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Association & Industry News
NRMCA notes with sadness the recent death of Scott Hammersley, a longtime supporter of the Association based on his position as a ready mixed concrete executive in Northern Virginia with Newington Concrete and New Rock Materials. Mr. Hammersley died at his home in Stevensville, MD, on November 16. He was 63. His service to NRMCA was lengthy and notable, said Gary Mullings, executive vice president, compliance and regulatory affairs. "My buddy Scott was past chairman of the OEM/OES Committee and also a vice chairman, task group chairman of the committee. He was an integral part in the development of many of NRMCA programs, including the Concrete Delivery Professional Program, Commitment to Environmental Excellence Awards, Driver of the Year Award and the National Mixer Driver Championship. Scott was a presenter at NRMCA’s Short Course, Plant Manager Course, Safety Course, CONEXPO/CONAGG Show and numerous state and national industry meetings. Scott was also one of the primary developers and presenters of NRMCA’s Environmental Course and due to his company’s proximity to Washington, DC, it was his facilities that NRMCA used when showing EPA officials what a shining example of environmental excellence this industry could be." Mr. Hammersley also served on the Government Affairs Committee and the NRMCA Board of Directors from 2006-2009. Click here to read more. NRMCA Vice President, Fire Codes and Standards Shamim Rashid-Sumar has been elected to the Board of Directors of the Society of Fire Protection Engineers, an organization that represents those practicing in the field of fire protection engineering. The society has more than 4,000 members and 100+ chapters, including student chapters nationwide. She begins a three-year term on January 1, 2021. Ms. Rashid-Sumar joined NRMCA in August 2019. She is based in New York and works with national model building codes and standards organizations to advocate for non-combustible construction and provides technical support regarding codes, standards, regulations and legislation at the national, state and local levels. A strong believer in maintaining fire safety in the built environment, she regularly presents and moderates at conferences and technical events. Ms. Rashid-Sumar is a registered professional engineer in Delaware. She holds previous registrations as a house of expertise engineer in the Emirates of Dubai and Abu Dhabi and is a former member of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Code Committee. She currently serves onthe ACI 216 Technical Committee on Fire Resistance and Fire Protection of Structures, the ASTM E05 Fire Standards as well as the NFPA Technical Committee on Building Construction, Fire Protection Features, Residential Occupancies, and Structures, Construction and Materials. Ms. Rashid-Sumar holds a bachelor of science degree in fire protection engineering and a minor citation in French language and cultures from the University of Maryland College Park. Buildings
As the frequency and severity of natural hazards continue to increase each year, NRMCA has regularly affirmed the benefits of building to the latest building codes as well as code-plus standards. This week, FEMA released a study, Building Codes Save: A National Study, that looked at the quantified benefits - avoided losses to buildings and building contents - from adopting modern building codes and standards. The building code sets standards that guide design and construction of structures for minimum life safety, the first step toward resilience. Sadly, special interest groups have convinced some state legislatures to reduce the stringency or limit the adoption of the latest building code; 65 percent of counties, cities and towns across the U.S. have not adopted modern building codes. The study supported the recent finding by the National Institute of Building Sciences that adopting modern codes provides $11 in mitigation savings for every $1 invested. However, maintaining the functionality of structures after a disaster is also important and building codes do not address functionality effectively. The NRMCA-driven Build With Strength coalition promotes resilient concrete building systems through building code adoption and advocacy and can help leverage codes and standards to help place more concrete. To learn more about these programs, or for more information on how local policies can help you, contact Tien Peng at tpeng@nrmca.org or 206-913-8535. 
Government Affairs
While President Trump has not yet conceded the 2020 election and the Trump legal team continues to pursue its various challenges, President-elect Joe Biden has begun naming senior advisors and announcing Cabinet picks. President-elect Biden’s first round of picks included his chief of staff and other close advisors that do not require Senate confirmation, tapping top campaign staff and long-time advisors for key White House positions. Along with these positions, the President-elect named members to the COVID-19 Advisory Board. While much of the President-elect’s Cabinet has yet to be named, picks for a number of Cabinet and Cabinet-level positions have been announced, including former Obama official Antony Blinken for secretary of state, former Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen for secretary of the treasury and a former deputy of homeland security under President Obama, Alejandro Mayorkas, for secretary of homeland security. In addition, Mr. Biden named former Secretary of State John Kerry to a Cabinet-level climate envoy position. The former Vice President has also nominated his chair of the Council of Economic Advisors, Ambassador to the United Nations, director of the National Economic Committee National Security Advisor and Director of National Intelligence. This week, President-elect Biden announced his first controversial pick when he named Neera Tanden to head the Office of Management and Budget. Ms. Tanden is president of the Center for American Progress, a left-leaning policy research and advocacy organization, and will face opposition not only from Republicans but potentially also from the more progressive wing of the Democratic party loyal to Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT). Other positions that have yet to be named could be filled by members or soon-to-be former members of Congress, including Rep. Abby Finkenauer (D-IA) to head the Department of Labor and Rep. Deb Haaland (D-NM) for secretary of the interior. No one has been named for secretary of transportation. While most of the President-elect’s picks have been met without strong negative reaction and even some approval from Republicans, particularly for the selection of Janet Yellen, progressives and minorities continue to push for inclusion. Several progressive groups, including the Justice Democrats, released a memo to the Biden transition team urging Biden to embrace a progressive agenda and Cabinet picks while Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-SC) called out the president-elect for falling short on appointing Blacks. The NRMCA Government Affairs team will continue to monitor the president-elect’s Cabinet nominees and evaluate their potential impact on the ready mixed concrete industry and our legislative agenda. For more information or to comment, contact Andrew Tyrrell at atyrrell@nrmca.org. On Tuesday, a bipartisan group of senators released a $908 billion COVID-19 relief package. While policy details of the proposal and text are not yet available, the outline includes additional funding for the Paycheck Protection Program and the inclusion of short-term liability protection to allow states to develop their own response. The package was followed closely by the Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell's announcement of a COVID relief package while dismissing the $908 billion bill, largely following the framework of the “skinny” package that Republicans put forward in September. McConnell indicated that the relief provisions will likely be included in the must-pass spending bill needed to fund the government before it runs out of money on December 11. The Republican package includes some NRMCA priorities, including liability protections and Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) flexibility, but is silent on some of the PPP reforms NRMCA has advocated for. While there is little chance for agreement and passage of a comprehensive relief package before the end of the year, the bipartisan package marks the first bipartisan proposal and the two packages come as Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi reconvene relief discussions for the first time since October. Early this week, NRMCA joined a broad coalition of business interests in sending two separate letters to Congress urging swift action on a COVID-19 relief package and advocating for certainty on the tax deductibility of expenses paid for with PPP funds. NRMCA has sent and joined more than a dozen letters to Congress urging action on a COVID-19 relief package and advocating for the inclusion of PPP reforms, liability protections for businesses, expansion and enhancement of the Employee Retention Tax Credit and emergency funding for state departments of transportation. For more information, contact Andrew Tyrrell at atyrrell@nrmca.org. On Tuesday, December 15, NRMCA Government Affairs staff will host a committee meeting to provide political and legislative updates as well as to “look ahead” at what we might expect from a Biden Administration and a progressive Democratic House caucus. The meeting will be held in conjunction with NRMCA’s Safety, Environment and Operations Committee, with NRMCA’s Kevin Walgenbach and Gary Mullings joining us to discuss potential regulatory and administrative actions of the Biden Administration. Click here to register.
SEO
NRMCA’s Think First Monthly Safety Initiatives feature different industry-specific safety items relevant to seasons, current topics and/or industry concerns. The initiatives are meant to be shared, used as a training tool, printed, posted and/or distributed; each of which are encouraged. This month’s issue is titled Adverse Cold Weather and the Ready Mixed Concrete Industry. Click here to this month's selection and previous 2020 entries. For more information, contact Gary Mullings at gmullings@nrmca.org or Kevin Walgenbach at kwalgenbach@nrmca.org.
NRMCA's Ready Mixed Concrete Delivery Professional Driver of the Year Award, now in its 25th year and sponsored by the Truck Mixer Manufacturers Bureau (TMMB), acknowledges the significant contribution of ready mixed concrete truck drivers to the growth and success of individual companies and the ready mixed concrete industry. As a salute to these key members of the concrete production and delivery team, the award recognizes the driver’s career achievement, safety, professionalism, competence and customer service skills in a manner that will enhance the industry and public image of the career of Ready Mixed Concrete Delivery Professional. The winner will be honored at an awards presentation ceremony at NRMCA’s Annual Convention in San Antonio, TX, in March 2021. Applications must be e-mailed to DOY@nrmca.org by Thursday, December 31. Click here to download the nomination form, more information and staff contact. 
Pavement
NRMCA is seeking nominations for its annual Promoter of the Year – Buildings, Promoter of the Year - Pavements, State Affiliate Promoter of the Year and John Roberts Lifetime Achievement Award for Promotion. The NRMCA Promoter of the Year Awards for Buildings and Pavements recognize the contributions and promotional efforts of individuals from the ready mixed concrete industry. You can help one of these industry champions gets deserved acknowledgement by nominating him or her for this prestigious award. Nominees must be employees of an NRMCA Producer member and must have worked in the industry for at least five years. The State Affiliate Promoter of the Year Award recognizes outstanding concrete promotion contributions by an employee of one of NRMCA’s state affiliate partner organizations. Nominees must be current employees of a state affiliate who have worked in the industry for at least five years.Any active participant in the ready mixed concrete industry (including suppliers and contractors) can help a promotion champion gain acknowledgement by nominating him or her for this prestigious award. Please submit a nomination of no more than two pages, detailing a nominee’s promotional efforts over the last five years with particular emphasis on contributions during the past 12-18 months in some or all of the following performance categories:
The John Roberts Lifetime Achievement Award for Promotion is awarded to a concrete professional distinguished by a career that demonstrated outstanding leadership, dedication and achievement in support of concrete promotion and industry advancement. Nominees for this award must be former or present employees of NRMCA member companies who are retired or deceased. You can help one of these industry champions get deserved acknowledgement by nominating him or her for this prestigious award. 2020 Award recipients were:
Nominations are due by January 18, 2021. Click here for more information or to submit a nomination. You may also contact Senior Vice President, Local Paving, Phil Kresge at pkresge@nrmca.org. 
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Business Advancement
Having a good year? Expense your staff’s 2021 training this year! For health and safety, all first quarter classes will be online. Additionally, discounts are available for multiple company registrations per class. The following are already open for registration. Click on each class title for specifics:
For more information, contact Mason Jean at mjean@nrmca.org or 703-706-4852. 2021 January 22 – 29, Online Course March 23 – 26, Boston November 9 – 11, Dallas 
Calendar
*Please note that e-mail and direct links to each event listed below can be accessed from NRMCA's Web site. December 8 – 11, Online Course December 11 – 18, Online Course *Sold Out December 14 – 18, Online Course December 15, Online Course |
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