Tag: legislators

BIC MATTERS – Governor Eric Holcomb to Speak at Road Funding Day Event

Posted on by admin_ici

TO: BIC Grassroots Network and Road Funding Partners
FROM: Vicki Kitchin
DATE: February 13, 2017

SUBJECT: BIC MATTERS – Governor Eric Holcomb to Speak at Road Funding Day Event

Road Funding Day February 21
We are pleased to announce that Governor Eric Holcomb will speak at our Road Funding Day briefing on February 21. Governor Holcomb caps an already high-profile list of speakers including Indiana House Speaker Brian Bosma, House Roads and Transportation Chairman Ed Soliday, Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Luke Kenley and INDOT Commissioner Joe McGuinness.

With more than 215 road funding advocates planning to attend, along with over 25 state legislators, this is an event you don’t want to miss. Register today.

Update on HB 1002
Since the House Ways and Means Committee amended HB 1002 last week, the fiscal analysis has changed. The bill now moves all of the sales tax collected on fuel to the highway accounts in the first year, meaning INDOT’s share of the new funding is greatly increased in FY18. You can find an updated fiscal analysis of HB 1002 here.

HB 1002 is now eligible for action by the full House. The process includes “Second Reading” where legislators have an opportunity to further amend the bill, followed by “Third Reading” where the House will vote on the entire bill as amended. Please contact your member in the House of Representatives and ask for support of HB 1002. Find your legislator here.

Thanks for your continued advocacy and your feedback from local town hall meetings. Your involvement is critical to our legislative success.

BIC Matters – Register Now for Road Funding Day at the Indiana Statehouse

Posted on by admin_ici

ROAD FUNDING DAY AT THE INDIANA STATEHOUSE
Tuesday, February 21, 2017
Indianapolis Marriott Downtown

CALL TO ACTION
Now more than ever, we need to urge legislators to enact a long-term road funding plan that will keep roads and bridges safe, boost economic development and help create Hoosier jobs.

SCHEDULE
10:00 to 10:30 a.m. — Registration and Networking
10:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. — Legislative Briefing
12:00 to 1:30 p.m. — Road Funding Luncheon with Legislators
1:30 to 4:00 p.m. — Legislator Visits at the Statehouse (enter through the west doors)

REGISTRATION
While there’s no fee to participate, please RSVP, so we can prep for the event and assist you in making connections with your elected officials. Register here.

ROAD FUNDING PARTNERS
Check out the registration site for a list of all the sponsoring organizations, including all of the BIC member associations.

SIGN UP TODAY
In the near future, our coalition will send an invitation to all state legislators inviting them to attend the lunch portion of the program. Be sure to talk with your local legislators and local government officials and encourage them to register.

CALL BIC IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS
(317) 634-4774

BIC MATTERS – Local and Federal Updates

Posted on by admin_ici

Update on Local Funding for Road and Bridge Projects
We’ve received several phone calls since the end of the state legislative session requesting information about the new local road and bridge funding authorized through passage of HEA 1001 and SEA 67. INDOT has scheduled several meetings around the state from May 23 to May 31 to provide more information about the local matching fund grant program and the required asset management plans. See the links below for the INDOT meeting schedule and other information that you may find useful.

  1. INDOT Local Road and Bridge Funding Meetings May 23-31, 2016
  2. INDOT Local Public Agency Programs website, containing links to Local Road and Bridge Funding Summary memo and Road Funding Presentation
  3. Purdue LTAP special newsletter describing grant process and transportation asset management plans.
  4. Table showing distribution of excess LOIT reserves to local units.

BIC Goes to Washington
About 20 individuals representing Build Indiana Council joined 300 others from across the country at the Transportation Construction Fly-In to Washington in May.

BIC’s group met with both Indiana Senator Dan Coats and Senator Joe Donnelly, as well as each of the nine Indiana U. S. Representatives or members of their staff. In a refreshing twist, BIC members were able to share a message of “thanks” with our delegation for their support of the FAST ACT that congress passed in late 2015. The Fast Act provides some certainty for our industry over the next five years, and all of Indiana’s congressional delegation supported the bill’s passage. BIC’s message, however, did include a reminder that Congress did not enact a stable, long-term way to pay for highway investment. BIC also reminded the delegation that Indiana’s rate of return on federal highway funds is only 92.7 percent, and may drop even lower as Indiana’s contributions into the trust fund rise. Check out the Current Issues page on BIC’s website for photos and talking points from the event.

If you have any questions about this issue of BIC Matters, call BIC at (317) 634-4774.

2016 Legislative Session Wrap-Up

Posted on by Dan Osborn

Road Funding

The Indiana General Assembly didn’t pass long-term transportation funding during the 2016 short session, but it approved several bills allowing for diversion of existing and future collected tax funds from the local option income taxes reserves, general fund and gas use tax. These will provide:

  • $330 million for local units of government in fiscal year 2016;
  • $228 million for INDOT in fiscal year 2017
  • $414 million for local units of government in fiscal year 2017;
  • $68 million for local units of government in fiscal year 2018; and
  • $105 million for local units of government in fiscal year 2019.

Counties can now double their wheel tax (raising an additional $286 million), and municipalities with a population of more than 10,000 may impose a wheel tax at their existing rate (raising an additional $90 million).

Lawmakers created a 16-member task force of legislators and gubernatorial appointees (including one recommended by Build Indiana Council) to analyze state and local road and bridge needs and long-term funding methods. The task force must present its recommendations to the State Budget Committee by January 1, 2017.

Lake, LaPorte, and Porter counties will see additional funding from revisions to local income tax laws, and Henry County plans to use a food and beverage tax for roads. Lagging farmland assessment values will decrease local tax revenues across the state.

Time & Material

Contractors selling non-tax exempt construction under a time and material (T & M) agreement or simply providing invoices including detailed labor, material, and equipment costs should consult with an accountant familiar with contract law and the new Indiana Code 6-2.5-4-18, Retail Transactions of Merchants. The new law is retroactive to January 1, 2007. Indiana Department of Revenue supported the bill to provide a legal basis for existing administrative code 45 IAC 22-3-9. The law states that contractor selling construction under a T & M contract must collect and remit the state gross retail tax.

Insurance

Legislators adopted language that provides a specific legal basis for “named driver exclusions” that limit liability to the insured.

VBE

Lawmakers added a definition of “veteran” to Indiana’s small business code. For the purposes of qualifying as a veteran-owned business for set-aside government purchases, a veteran is any individual who is serving, or has served, in any branch of the armed forces of the United States or their reserves, the national guard, or the Indiana National Guard. The bill also removed the requirement that a veteran be a resident of Indiana for at least one year before making an offer to bid on a state contract.

Public Works Contracts

The public works contractor qualification requirement, adopted in 2015 and scheduled to go into effect on July 1 will now go into effect on December 31 of this year. Lawmakers added two new sections under State Public Works – Qualifications for State Public Works Projects and INDOT – Qualifications of Bidders for Contracts. Contractor prequalification is not required for public works contracts awarded by a local unit of government if

  1. The total estimated contract amount does not exceed $300,000;
  2. The public agency complies with Indiana Code 36-1-12 including bidding procedures, bonding and drug testing.

Local government units may not establish wage rates in a contract in a public works contract unless mandated by federal or state law.

Strengthening our legislative efforts

Posted on by Andria Hine

You have an opportunity to help ICI and AGC of America gauge the reach of our collective networks and enable us to effectively plan for future public policy discussions. By understanding our network of relationships with elected officials, we can build advocacy programs that help advance our positions on any number of issues that directly impact the construction industry.

As an employee, voter, volunteer, and contributor to the communities where you live and work, your voice and opinion is extremely influential. Through a brief survey you can provide information on the issues that are important to you, the stakeholders within your network, and the level of advocacy you would be willing to undertake on the association’s behalf.

The survey will take very little of your time, but your participation will make a tremendous difference. There is no right or wrong answer to any of the questions, we simply ask for your honest feedback. Some questions will ask if you personally know certain elected officials representing you at the state or federal level. Please do not feel like you are expected to, as most people will not.

Should you have technical problems accessing or completing this survey, please contact support by email at support@rapindex.com or by phone at (877) 4Ask-RAP. You can also contact AGC of America staff member David Ashinoff at ashinoffd@agc.org or (202) 547-5013.