NRMCA E-NEWS will not be published the week of December 28; the next edition will arrive in your inboxes on January 6, 2021. NRMCA President Michael Philipps, Chief Operating Office Nicole Maher and the staff wish you and your families a happy and healthy holiday season and New Year.

The estimated ready mixed concrete produced in September 2020 is 34.4 million cubic yards, 0.7% lower than that in September 2019. The estimated production in the U.S. for 2020 through September is 282 million cubic yards, about 0.5% higher than that during the same period in 2019.

Ready mixed concrete production is estimated from cement shipments reported by the U.S. Geological Survey. More detail, including production by state for the third quarter, is available here for NRMCA members under Production Statistics.

The United Stated Green Building Council (USGBC) strives to evolve the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standard so the design and construction of buildings are environmentally and equitably just. A recently launched Social Equity within the Supply Chain pilot credit is intended to create more equitable, healthier environments for those affected by and involved in the production of materials and products, including the stages of raw materials extraction, processing, manufacturing and assembly of components and products. Specifically, the credit wants to drive material suppliers to demonstrate compliance with the Fundamental Conventions of the International Labour Organization (ILO) and basic human rights at work, including Freedom of Association, Abolition of Forced Labor, Elimination of Child Labor and Equality. More details can be on the USGBC pilot credit website.

The Concrete Sustainability Council (CSC) is referenced as an approved program to meet the pilot credit. The CSC offers compliance due to criteria such as Human Rights and Labor Practices within its certification. Also, the CSC framework guides a producer to enhance and elevate environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices so that they can meet ongoing trends of supply chain sustainability and responsibility. In addition to this USGBC pilot credit, the CSC has already been acknowledged in the world’s largest green building rating system BREEAM, as well as in the Institute for Sustainable Infrastructure’s ENVISON rating system.

The trend in reporting ESG practices is growing; and with similar criteria being discovered in green building construction documents and specifications, procurement decisions are evolving beyond price and performance. Where material suppliers demonstrate ESG practices, increased business opportunities can be realized.

CSC is integral to Strength Through Transparency, the Build With Strength campaign and for member and industry competitiveness in the green building marketplace.

For more information, contact James Bogdan at jbogdan@nrmca.org or 412-420-4138.

On Monday, Congress passed legislation to fund the federal government through September 30, 2021 and to provide long-awaited COVID relief. The $2.3 trillion package included $1.4 trillion in funding for government departments and agencies and $900 billion in COVID relief.Included in this legislation are a number of NRMCA priorities – policies that we have consistently advocated for on behalf of the industry and that are significant policy wins.

• Clarification on tax treatment of Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans. The legislation clarifies that 1) a PPP loan is not considered taxable income and 2) tax deductible expenses will continue to be tax deductible when paid for with PPP funds.
• Second round of PPP loans. Companies can apply for a second PPP loan if 1) they have fewer than 300 employees; 2) have used or will have used the full amount of their first PPP loan; and 3) can demonstrate a 25% reduction in gross receipts in corresponding quarters between 2019 and 2020.
• Eligibility of 501(c)6 non-profits for PPP loans. While the CARES Act made 501(c)3 and 501(c)19 organizations eligible for PPP loans, this bill will allow 501(c)6 non-profit membership organizations to apply for forgivable PPP loans, provided they do not earn more than 15% of their revenue on lobbying and lobbying does not comprise more than 15% of their expenses.
• Funding for state departments of transportation. The package included $10 billion in funding for the Federal Highway Administration to support state departments of transportation that have experienced revenue shortfalls due to impacts of COVID.
• Expansion of Employee Retention Tax Credit (ERTC). The bill allows companies that received PPP loans to claim the refundable credit for a portion of underutilized employees’ wages.
• Federal paid leave refundable tax credits. Refundable tax credits to reimburse employers for expenses related to mandatory paid leave established by the Families First Coronavirus Relief Act are extended.

You can read the full text of the government funding and COVID relief legislation here and find a summary here. NRMCA has been a vocal advocate for each of the above policies in the COVID legislation. Over the past months, we have advocated directly on behalf of our members to Members of Congress and key congressional staff, both independently and in unison with our allied associations and coalition partners. We have issued multiple grassroots alerts and NRMCA members have sent thousands of letters to Congress.During the past few days, NRMCA has been engaged in last minute communication with Members of Congress and staff, reiterating the importance of these policies and urging bipartisan work on behalf of America’s small businesses and ready mixed concrete industry.

For more information, contact Andrew Tyrrell at atyrrell@nrmca.org.

A webinar titled Soil Cement & Full-Depth Reclamation with Cement Using a Ready Mixed Concrete Truck was conducted on Tuesday, December 15, by NRMCA Vice President, Local Paving, Don Clem, and Portland Cement Association Manager, Pavements and Geotechnical Markets, Greg Halsted. This webinar, which covered the basics of soil cement/ full-depth recycling as well as how cement slurry can be delivered in a ready mixed concrete truck,
was attended by over 300 professionals, including representatives from 10 DOTs and numerous agencies throughout the U.S. and Canada. It generated about 75 questions which were answered and provided to all those registered for the event.

Click here to view the recording of the webinar or visit the Pave Ahead website. For more information, contact Don Clem at dclem@nrmca.org.

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has updated and expanded its publication, What You Should Know About COVID-19 and the ADA, the Rehabilitation Act, and Other EEO Laws. It now includes a Q&A section covering how a COVID-19 vaccination interacts with the legal requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA). This incorporates issues pertaining to medical pre-screening employment questions as well as employer accommodations for those unable to receive a vaccination. You can also access the updated EEOC document on NRMCA’s COVID-19 Resources webpage.

Along those lines, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently issued a series of considerations healthcare employers should review as they develop policies post-vaccination and employment law firm Jackson Lewis wrote a thoughtful article offering a starting point of considerations for business in general. As always, this is for your information only; NRMCA offers no legal advice.

For more information, contact Eileen Dickson at edickson@nrmca.org.

NRMCA and the Build With Strength coalition have played key roles and received favorable mention in the development of Preparing to Thrive: Resilience Building Coalition 5-Year Progress Report that is now being drafted with an eye toward being distributed early in 2021. The report details the increasing devastation caused by climate-related disasters and the response by the built environment of which the Resilience Building Coalition (RBC) is a part. In 2014, the American Institute of Architects and the National Institute of Building Sciences led a coalition of 21 organizations to define the goals and objectives for achieving resilience. Since then, RBC has grown to 53 organizations representing nearly 2 million members commtted to manage the aftermath of disasters across the U.S.

Specifically to ready mixed concrete, NRMCA members have supported groundbreaking exploration of
concrete science, application and economics working through the MIT Concrete Sustainability Hub, with funding from the Ready Mixed Concrete Research & Education Foundation and the Portland Concrete Association. Key findings, tools and metrics include Texture and Urban Resilience, Life Cycle Costs of Hazard Resistant Buildings and Break Even Mitigation Percentage Dashboard. In addition, NRMCA helped reintroduce the Disaster Savings and Resilient Construction Act, bipartisan federal legislation that established a tax credit for resilient construction to incentivize higher standards of building or rebuilding after a disaster.

Click here to read an earlier report on the workings of RBC. For more information, contact Tien Peng at tpeng@nrmca.org.

*Please note that e-mail and direct links to each event listed below can be accessed from NRMCA's Web site.

2021 

January 11 - 15, Online Course *Sold Out
Dispatcher Training Forum
Email: Mason Jean, 703-706-4852

January 22 – 29, Online Course *Sold Out
Plant Manager Certification Course
Email: Jessica Walgenbach, 703-706-4852

January 28 - 29, Online Webinar
Pathways to Net Zero Buildings
Email: Doug O'Neill, 716-801-6546

February 2 – 5, Online Course
CCSP Module III, General Business Knowledge
Email: Mason Jean, 703-706-4852

March 22 - 26, Online Course
CCSP Module IV, Professional Sales Skills Workshop
Email: Mason Jean, 703-706-4852

March 23 – 26, Online Course
Plant Manager Certification Course
Email: Jessica Walgenbach, 703-706-4852

November 9 – 11, Dallas
Effective RMC Supervisor Course
Email: Jessica Walgenbach, 703-706-4852