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Payment Bond Fraud in Pennsylvania – Why Subcontractors Should Request Copies of Payment Bonds When Signing Subcontractors for Public Projects
March 12, 2018
Posted By: Marc J. Felezzola

The News Story The Times-Tribune reports that a Lackawanna County insurance agent recently pleaded guilty to fraud for accepting premiums for payment bonds from contractors but never actually procuring those payment bonds from a surety.  This resulted(…)

Eastern District of PA Declines to Broaden Bilt–Rite Exception to Economic Loss Doctrine
February 2, 2017
Posted By: James D. Mazzocco

In an unreported decision handed down this summer, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania in Elliott-Lewis Corp. v. Skanska USA Bldg., Inc., 2015 WL 4545362 (E.D. Pa. July 28, 2015), declined to extend the Bilt–Rite(…)

Babst Calland Attorneys Attend Prompt Pay Task Force Coalition Meeting to Discuss Amendments to Pennsylvania’s Contractor and Subcontractor Payment Act
May 24, 2016
Posted By: Marc J. Felezzola

On April 5, 2016 Babst Calland Attorneys Robert Palumbi and Marc Felezzola attended a Prompt Pay Task Force Coalition meeting in Harrisburg organized by the American Subcontractors Association’s Central Pennsylvania Chapter to discuss House Bill 726 o(…)

Proposed Amendment to Mechanics’ Lien Law Seeks to Give Architects Lien Rights in Pennsylvania
June 3, 2015
Posted By: Marc J. Felezzola

Representative Dan Truitt, a Republican serving part of Chester County, Pennsylvania, recently proposed as House Bill 430 legislation that seeks to amend the Pennsylvania’s Mechanics’ Lien Law of 1963 (i.e. the current and applicable mechanics’ lien l(…)

Skanska and Massaro Opening New Offices in Western and Central PA
June 3, 2015
Posted By: Marc J. Felezzola

In exclusive April 14, 2015, article, the Pittsburgh Business Times reported that Skanska, a Swedish construction company that ranks as the world’s seventh largest, is opening a new office in Pittsburgh.  The construction giant will occupy approximate(…)

Labor and Employment Professor’s Study Shows that the Marcellus Shale has Boosted the Construction Industry
October 27, 2014
Posted By: Marc J. Felezzola

According to a report in the Pittsburgh Business Times, Robert Bruno, a labor and employment relations professor at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, has determined that the shale fields in Western Pennsylvania, Eastern Ohio and Northern(…)

Reports Indicate Construction Activity Starts Down Significantly in First Half of 2014
September 17, 2014
Posted By: Marc J. Felezzola

Recent economic data suggests that construction starts are down significantly over the first half of the 2014 calendar year.  According to the Tall Timer Group, as reported by the Pittsburgh Business Times, housing starts are down 37.3% and non-reside(…)

Pennsylvania Construction Job Growth Ranks Fourth Highest
June 11, 2014
Posted By: Marc J. Felezzola

The Pittsburgh Business Times, citing an analysis of Labor Department Data performed by the Associated General Contractors of America, recently reported that over the past twelve months, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania has experienced the fourth high(…)

Construction Industry Employment Reaches Highest Level Since June of 2009
April 15, 2014
Posted By: Marc J. Felezzola

According to the most recent government data as reported by the Associated General Contractors of America (the “AGC”), construction employers added 15,000 workers to payrolls in February despite harsh winter weather throughout much of the nation.  Tho(…)

Construction Employment in Pittsburgh Grew in 2013, but Fell Overall for Pennsylvania
February 11, 2014
Posted By: Marc J. Felezzola

A report analyzing data from the Department of Labor posted on the Associated General Contractors of America’s website indicates that while construction employment for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania fell by 3% in 2013, construction employment for th(…)

Third Extension for Ethane Cracker Plant
January 16, 2014
Posted By: David D. McKenery, Jr.

Once again, Shell and Horsehead have extended their land option agreement for Horsehead’s zinc smelter in Beaver County, the site for Shell’s potential cracker.  This is the parties’ third extension.  Read more on this topic at Babst Calland’s Shale E(…)

More Positive Data from the Economic Industry
January 15, 2014
Posted By: Marc J. Felezzola

Recent economic data suggests that the construction industry is continuing to pull itself out of the recent economic downturn.  For example, the Associated General Contractors of America (the “AGC”), citing a data released by the Census Bureau, is rep(…)

Update on Shell’s Ethane Cracker Plant
December 23, 2013
Posted By: David D. McKenery, Jr.

Shell, which has indicated that it will decide next year whether to build a cracker in Beaver County, continues to negotiate land deals with businesses and residents in areas surrounding Horsehead’s zinc smelting plant in Monaca Borough, the site for(…)

Construction of CNG Stations
November 11, 2013
Posted By: David D. McKenery, Jr.

The construction industry is likely to see an increase in the number of compressed natural gas stations to be built.  Babst Calland’s Shale Energy Law Blog has more on the potential trend here.

Data Indicates that the Construction Industry Unemployment Hit a Six-Year Low in September
November 7, 2013
Posted By: Marc J. Felezzola

According to a press release issued by Associated General Contractors of America, an analysis of the most recent government data indicates that employment in the construction industry rose by 20,000 jobs in September, and the industry’s unemployment r(…)

Federal Government Shutdown Having Limited Affect on Federal Highway Administration Construction, but Affecting Federal Contract Solicitation and Awards
October 9, 2013
Posted By: Marc J. Felezzola

As the shutdown of the federal government enters its second week, its impact on federally funded construction projects has been somewhat muted because of the way that certain federal agencies receive their funding.  For example, because the Federal Hi(…)

New Law Removes Cap on Set-Asides for Contracts with Women-Owned Small Business
August 21, 2013
Posted By: Marc J. Felezzola

In October 2010, the Small Business Administration implemented the Women-Owned Small Business Program, which authorized contracting officers for federal agencies to set aside certain federal contracts for eligible and qualified Women-Owned Small Busin(…)

Report Indicates that the Average Construction Dispute Costs Nearly $11k
July 23, 2013
Posted By: Marc J. Felezzola

A recent article in the Engineering News-Record details a report titled “The Interpersonal Cost of Conflict in Construction” issued by the Center for Construction Research and Training.  The report reviewed and analyzed 41 conflict incidents that aros(…)