Issues & AdvocacyState

Close Relations

Inside AIA National’s State Relations Team

June 23, 2011

Welcome to this week’s edition of Close Relations. For more government advocacy news, please see today’s edition of the ANGLE.

Note: AIA Components are encouraged to send legislative and advocacy news to Close Relations Editor Zachary Hart at zacharyhart@aia.org for inclusion in future editions of Close Relations.

STATE LEGISLATURES STILL IN SESSION THIS WEEK: 20

In Regular Session: Delaware, Iowa, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina

In Special Session: California, Illinois, Texas, Virginia, Wisconsin

HOT ISSUES:

• AIA Honolulu urges its members to contact their tax advisors regarding the 2-year suspension of exemptions to the General Excise Tax for contractors. The law allows contracts that include specific language excluding the passing on of GET increases to be grandfathered before the law takes effect. Firms have until July 1, 2011 to add such language to their existing contracts. For more information, read AIA Honolulu’s action alert.

UPCOMING EVENTS:

• The July SGN Open Call – titled The ABCs of PAC – will feature Adam Melis, Director, Advocacy Outreach and Hannah Wesolowski, Manager, Political Programs discussing best practices on how to maximize the effectiveness of State PACs with limited resources.
  

Date and Time: Monday, July 27, 2011 3:30 pm, Eastern Daylight Time (New York, GMT-04:00)

Event number: 665 237 557

Event password: Welcome11

Event address for attendees: https://aiaevents.webex.com/aiaevents/onstage/g.php?d=665237557&t=a

AROUND THE HORN:

• AIA Tennessee and AIA Middle Tennessee collaborated to stop an effort to challenge the state’s Qualifications Based Selection law. Read more about the advocacy victory in today’s edition of the Angle.
• AIA Michigan: SB 77 passed in the Michigan House Judiciary Committee today and will now go to the full Michigan House of Representatives. The bill would restore the statute of limitations in the design and construction industry.
• The Texas Society of Architects reports that Governor Perry signed all of its priority bills into law. The laws settle a long dispute between architects and engineers over scope of practice, consolidate language governing alternative project delivery in the state Code, do away with broad-form indemnification clauses in contracts, and prevent public entities from disallowing the allocation of available tax credits to architects. For more details, click here.
• Nebraska posted a link to a summary of the recently passed Nebraska Construction Prompt Pay Act. The law makes nearly all commercial construction contracts subject to prompt pay requirements, standardizes the process for making claims against political subdivisions, and voids certain contract provisions. Read the summary here.

THIS WEEK IN STATE RELATIONS:

• SGN Advisory Panels: The Interior Design Panel met this week. Relevant documents for each Panel will be posted to Sharepoint: Click here, then “SGN Advisory Panels.” Contact Chris Merriam if you’re interested in joining one of the Panels.
• SGN Listserv threads: AIA State Relations asked which components held a Legislative Day this session in which students were involved in the planning and/or execution of the event. Please send in your responses to Angie Taylor at angietaylor@aia.org as soon as possible. Thank you.

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Past editions of Close Relations can be found here.

Connect with AIA’s State Affairs team:

• Angie Taylor (Director, State Relations): 202.626.7543 or angietaylor@aia.org
• Chris Merriam (Manager, State Issues and Programs): 202.626.7417 or chrismerriam@aia.org
• Zachary Hart (State and Local Relations Consultant, Close Relations Editor): 202.626.7354 or zacharyhart@aia.org
• Twitter: @AIA_StRelations