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ASA Honors the Life of Jesse Pickett Jr. It is with sadness that we share that Jesse Malcolm Pickett Jr, ASA President from 1986-1987, passed away on February 13th, 2022 at his home in Dallas, TX.  He lived to the beautiful age of 96 years, and his family shares that he passed peacefully and without…

This Week in Congress This week, the Senate held nomination votes and the House voted on legislation banning mandatory arbitration agreements and banning discrimination based on hair style or texture.  Mandatory arbitration agreements are common in both employment and consumer agreements, and the FAIR Act (H.R. 963) would ban their enforcement and would nullify all…

ASA Supports the Employee Tax Credit Reinstatement Act ASA supports the Employee Retention Tax Credit Reinstatement Act (ERTC), which would reinstate the ETRC through the end of 2021, as it was originally written, to help struggling small businesses that were counting on the ERTC to help pay their employees through the end of the year. …

ASA Supports Small Business Innovation and Technology Grant Funding ASA urged congressional leadership to pass an extension of the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs on an upcoming legislative vehicle that will be enacted soon.  The SBIR/STTR programs are currently set to expire on September 30, 2022. While we…

Three Phased Plan Reopening the U.S. Capitol The Capitol will open in three phases beginning March 28th. Phase one -March 28: Capitol authorities will increase the “official visitor” limit to 15 from the current nine Staff-led tours will resume with a limit of 15 people per tour School groups will be allowed back in the…

President Biden Signs FY22 Omnibus Appropriations Bill On Tuesday, March 15, 2022, President Biden signed the $1.5 trillion FY22 Omnibus Appropriations Package.  Included in the package were earmarks (congressionally directed spending) in which retiring Sen. Shelby (R-AL), the top Republican appropriator, secured more than $548 million in home-state projects.  He was followed by fellow appropriators…

Infrastructure Projects Fully Funded The recent passage of the FY22 Omnibus Package allows for the full funding of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), which is something we’ve advocated for since the IIJA’s passage on November 15, 2021.  The Transportation Department would receive $102.9 billion in budgetary resources, which includes regular appropriations and money…

43 Senators Oppose President Biden’s PLA Mandate Forty-three Republican senators are condemning President Biden’s February 4th  Executive Order guaranteeing collective bargaining agreements for individual public infrastructure projects, claiming it hinders competitive bidding and wastes taxpayer dollars.  Per their letter dated March 8th, “mandating PLAs will prevent qualified contractors from fairly competing for contracts. These mandates…

Department of Labor Announces Proposed Rule on Prevailing Wage On Friday, March 11, 2022, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) announced a proposed rule that could lead to wage increases for many workers on government-funded construction projects.  DOL’s proposal from their Wage and Hour Division (WHD) would require more frequent updates to the minimum wages…

This Week in Congress The House voted on legislation condemning violent threats against historically Black colleges and universities, a $1.5 trillion omnibus FY22 government funding package, along with spending bills for Ukraine aid and Covid-19 resources.  The Senate voted on a postal overhaul bill (HR 3076) and the House passed $1.5 trillion omnibus FY22 government…