weekly hours in construction rose to 39.9, the highest May figure since the series began in 2006. Average hourly earnings in the industry climbed to $28.55, an increase of 2.2 percent from a year earlier. Construction pays nearly 9 percent more per hour than the average nonfarm private sector job in the United States, which pays $26.22 on average per hour.
Residential construction — comprising residential building and specialty trade contractors — added 7,100 jobs in May and 191,000, or 4.7 percent, over the past 12 months. Nonresidential construction (building, specialty trades, and heavy and civil engineering construction) employment increased by 4,400 jobs in May and 71,300, or 1.7 percent, over 12 months.Construction officials said construction labor shortages were becoming more severe in many parts of the country after years of under-investment in career and technical education programs, which used to be called vocational education. They urged Congress and the Trump administration to enact a measure to increase funding, and flexibility, for the Perkins Act, which provides federal funds for career and technical education. And they urged state and local leaders to make it easier for construction firms and local associations to set up regional recruiting and training programs.
Senate Approves Gambling Expansion As Session Ends Without Budget
With just hours left in the legislative session, the Senate granted final legislative approval Wednesday night for an expansion of gambling that includes more off-track betting sites and possible sports betting in the future.
The final day's drama marked the end of a five-month legislative session that ended with unfinished business — with the biggest being the state's budget that has a projected deficit of nearly $5 billion over the next two years. The financial challenges will be tackled in the coming weeks with a goal of reaching a budget deal by the end of the fiscal year on June 30. The last day also marked a capstone to a year of sharp disagreement on many of the major issues facing the legislature that ended without resolution — among them installing electronic tolls on highways, legalizing recreational marijuana, fixing crumbling foundations in eastern Connecticut, providing college financial assistance to so-called Dreamers, and increasing penalties on police officers who are guilty of misconduct. Those issues all failed without enough votes in the chambers, which had the closest margins in decades. The House Democrats maintain an advantage of 79 to 72, while the Senate is tied at 18-18.
With no budget finalized, Gov. Dannel P. Malloy declined for the second consecutive year to deliver the traditional post-midnight gubernatorial speech that marks the end of the legislative session.
The gambling expansion was a crucial piece of an overall package to approve an East Windsor casino that would be built by the Mashantucket Pequot and Mohegan tribes to compete against a nearly $1 billion casino that is being constructed across the Massachusetts line in Springfield. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
DANBURY — The state is finishing realignment designs for a stretch of Route 37 in the city’s north end, where it plans to rebuild two outdated intersections.
The $6.6 million project, expected to begin construction in 2018, is among the Connecticut road improvements scheduled to receive money in President Donald Trump’s first budget.
“The state recognizes the traffic volume is there, and the condition of the roadway and the intersections have been an issue for a long time,” said Sharon Calitro, Danbury’s planning director. “It’s a big project.”
The work between Barnum Road and Stacey Road is expected to relieve congestion on the busiest route to New Fairfield by creating turning lanes and installing traffic controls.
Specifically, the project calls for:
The state Department of Transportation plans to widen Route 37 during construction to allow two lanes of traffic to pass while the project is being completed, state engineers said.
Construction is expected to take two years.
The project is among a handful of state infrastructure improvements listed in the first budget proposed by Trump, who has pledged to spend $1 trillion on America’s roads and bridges, mainly through private investment.
Other western Connecticut projects in Trump’s budget are $465,000 in sidewalk improvements in Norwalk, $2.4 million to replace a Merritt Parkway bridge in Greenwich, and $1.7 million for new traffic signals on Bridgeport’s Washington Avenue.
CINCINNATI (AP) — Dogged by allegations in Washington, President Donald Trump traveled to friendlier territory Wednesday and promised to create a "first-class" system of roads, bridges and waterways by using $200 billion in public funds to generate $1 trillion in investment to pay for construction projects that most public officials agree are badly needed and long overdue.
"America must have the best, fastest and most reliable infrastructure anywhere in the world," Trump said, pushing his infrastructure plan in middle America as Washington geared up for Thursday's appearance before Congress by fired FBI Director James Comey."We will fix it," said Trump, standing along the Ohio River. "We will create the first-class infrastructure our country and our people deserve.
But the controversies and distractions in Washington continued to dog the president throughout the day. As he was speaking, the Senate Intelligence committee released the prepared testimony Comey is expected to deliver Thursday. It includes detailed descriptions of meetings and phone conversations between Trump and Comey.
In the speech, the president also pressed the Senate to send him a health care bill, criticized congressional Democrats as "obstructionists" and revisited his controversial decision to pull the U.S. out of the Paris climate agreement.
Trump said that as he campaigned across the country last year, people often asked him why the U.S. was spending money to rebuild other countries when the roads and bridges they travel on needed rebuilding, too.
Trump declared the days of spending on other nations are over: "It's time to rebuild our country" and to "put America first," he said.While infrastructure initially was seen as an area where Republican and Democrats could work together, Democrats have balked at Trump's plan for using tax incentives and public-private partnerships to finance improvements. Many argue such a plan would result in taxpayer-funded profits for corporations with the cost loaded onto consumers.
Before the speech, Trump met aboard Air Force One with a pair of families the White House said were "victims" of the Obama-era health care law that the president and congressional Republicans want to repeal and replace.
Trump said the families — one from Ohio and another from Kentucky — are going through "turmoil" along with millions of other consumers who are facing rising premiums and limited choices for health coverage under the 2010 law.
"Now it's time for the Senate to act and save Americans from this catastrophic event because Obamacare is dead," Trump said. "Obamacare was one of the biggest broken promises in the history of politics. Remember 'you can keep your doctor, you can keep your plan?' Didn't work out that way."
The Republican-controlled House has passed a health care bill that no Democrats supported. Senate Republicans are working on their own version.
Trump also mentioned his announcement last week that he was pulling the U.S. out of what he dismissively referred to as the "so-called" Paris climate accord. Trump has said the pact that nearly 200 nations agreed to in 2015 was unfair to the United States.
The referendum passed 1016 to 236. ...
Preparing for President Trump’s $1 Trillion Infrastructure Plan
Now several months into his presidency, President Donald J. Trump’s administration is beginning to lay the groundwork to make an ambitious campaign promise a reality. That promise: Creating a more than $1 trillion program to support new infrastructure projects across the United States.
This plan, President Trump has said, would create millions of new construction jobs while repairing (or completely rebuilding) highways, bridges and other pieces of infrastructure that are currently in poor condition. Ultimately, the plan would serve as the first step to achieving Candidate Trump’s now-ubiquitous goal of “Making America Great Again.” A fully developed $1 trillion infrastructure investment plan is far from finalized, but President Trump has made it clear that this will be a top priority for his administration. President Trump recently told the press that infrastructure is a very popular issue among lawmakers and signaled he may want to “speed up” the timeline for his proposal, and Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao has gone on record to say the package could be unveiled as early as May.
For construction professionals, that means it’s crucial to start planning ahead for what could be a windfall of available work.
Increase project selectivity
The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) recently assigned a “D+” grade to the country’s infrastructure system, claiming the system would need an investment of nearly $4.6 trillion just to bring that grade up to a “B.” The ASCE reported that one out of every five miles of highway pavement is in poor condition; pointed at more than 15,000 “high-hazard” dams across the country; and estimated that America’s public transportation systems are facing a $90 billion repair backlog.
Clearly, once a spending plan is announced and approved, the new administration won’t have much trouble finding projects in which to invest. If contractors or construction companies want to compete for these jobs, they need to make sure they have crews available to start working immediately. That means, when possible, companies may want to consider increasing their selectivity when it comes to smaller projects over the course of the year.
Prepare to start quickly
President Trump recently stressed one line item he’d like to see in a finalized infrastructure plan, suggesting a 90-day deadline for states to begin on working on projects for which they receive federal funding.
"We're not going to give the money to states unless they can prove that they can be ready, willing and able to start the project," Trump said. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Preparing for President Trump’s $1 Trillion Infrastructure Plan
Now several months into his presidency, President Donald J. Trump’s administration is beginning to lay the groundwork to make an ambitious campaign promise a reality. That promise: Creating a more than $1 trillion program to support new infrastructure projects across the United States.
This plan, President Trump has said, would create millions of new construction jobs while repairing (or completely rebuilding) highways, bridges and other pieces of infrastructure that are currently in poor condition. Ultimately, the plan would serve as the first step to achieving Candidate Trump’s now-ubiquitous goal of “Making America Great Again.” A fully developed $1 trillion infrastructure investment plan is far from finalized, but President Trump has made it clear that this will be a top priority for his administration. President Trump recently told the press that infrastructure is a very popular issue among lawmakers and signaled he may want to “speed up” the timeline for his proposal, and Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao has gone on record to say the package could be unveiled as early as May.
For construction professionals, that means it’s crucial to start planning ahead for what could be a windfall of available work.
Increase project selectivity
The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) recently assigned a “D+” grade to the country’s infrastructure system, claiming the system would need an investment of nearly $4.6 trillion just to bring that grade up to a “B.” The ASCE reported that one out of every five miles of highway pavement is in poor condition; pointed at more than 15,000 “high-hazard” dams across the country; and estimated that America’s public transportation systems are facing a $90 billion repair backlog.
Clearly, once a spending plan is announced and approved, the new administration won’t have much trouble finding projects in which to invest. If contractors or construction companies want to compete for these jobs, they need to make sure they have crews available to start working immediately. That means, when possible, companies may want to consider increasing their selectivity when it comes to smaller projects over the course of the year.
Prepare to start quickly
President Trump recently stressed one line item he’d like to see in a finalized infrastructure plan, suggesting a 90-day deadline for states to begin on working on projects for which they receive federal funding.
"We're not going to give the money to states unless they can prove that they can be ready, willing and able to start the project," Trump said. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE