GBC Reports..., August 6, 2003

Phil Wood Appointed SUCF General Manager
In late July Philip Wood was appointed the new General Manager of the State University Construction Fund. Phil previously served as the Deputy Executive Director of the Dormitory Authority for seven years and before that served as a public official in many capacities in Rensselaer County. Phil replaces Wayne Diesel, who had served in an interim capacity as General Manager while also serving as Vice Chancellor of the State University of New York. 

GBC came to know Phil while he was at the Dormitory Authority, and we have already had some conversations about GBC-SUCF issues. We look forward to a productive relationship. He told us he is eager to get to know the SUCF staff, build a strong relationship with the many SUNY campuses and their leaders and do the same with the contractor community. We look forward to that. 


Smoking Legislation Affects Building Construction
The New York State Legislature recently enacted an anti-smoking law in New York State that took effect on July 26, 2003. GBC recently received a briefing from the law firm of Couch White as to its effects on the construction industry. Here are some excerpts:

"Under the new law, "place of employment" is defined as follows: Any indoor area or portion thereof under the control of an employer in which employees of the employer perform services and shall include, but not be limited to, offices, school grounds, retail stores, banquet facilities, theaters, food stores, banks, financial institutions, factories, warehouses, employees' cafeterias, lounges, auditoriums, gymnasiums, restrooms, elevators, hallways, museums, libraries, bowling establishments, employee medical facilities, rooms or areas containing photocopying equipment or other office equipment used in common, and company vehicles. 

"The law is also unclear as to how the ban applies to building projects since "place of employment" applies to an "indoor area." Brendan Manning of GBC recently spoke with the Center for Environmental Health, a division of the New York State Department of Health. The Center for Environmental Health indicated that it interpreted the smoking ban to apply to "a building closed to the elements," which would include a partially constructed building enclosed in a tarp. We would also interpret the law to include a building that is completely enclosed, whether it is by walls, windows and a roof, or by a tarp that covers the entire building or by other means of temporary enclosure such as temporary doors and windows. Therefore, an employer on a building project will need to ensure that employees do not smoke inside an enclosed building even if it is enclosed by temporary means. 

"There is no definition of "company vehicle" in the law. However, it is logical to assume that if a company owns or leases a vehicle and makes it available to an employee, it is a company vehicle. Conversely, if an employee owns or leases a vehicle, it would not be a company vehicle, even if the employee is reimbursed for the business use of the car." 

GBC suggests that you set up some guidelines for your employee manuals and post regulations on all of your jobsites. If you would like a copy of the briefing from Couch White, please contact Brendan at the GBC. 


Welcome New Members!
We're pleased to welcome the following new Specialty Contractor Member:
Mader Construction Co., Inc., Elma. Represented by Kevin Biddle, President.

Welcome also to the following new Associate Members:
Duke, Holzman, Yaeger & Photiadis LLP, Buffalo. Represented by Matthew J. Beck, Esq.
Newman Fitch Altheim Myers, P.C., New York City. Represented by Jan Kevin Myers, Executive VP.


Member News
Erika Dietz of Mercury Web Solutions (Albany) was recently named one of the Women of Excellence by the Albany-Colonie Regional Chamber of Commerce. Congratulations, Erika!

David Wied, an employee of Greco Construction (Albany), made headlines recently when he rescued an injured driver from a burning vehicle on I-90 in Albany. As other motorists passed by the crash scene, David stopped and ripped open the door to save Yvonne Clark. Within minutes, the car burst into flames. "I just happened to be going by and saw the girl inside there so I said: 'Somebody's got to get her out,'" said David. We commend David for his heroics. 


NYS AGC Directors - Ballots in Mail
Sitting on most Members' desks should be a blue nominating ballot from AGC of America for elected directors from New York. We urge Members to renominate Richard Schneider of Northeast Construction Services in Syracuse and Charles Winter of Andron Construction in Goldens Bridge for another three-year term as building directors from New York State. Dick and Charlie have served for nine years as Directors and will become Life Directors at the end of this term. Nominations need to be returned by September 15, 2003. 


AGC and CFMA Sponsor Conference
AGC of America and the Construction Financial Management Association (CFMA) are jointly sponsoring the seventh annual Construction Financial Management Conference, October 23-23, 2003 at Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, Nevada. If you would like registration information contact Brendan at the GBC or visit the AGC website at www.agc.org. 

On a separate note, an Albany Chapter of the CFMA has officially been started. General Membership in CFMA is open to financial professionals of all types of contractors including general contractors, subcontractors, real estate developers, heavy/highway contractors, construction managers and specialty trade contractors. For more information contact Kurt Gardinier, Delaney Construction, at (518) 661-5304.


Special Deal on Williams Scotsman Mobile Space Leases
Sign up for a mobile space lease with Williams Scotsman for six months or more and your seventh month is FREE (maximum value $500). In addition, Williams Scotsman will make a contribution to the AGC of America. Call Williams Scotsman's GBC representative, Adam Rogowski in Waterford, at 518-238-2411 for more information, or visit the special Williams Scotsman AGC Member website at www.willscot.com/indexagc.htm.


Safety News
OSHA Drops Recordkeeping Requirements for MSDs:
AGC of America informs us that OSHA has eliminated a recordkeeping requirement involving reporting of musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs). A notice of proposed changes would have required employers to determine if injuries were MSDs and to check a separate box for MSDs on the OSHA 300 Log, effective January 2003. The implementation was later delayed to January 2004 and comments were solicited. AGC, among others, requested that OSHA eliminate the definition of an MSD and the check box, and OSHA has done so.

Steel Erection Violations - Input Sought: The Government Subcommittee of the AGC Safety & Health Committee is soliciting input from contractors who have been cited by OSHA for violations of the new Steel Erection Standard (29 CFR 1926.750-761, Subpart R). Some AGC members feel that OSHA Compliance Officers may not be properly interpreting the steel erection standard in the field, which is leading to citations being issued.

A data printout from OSHA for the period from January 1 through June 10, 2003 showed the following breakdown of citations issued for steel erection.

• There were 116 citations for 1926.750-759, with 69% of these citations being "serious violations" with proposed initial penalties of more than $450,000.
• Fall protection requirements (1926.760) resulted in 188 total citations with 85% being "serious violations" with proposed penalties of more than $365,000.
• Training requirements (1926.761) had 70 total citations with 89% being "serious violations" with proposed penalties of more than $91,000.

If you have any input regarding this matter, please contact Edward Pachico at the AGC of America, pachicoe@agc.org.

Spanish Videos Available: The AGC of America recently announced the availability of a number of Spanish-language safety videos, including videos on excavation safety, scaffolds, fall protection, confined spaces and a number of others. Call GBC for more information. We will soon be adding these videos to our library and will be able to lend them out upon request.

Thank You, Training Center Donors! We'd like to offer our sincere thanks to the following manufacturers whose generous donations of equipment have helped to make the GBC Safety Training Center a reality. These are new contributors for 2003:
J.J. Keller & Associates, Inc., Neenah, WI 
800-843-3174 www.jjkeller.com
Safety Maker, Inc., Houston, TX 
800-804-4741 www.safetyboot.com


Deadline for Commercial/Industrial Construction Exemption Extended
The deadline for obtaining a New York commercial or industrial property tax exemption for new construction was extended to June 30, 2007, under legislation (A.5214) enacted July 1. 

The New York industrial and commercial incentive program provides an exemption from property tax for taxpayers who, following the effective date of a certificate of eligibility, construct a new building or structure that meets the requirements set forth in New York Tax Law Section 489-bbbb. In order to receive an exemption, the construction of the foundation of the building or structure must be completed within 24 months of the effective date of the recipient's certificate of eligibility, and the construction of the building or structure must be completed within 42 months of the effective date of the recipient's certificate of eligibility. 

The measure extends the application deadline for a certificate of eligibility by four years to June 30, 2007, from June 30, 2003. A new construction exemption area in Manhattan also is designated under the measure. The designation will expire June 30, 2007. 


Dell Discounts Offered 
The AGC of America has signed an agreement with Dell Computers to be able to offer discounts to all AGC Members and their employees. Effective immediately, OptiPlex desktops, Dell Precision Workstations, Latitude notebooks, PowerEdge servers (except PowerEdge SC), PowerConnect switches and PowerVault storage products are eligible for a 6% discount, while Inspiron notebooks, Dimension desktops and PowerEdge SC servers are eligible for a 3% discount. Customers who have signed a purchase agreement between their company and Dell are not eligible for this discount. To place an order, call 800-677-9725 and ask for the AGC Product Discount.


Upcoming Events
Please check the GBC Calendar for a complete list of upcoming events, with links to registration forms.