Across the country, government officials are scrambling to award and spend American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) funding before upcoming deadlines. If you are a contractor or subcontractor lucky enough to work on one of these projects, congratulations! Now comes the tough part. Working on a federal or state-funded project brings a myriad of regulatory … Continue Reading
[Happy New Year! Today we are highlighting the green building legal story from 2009 that will have the most impact on the industry in 2010. At the beginning of 2009, Congress and the Obama Administration spent months crafting the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, which eventually included over $25 billion for green projects. Less attention … Continue Reading
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) projects have resulted in extremely low bids. These low bids could be the result of improved efficiency in the construction industry; or the low bids could be the result of cut throat competition. Simultaneously, the ARRA includes $250 million to investigate (PDF) and audit ARRA projects. These … Continue Reading
Reminder: Don’t forget to register for Green Building Law Update’s Birthday Happy Hour Sometimes, my fair city of Washington, D.C. can drive me crazy. There is no doubt we have our issues. But one thing Washington, D.C. has going for it is its push to become more green. D.C. is at the forefront of the … Continue Reading
Note: Don’t forget to register for Green Building Law Update’s Birthday Happy Hour This week we will be taking a look at green building and renewable energy funding available through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. While the opening of the stimulus spigots has been slow, there has been a noticeable uptick in news the … Continue Reading
If you are a contractor lucky enough to have won a stimulus project, one of the pesky requirements attached to the project is reporting the number of new jobs created by the project. Many builders and contractors have been wondering how exactly to do that. Finally, at long last, the White House has provided clarity: … Continue Reading
Here’s an update on "green job" requirements created by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Previously, I wrote To my knowledge, there is no requirement or guarantee in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to create a certain number of "green jobs." While this is still the case, there are job creation reporting requirements that … Continue Reading
Back on February 20, 2009, I said the following about the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act: While Republicans, Democrats and the President argued over the stimulus package for weeks, the real battle may arise when state agencies and officials attempt to divide up the stimulus funding and choose the projects that receive funding. The real … Continue Reading
It’s no surprise that there is intense competition for stimulus projects. Competition can be good and result in more efficient construction. But competition can also lead to complaints, disputes and even litigation. Connecticut is experiencing intense competition for stimulus funding. "There’s nowhere near the amount of money for individual projects that people thought … Continue Reading
Back in March, I highlighted that $5 billion in funding had been dedicated to weatherization assistance as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Six short months later, the weatherization funding is scheduled to begin flowing: Final applications for the federal weatherization funds were due this month, with the first $2.5 billion expected … Continue Reading
Back in March, I gave a presentation about green building funding available through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act ("ARRA"). I had planned to convert the presentation to a guide of sorts, but more pressing matters arose. I have now discovered what I hope the guide would have looked like if I had a month … Continue Reading
According to a recent Washington Post article, “Construction firms are so eager for work in the sagging economy that project bids are coming in much lower than expected.” Great news, right? Not necessarily. Lower bids can be a good thing if they are the result of increased efficiency in the construction process. But lower bids … Continue Reading
When you heard that the Department of Energy would be providing $3.2 billion for Energy-Efficiency and Conservation Block Grants to states, what kind of programs did you have in mind? I imagined weatherization of the leaky, old buildings in Washington, D.C. I imagined an incentive program to build green in D.C. I am imagined solar … Continue Reading
Last week, I attended the ABA Forum on Construction “Talking Green Blues” conference in New Orleans. The one presentation I was looking forward to the most was “When ‘Green’ Turns to ‘Red’ and ‘LEEDs’ to a Summons and Complaint,” which was moderated by Frank Musica. Musica is one of the foremost experts on green building … Continue Reading
[Sometimes, it’s better not to reinvent the wheel. As I was preparing this week’s posts, I came across Lane Burt’s analysis of the Department of Energy’s (DOE) stimulus funding. Lane, an NRDC Policy Analyst, agreed to let me use his post today. Check out Lane’s blog – it’s a great resource for energy policy analysis.] … Continue Reading
While the General Services Administration announced stimulus projects last week, they have no time to rest. In fact, choosing the stimulus projects may have been the easiest part of the process. The next step is contract procurement and administration. Due to staffing vacancies at the GSA, the administration process may prove difficult : "Meanwhile, the … Continue Reading
General Services Administration, I am impressed. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act mandated that the GSA determine projects that would receive $5.5 billion by April 3, 2009. The GSA beat this mandate, making its list of projects available on April 2, 2009 (hat tip to the Washington Business Journal for breaking the story ). If … Continue Reading
It may surprise you to learn that I have a real job. Seriously, I do and I love it! I am a construction litigator and I am currently involved in a major construction delay claim. I have been preparing a motion the last few days, hence the late filing of today’s post. There is a … Continue Reading
Well, that wasn’t much time to get prepared. The Department of Energy has released the first installment of funding for the Weatherization Assistance Program and the State Energy Program. "To jump-start job creation and weatherization work, the Department of Energy is releasing the first installment of the funding – about $780 million — in the … Continue Reading
As promised, below is the slideshow from last week’s "Green in the Stimulus" presentation as part of Rutherfoord’s Trends in Green Building seminar. Unfortunately, I have not figured out how to synchronize audio files with a slideshow – maybe next time. I had two goals when I created this presentation: (1) Explain the green building … Continue Reading
Update: For a rundown of green building provisions in the stimulus pacakge, see this post. Thank you to everyone who attended Rutherfoord’s "Trends in Green Building" seminar yesterday and listened to my "Green in the Stimulus" presentation. It was great to recognize so many faces in the crowd. If you came up and spoke to … Continue Reading
Update: For a rundown of green building provisions in the stimulus pacakge, see this post. I am wrapping up my "Green in the Stimulus" presentation for tomorrow and wanted to provide more information that may benefit your company as you seek out green stimulus projects. As you prepare to bid federal and state projects, relationships … Continue Reading
Update: For a rundown of green building provisions in the stimulus pacakge, see this post. This week, in preparation for my "Green in the Stimulus" presentation, I have been providing what I hope is interesting and useful information about the stimulus. Today we are briefly going to review a new website in Virginia, Stimulus.Virginia.gov, which … Continue Reading
Update: For a rundown of green building provisions in the stimulus pacakge, see this post. This week, I continue to prepare for my "Green in the Stimulus" presentation and so I will provide you with some nuggets I have learned from my research. Last time, we talked about a ridiculous listing of "LEEDS" … Continue Reading
