Legislative Achievements

CEA advocacy has been making a real difference, thanks in large part to our members' PAC contributions and activism.

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Some of our legislative advocacy achievements include:

131st General Assembly 

BWC Relief

  • Supported legislation to allow a state fund employer to have a workers' compensation claim that is likely to be subrogated by a third party paid from the surplus fund account in the state insurance fund, rather than charged to the employer's experience.  The bill pertains to certain circumstances when a claim is based on a motor vehicle accident involving a third party.

Medical Marijuana

  • Maintained strong employer protections regarding Medical Marijuana

Cuyahoga Small Business Enterprise Program

  • Backed concepts for Public Works to clarify parameters that will be used to identify contracts which will use set asides and establishment of a yearly report of SBE programs starting in 2017.

Cuyahoga County Performance Bond and Insurance Requirements

  • Promoted language to create Reserve Coverage for Performance Bond Waivers and to have Council review this during the budget process (Backstop provision)
  • Added a Diversity and Inclusion Advisory Committee to the legislation with CEA as a member

Community Benefits Memoramdum of Understanding

  • CEA presented a letter of support for the County's plan to endorse the existing CBA MOU between the City of Cleveland, CEA, the Building Trades, and others.

 

129th General Assembly

Prevailing Wage 

  • Maintained coverage of public college and university construction
  • Restored interested party enforcement language
  • Maintained a separate threshold for renovation work
  • Dramatically reduced the threshold for renovation work from $5M to $38,000 in 2011, $60,000 in 2012 and $75,000 in 2013

Reverse Auction, Construction Reform

  • Successfully opposed reverse auction bill
  • Obtained construction reform with surety bonding protections

Workers’ Compensation

  • Secured appointment of CEA representative on BWC Interstate Jurisdiction Workgroup

 

128th General Assembly

Workers’ Compensation

  • Secured appointment of Labor representative on BWC Privatization Study Committee
  • Testified for and obtained temporary EMR construction industry cap to insulate contractors from BWC rules changes

 

127th General Assembly

Transportation Improvement Districts (TIDs)

  • Secured amendment of legislation that requires that a construction project carried out by a TID be subject to normal prevailing wage and competitive bidding requirements

Workers’ Compensation

  • Secured language requiring the BWC to adopt a more transparent rating system
  • Secured removal of language banning modification of Drug Free Workplace programs

Ohio School Facilities Commission

  • Successfully resisted amendment exempting school construction projects from paying prevailing wage
  • Successfully supported resolution eliminating rules that blocked payment of prevailing wage for school construction
  • Successfully supported responsible bidder requirements

 

126th General Assembly

Prevailing Wage

  • Defeated legislation banning interested party enforcement of prevailing wage
  • Defeated legislation local schools’ ability to decide on paying prevailing wage
  • Defeated legislation that would have completely repealed prevailing wage

Transportation Improvement Districts

  • Supported amendment calling for expiration of TIDs, which are normally exempt from prevailing wage

Department of Administrative Services

  • Secured legislation giving contractors more time and notice prior to DAS claiming contractors’ funds in escrow

Drug Free Workplace

  • Led effort to pass law requiring that construction projects receiving state money institute a drug free workplace program

 

125th General Assembly

Tort Reform

  • Advocated for and helped pass tort reform law

Highway Funding

  • Secured language providing more funding for highway projects

Federal

  • Advocated for full funding of the Highway Trust Fund (2008)

County

  • Supported the addition of Responsible Bidder Criteria, Equity language, and general construction delivery language to the Cuyahoga County Contracting Ordinances

 

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