November 7, 2001—The Small Business Liability Relief and Brownfields Revitalization Act (H.R. 2869), was pulled off the House agenda recently due to disputes over the Davis-Bacon Act. According to a recent report in the American Institute of Architectss Angle, many congressional members raised questions as to whether this federal wage law applies would apply to new state grants established under H.R. 2869. Democrats in both chambers are asking the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to clarify the provisions of Davis-Bacon and guarantee that the law would apply in 19 states that do not have Davis-Bacon provisions.
The proposed brownfields initiative would authorize $200 million annually for five years to fund assessment and cleanup activities at brownfields sites and $50 million per year which would be earmarked for sites contaminated with petroleum. For more information on brownfields remediation, contact Dan Wilson, senior director, at 202-626-7384 or dwilson@aia.org, or Tara Butler, program manager, at 202-626-7443 or tbutler@aia.org.
Based on a report from AIAs Angle.
