Florida Number One State in Construction Business Climate Based on Associated Builders & Contractors National Merit Shop Scorecard Analysis

TALLAHASSEE, FL / ACCESSWIRE / November 29, 2018 / Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) released its annual Merit Shop Scorecard today, ranking Florida the number one business environment in the nation for merit shop construction contractors. The ranking rates states on policies and programs that encourage open competition, workforce education and job growth, as well as the propensity to award construction contracts based solely on merit, regardless of labor affiliation. The state came up eight positions from 2017.

''Florida's executive branch and legislature have built a robust economic and business environment that allows merit shop construction contractors to thrive,'' said George Cuesta, president, ABC of Florida, which has 2,500 active members.

Florida's leadership is based on its ''A'' rankings for all of the major categories (listed below):

''By prioritizing policies that support small business owners, the American worker and the overall construction sector, the state is spurring economic growth across the state, which directly leads to more construction projects and jobs for our residents,'' said Peter Dyga, president of ABC's Florida East Coast Chapter.

ABC's 2017 Florida legislative success contributed!

Contributing to Florida's successful Scorecard Rankings were House Bills 599 and 377 signed into law by Governor Scott in 2017 that ABC helped pass.

House Bill 599, Public Works Projects, which promotes a more open, honest and competitive bid process for public construction projects where state dollars represent 50 percent or more of the funding. Prior to this bill, local governments could establish arbitrary pre-bid mandates on contractors telling them who they must hire, where they must train and what benefit packages they must offer if they want to bid a job with that entity.

House Bill 377, Limitations on Actions other than for the Recovery of Real Property, helps to clarify when and how Florida's 10-year Statute of Repose begins to run on a completed project. House Bill 377 created a legislative definition for ‘completion of the contract,' which acknowledges that there are two parties to a deal – the owner and the contractor – and that both have a say in when the 10-year period may begin to run. The bill gave ABC's 2,500 members and the entire construction industry more clarity as it relates to when their liability period for their work begins and ends.

ABC's 2019 Florida Legislative Agenda supports streamlining and clarifying regulation of the construction industry

ABC's Florida bills will support the following reforms:

Permit Fee Transparency – an effort to clarify when, how and why Building Departments establish their permit and inspection fee process – the factors that go into the fee setting and what it means for owners and tax payers.

Apprenticeship Regulatory Reform – as Florida continues to suffer from the wort skilled worker shortage in recent history, it's imperative that we ensure the process to access Apprenticeship Training is as clear and unobstructed as possible. Florida invests millions in workforce development and Apprenticeship Training and we think improvements to how they fund this training, to add transparency, and increase numbers trained is critical.

Retainage – Public construction carries with it layers of protection on behalf of taxpayers. Retainage offers the opportunity to hold back complete payment as an assurance of quality work and the best product for the taxpayers. However, the rate of retainage is higher than many other states and it's time we take a look at how we compare nationwide.

Owner Direct Purchase Process – Public entities are spending more than necessary on public works projects because they aren't taking full advantage of tax exemptions available to them, and in turn, to taxpayers who fund this work. By streamlining the process by which these exemptions can be accessed, we can increase the likelihood that public entities will take full advantage of these opportunities.

Building America: The Merit Shop Scorecard rates state laws, programs, policies and statistics to highlight those that have created the conditions for growth and identify areas where strategic improvements are needed. Criteria and definitions are available at https://meritshopscorecard.org and https://statescorecard.wpengine.com/state/florida/.

About Associated Builders and Contractors Florida East Coast Chapter (ABC FEC) ABC is the largest commercial construction association in Florida. The East Coast Chapter represents General and Specialty Contractors, associate and supplier members from Key West to Brevard County who share ABC's belief in open and competitive processes, in the importance of industry education, training and safety services, and in the role the association plays in these areas. For more information, call: 954-984-0075 or visit: http://www.abceastflorida.com/

CONTACT: Don Silver and Jasmin Curtiss of Boardroom Communications, Inc. at (954) 370-8999 or [email protected] / [email protected], both for Associated Builders & Contractors Florida East Coast Chapter.

SOURCE: Associated Builders and Contractors Florida East Coast Chapter

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