American Council of Engineering Companies of Oklahoma

201 N. E. 27th St., Suite 135

Oklahoma City, OK 73105

(405) 525-7696

FAX: (405) 557-1820

Web Site: www.acecok.org

E-Mail: jsullins@acecok.org

The following was e-mailed to all ACEC OKLAHOMA members on September 18th, but we thought it was worth re-printing for two reasons:

 

1. Oklahoma's road are in pitiful condition and the lack of funding from the Oklahoma Legislature is only making matters worse, and,

 

2. State Superintendent of Schools Sandy Garrett has announced that she was going to ask the Legislature for an additional $140 million for teachers salaries during the coming session.

 

Now, while we agree that teacher salaries are an embarrassment, the battle lines are being drawn by the education lobby for a bigger share of an already limited state funding "pie." Without a strong voice out in front of people from all corners of the state explaining the highway crisis, there is no hope of either getting additional funding from the Legislature or convincing the public that motor fuel taxes need to be increased.

 

Gary is doing everything in his power to get the word out, and needs your assistance. Please read this again, and then help get Gary scheduled before your group.

 

A little over a week ago I met with Oklahoma Department of Transportation Director Gary Ridley. Our nearly hour-long one-on-one discussion covered several issues, and concluded with Gary asking ACEC OKLAHOMA for our assistance in helping him get the word out regarding the transportation funding crisis which Oklahoma faces.

 

Gary has been taking his "road show" out to all four corners of the state for the past several weeks, speaking to a variety of civic and public groups about the highway funding problem. I saw a copy of his schedule

and in one month he was scheduled to speak to 18 different groups from Rotary clubs to Chambers of Commerce and the Oklahoma Municipal League convention in locations ranging from Woodward to Hugo.

 

Gary and ODOT are trying to get out in front of as many groups as possible, and need ACEC OKLAHOMA member's assistance.

 

We know that most of you are members of a variety of civic and business organizations, most of which are always looking for speakers and programs for their regular meetings. Regardless of your area of personal practice (civil, mechanical, electrical, etc.), this is an important message which all Oklahomans need to hear and which has tremendous economical ramifications on everyone.

 

We are asking you to get with your Program Chairman in those organizations and encourage them to contact Gary's office to try to schedule him to speak before your group.

 

Gary is willing to go anywhere, any time. It doesn't matter if it's a group of 50 or 15, or even just three little old ladies standing on a street corner. He has a very important and very powerful message, and wants to get it out to as many people around the state as possible.

 

YOUR ASSISTANCE IS VERY IMPORTANT, and Gary is counting on ACEC OKLAHOMA to assist him in getting this important message to the public.

 

To schedule Gary, contact Terri Angier in ODOT Public Affairs at (405) 521-6004.

 

If there is anything I can do to assist you, please do not hesitate to contact me. Thanks in advance for your help.

October, 2003

ACEC OKLAHOMA PAC

is Open for Business

Engineering

Excellence Awards Entry Deadline Approaches

Just a reminder that the deadline for entering the ACEC OKLAHOMA Engineering Excellence Awards Competition is rapidly approaching.

All member firms have received information on the ACEC OKLAHOMA 2003 Engineering Excellence Awards Program. The Deadline for receipt of entries is November 7th.

Awards given by ACEC OKLAHOMA will be: (1) Grand Oklahoma Conceptor and four (4) Oklahoma Honor Awards. The five (5) winning Entries are eligible to be submitted to the ACEC EEA Program.

Deadline for submission to ACEC is January 9, 2004, the judging for which takes place in February, 2004.

To enter the ACEC OKLAHOMA Engineering Excellence Awards competition, you will need to download forms in a "pdf" format. Go to the ACEC OKLAHOMA website (http://www.acecok.org), or, call the ACEC OKLAHOMA Office at 405-525-7696 and we will mail you the required forms.

Again, the deadline for submissions for the ACEC OKLAHOMA program is November 7th!!!!! We hope to receive your entry soon.

ACEC OKLHOMA's new political action committee is now open for business, and we've already received our first contribtuion!!!!!

 

PAC Chairman Don Vick has the honor of being the first member to contribute to ACEC OKLAHOMA PAC, and is now asking you to join him in making ACEC OKLAHOMA PAC a viable part of ACEC OKLAHOMA's legislative advocacy program.

 

2004 will be an election year, with all seats in the Oklahoma House of Representatives and one-half of the State Senate seats up for election. During the last election cycle, engineers in Oklahoma donated more than $198,000 to candidates for statewide or legislative offices. While we urge you to continue to be active with your individual contributions, we ask that you earmark some of that money for ACEC OKLAHOMA PAC!

 

The ACEC OKLAHOMA Board of Directors has set a goal of $7,000 in receipts for the upcoming election cycle. With corporate contributions prohibited by Oklahoma law, we are asking that principals of member firms join together to contribute individually the equivalent of at least $100 for your firm.

 

A letter from PAC Chairman Don Vick along with the required "Contribution Statement" has been sent to all ACEC OKLAHOMA members asking for your support of ACEC OKLAHOMA PAC.

 

Please send your contributions along with the required Contribtuion Statement to ACEC OKLAHOMA PAC as soon as possible.

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Welcome New Member

 

ACEC OKLAHOMA would like to welcome Tuttle and Associates, Inc., of Tulsa as our newest member.

 

Jeff Tuttle is the principal of Tuttle and Associates, Inc, which provides civil engineering and land surveying services.

 

WELCOME Jeff, and we look forward to having Tuttle and Associates as an active member of ACEC OKLAHOMA!

ACEC OKLAHOMA, in association with OSPE, will be offering two Inforamtion Technology seminars on November 6th in Oklahoma City.

 

Mike Ingardia, Systems Management Consultant, Overland Park, KS, will lead "BETTER FISCAL MANAGEMENT OF PROJECTS: HOW CAN I.T. HELP?" and "LIABILITY REDUCTION/RISK MANAGEMENT: WHAT ROLE DOES I.T. PLAY?" The two seminars will be presented back-to-back, and you and your staff can register for either one or both.

 

Registration information will be sent to all members soon, but mark your calendars today for November 6th!

Page 3

Architects, Building Designers Battle

Over Who Should Design Buildings

 

Battle lines are being drawn before a special legislative task force regarding proposed changes in the State Architectural Act. While most agree that many of the changes are necessary, some say the changes are simply a power grab by architects that would put them out of business.

 

The Task Force on the Architectural Act heard a presentation from the American Institute of Architecture (AIA) on Monday, August 22nd on proposed changes to current statutes governing the practice of architecture in the state. The Task Force is comprised of members of the House and Senate as well as public members representing a variety of groups, from contractors and educators to city and county governments to consulting engineers. Bob Zahl, Zahl-Ford, Inc., Oklahoma City, represents ACEC OKLAHOMA on the Task Force.

 

Most of the controversy centers on the definition of a "building" in the current statutes, and the "laundry list" of buildings that fall under the definition. Additionally, there is a $40,000 minimum threshold on construction and/or renovation before an architect is required.

 

Originally written in 1947, the law has not been substantially changed in 55 years, and the Oklahoma Chapter of the American Institute of Architects believes that the statutes are in serious need of update to protect the safety, health, and welfare of the public using buildings not currently covered by the act.

 

AIA Oklahoma, in their presentation to the Task Force, pointed to one of the more glaring problems in the current act, that being that architects are not required for the design buildings less than two stories in height, not including the basement, unless the building is specifically included in the "laundry list" in the act. Under this exemption, architect Jim Loftus pointed out that Penn Square Mall in Oklahoma City, which might have a "bizillion" people in it a day, was not required by law to be designed by an architect. Lotfus also pointed out that all of the contiguous states to Oklahoma require an architect on most of the buildings which Oklahoma exempts, including one and two story office buildings, institutional residential buildings, one story motels, and multi-family residential complexes greater than four-plexs.

 

Additionally, there are many other buildings around Oklahoma, ranging from retail strip malls and commercial office buildings to fire stations, motels, and community centers, for which an architect is not required. This, according to AIA Oklahoma, is a situation that the Legislature needs to correct to ensure the public's safety, health and welfare.

 

AIA is urging that the "laundry list" be dropped, and that code defined "occupancy ratings" be used to determine if a project requires an architect to be involved.

 

But representatives from the American Institute of Building Design (AIBD) told the task force that architects are not the only people who can ensure the safety of buildings.

 

Keith Welsh said that the building code is what should govern buildings, not architects. Adopting the language as proposed by the AIA, he said, would simply put a number of building design firms out of business by requiring the use of architects.

 

These building design firms, some of which are AIBD members, do much of the design for strip malls and other small building projects that do not fall under the Architects Act.

 

Welsh agreed the current language in the legislation should be modified to make sure it is updated and clear, but to include only one profession in the language is not fair, in his opinion. He stressed that AIBD members use the same building codes as architects, and that changes in the language need to reflect that building codes, not the designer, control how a building is designed.

 

The Task Force will meet again in mid-October to hear additional presentations, and then begin working on their report which must be completed by January 1, 2004.

October, 2003

Battles Being Waged On Outsourcing, FLSA Reform;

President Threatens Veto

Proposed Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) reform and President Bush's initiative to open competition of non-inherently governmental jobs to the private sector will be the focus of intense debate by House and Senate conferees as they hammer out compromise language on key spending bills.

 

The Senate has adopted an amendment offered by Senator Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) that seeks to prevent the Department of Labor from moving forward on its efforts to reform and update the FLSA. The Harkin Amendment was adopted by a vote of 54-45, with Republican Senators Ted Stevens (AK), Arlen Specter (PA), Lincoln Chafee (RI), Olympia Snowe (ME), Lisa Murkowski (AK), and Ben Nighthorse Campbell (CO) voting in favor of the amendment. Senator Zell Miller (D-GA) was the lone Democrat to oppose Harkin.

 

ACEC and its coalition allies were successful in defeating a similar amendment in the House of Representatives during consideration of the F.Y. '04 Labor, HHS, Education appropriations bill, which means the issue will now be settled in conference. The White House has indicated that the spending bill may be vetoed by the President if the Harkin language remains in the final conference report. ACEC will be

working with the White House, as well as House and Senate conferees to strip the Harkin language from the final package.

 

On the outsourcing front, ACEC and its industry allies were successful in killing one amendment that sought to impede the ability of federal agencies from opening commercial activities to competition from the private sector. The House rejected an amendment to the F.Y. 2004 Transportation and Treasury appropriations bill offered by Rep. Alcee Hastings (D-FL) which aimed to derail the Administration's competitive sourcing initiative. Though the Hastings amendment was defeated, a second and very similar amendment offered by Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) was adopted.

 

ACEC and its coalition partners are now focusing their efforts on the Senate to ensure that a similar anti-outsourcing provision is not included in the Senate bill. Just as with the FLSA amendment, the White House has issued a veto threat against the bill if the Van Hollen provision survives conference.

 

For the latest information on these and other federal legislative issues, visit ACEC's website, www.acec.org.

Faced with a possible shutdown in federal highway and transit funding on October 1, the House and Senate are working to extend the transportation programs authorized under TEA-21 for five months, through February 2004. The extension legislation will ensure that federal transportation funding continues without interruption, while giving Congress additional time to work out contentious issues, such as funding levels and state formulas.

With TEA-21 expiring Tuesday, September 30, Congress is working to pass an extension bill to keep federal highway and transit funding flowing to the states. ACEC is promoting bills pending in the House and Senate that will extend the program for five months. Congress will have until February 29 to pass a multi-year reauthorization bill or another extension.

The House extension bill (H.R. 3087), passed on September 24, includes a so-called "dimmer switch" provision, which would allow states to use unobligated funding to continue operations for three months after February 29. The Senate proposal does not include the "dimmer switch" provision because they believe it reduces pressure on Congress to get the multi-year bill done by the end of February. ACEC is aggressively promoting passage of the six-year, $375 billion reauthorization bill early in 2004.

The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee and the Finance Committee, as well as the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and Ways and Means Committee, must each act on their respective components of the extension legislation.

At the same time, the fate of the final AIR-21 reauthorization bill is unclear due to objections over the privatization of some air traffic control activities. Like TEA-21, AIR-21 expires on Sept. 30, and federal funding for airport projects ceases unless the multi-year bill or an extension is passed.