Mistake found in Davis bill

A mistake in a bill sponsored by State Rep. Bill Davis will create a complication for public construction projects during the second half of this year.
The Fort Wayne Journal Gazette reported today that a drafting error was made by the legislative services agency on Davis’s House Bill 1216.
Davis confirmed the miscue this morning.
“It will be a hardship to somebody, and it will certainly be a nuisance,” Davis said.
The intent of the bill was to change the threshold at which government construction projects must use common construction wages. That threshold was the subject of intense negotiation between Republican leaders and House Democrats this spring.
House Bill 1216 raises the threshold from $150,000 to $250,000 beginning Jan. 1, 2012, and then increases it to $350,000 on Jan. 1, 2013.
But because of the error, the threshold was deleted entirely for all projects undertaken between July 1 and Jan. 1, 2012.
As a result, state and local governments taking on any construction project — even those under $150,000 — during that time period must hold construction wage hearings.
Those entities must also set wage levels which usually reflect higher union rates.
Davis has argued that the common construction wage process not only drives up costs but also squeezes out local non-union bidders on public construction projects.
The drafting error occurred, Davis believes, because his bill involved changes in two different parts of Indiana Code.
“It may not be as bad as it might seem,” Davis said.
Senate Bill 430, which was also passed in the most recent session, says governmental units need to have just one common construction hearing per quarter. That eliminates some of the red tape, but it won’t eliminate the expected higher cost of construction projects during the six-month period.
The Journal Gazette reported that the Indiana Association of Cities and Towns is trying to determine the impact of the error before advising its members on how to proceed.[[In-content Ad]]