Vol. XXVI, Number 25
July 1, 2005
1015 15th Street, NW
8th Floor
Washington, DC 20005-2605
202-347-7474
Fax 202-898-0068
www.acec.org
E-mail acec@acec.org
Alan D. Crockett, Director, PR
Ann Brandstadter,
Editor/Designer |
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ACEC Means
Business
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Celebrate History During July 4th Week
In the spirit of July 4th, celebrate with some of our historical and/or political books from past ACEC speakers.
The ACEC Bookstore is expanding and now has more titles than ever before.
Visit the Online Bookstore at www.acec.org/publications to order any of
these books and browse other exceptional titles today.
Popular titles include: |
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1776 David McCullough $32
In this stirring book, David McCullough tells the intensely human story of those who marched with General George Washing- ton in the year of the Declaration of Independence—when the future of America was riding on their success.
Click here to order. |
All's Fair: Love, War, and Running for President
James Carville & Mary Matalin
$15
James Carville and Mary Matalin, husband and wife political consultants, shared a dream: to direct a campaign for President of the United States. And this dream came true—the problem: they had to campaign against each other.
All's Fair: Love, War, and Running for President is a political memoir like no other, written by the ultimate insiders.
Click here to order. |
Politicians, Partisans, and Parasites: My Adventures in Cable News
Tucker Carlson $24.95
Political pundit Tucker Carlson displays a razor-edged perspective on all things Washington with the wit and razor-sharp insight that have made him a beloved conservative commentator.
Click here to order. |
The Book of Virtues
William J. Bennett $20
Former Education Secretary and noted conservative William J. Bennett has collected hundreds of stories in The Book of Virtues, an instructive and inspiring anthology that will help children understand and develop character—and help adults teach them.
Click here to order. |
The Great Bridge: The Epic Story of the Building of the Brooklyn Bridge
David McCullough $18
First published in 1972, David McCullough's The Great Bridge is the classic account of one of the greatest engineering feats of all time—the building of the Brooklyn Bridge.
Click here to order. |
Congressional Directory: 109th Congress 1st Session—2005
Members $10/ non-members $15
Congress at Your Fingertips: The newest Congressional Directory is available and ready to ship.
With the new Congress in full swing, this convenient reference guide provides all the contact information needed to reach your representatives.
Click here to order. |
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06' Spring Convention Call For Presentations Now Available
The ACEC 2006 Spring Convention will be held in Washington, D.C., April 30 through May 3, 2006. This meeting will provide an outstanding combination of exciting speakers, networking opportunities, education sessions, tours and exhibits.
Click here for the "call for presentations" form for the 2006 ACEC Spring Convention.
The due date for submissions is August 12. Contact Andrew Fort at 202-347-7474 with questions. |
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July Online Seminars
July 6
The Service Difference
Mel Lester, The Business Edge
This seminar outlines a distinct process for delivering a top level of service.
Included is instruction on how to benchmark client expectations, create service deliverables, prepare a simple service plan, and solicit client feedback on service performance.
Click here to register.
July 20
What to Say & How to Say It When Every Minute is Worth a Million Bucks
Sharon Youngblood, Youngblood Consulting, Inc.
Learn Hollywood tips for professionals on how to present like a pro—and wow them with content and delivery from the first 30 seconds until the contract is signed, sealed and delivered.
Click here to register.
July 27
Negotiating Better Engineering Contracts: A Win-Win Situation
Gary Bates, Roenker Bates Group
This program will illustrate the importance of conflict resolution in our business and personal lives. Discussions will outline the different techniques that people use to negotiate, demonstrate the skills required to be an effective negotiator, explore the importance of proper planning for negotiation, discuss various methods to conduct an effective negotiation session, and detail the proper sequence for reaching a win-win engineering contract.
Click here to register.
What is an Online Seminar?
This convenient format allows you to get important training right at your desktop. At the session start time, just log onto a website where you will see a live PowerPoint presentation delivered in real-time over the Internet. Then call a toll-free number for the audio portion of the presentation.
Online Seminars are held from 1:30pm to 3:00pm Eastern Time.
Members $199/non-members $249 |
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ACEC Leaders Promote Landmark Energy Bill With Secretary Bodman
ACEC Chairman Ed Mulcahy (left) and ACEC President Dave Raymond (right) discuss the pending energy bill with Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman. |
ACEC Chairman Ed Mulcahy and President Dave Raymond met with Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman last week to promote important energy legislation as part of the pending energy bill and other issues pertinent to ACEC member firms.
Congress and the Administration are anxious to complete an energy package, which has been debated every year since President Bush first outlined his national energy policy in May 2001. (See Senate energy bill story below)
During a wide ranging discussion, Secretary Bodman stressed the high priority of finishing work on the energy package this year, the role of nuclear power in meeting future energy needs, and the importance of improving and modernizing the nation's the energy infrastructure.
Bodman also agreed with Mulcahy and Raymond on the importance of extending the federal Price Anderson program, which provides liability protection for firms doing clean-up work at nuclear facilities, as well as the importance of protecting the private sector role in delivering engineering services to the public.
Bodman has a chemical engineering degree from Cornell University, and is a former director of Massachusetts Institute of Technology School of Engineering Practice.
"Secretary Bodman demonstrates a keen awareness of the energy challenges facing our nation," said Mulcahy. "It was gratifying to learn that he agrees with ACEC on many of the actions needed to address our nation's energy concerns." |
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Energy Bill Clears Senate; Price Anderson Reauthorization, Energy Provisions Included
The Senate overwhelmingly approved a comprehensive energy bill this week, including a 20-year reauthorization of the Price Anderson Act and provisions designed to stimulate energy production and conservation measures.
The bill is very similar to the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (H.R. 6), which passed the House of Representatives in April. Both bills include provisions promoting oil and gas exploration and production, clean coal technologies, electrical transmission capacity, and renewable fuels. Renewable energy production incentives are created for solar, wind, geothermal, biomass, landfill gas and ethanol. Funding is provided for technological advances in power production from nuclear energy and hydrogen fuel cells. The bills also contain language making it easier for electric power companies to build transmission lines.
While both bills reauthorize Price Anderson for 20 years, the House bill includes a troublesome "financial accountability" subrogation provision, which imposes new liability on DOE contractors for damages caused by nuclear accidents. ACEC has been successful in keeping the measure out of the Senate package.
In a letter to Energy and Natural Resources Committee Chairman Pete Domenici (R-N.M.) ACEC President Dave Raymond pointed out that the subrogation provision "would likely cause many of the most responsible and best-in-class companies to abandon this unique and inherently dangerous market, and could ultimately impede progress on the cleanup of some of the nation's most contaminated nuclear facilities."
ACEC will continue to fight this provision when the bill proceeds to conference, which is expected to occur in July. |
Highway Program Extended To July 19
Conferees Continue To Seek Final Deal
Congress has extended federal surface transportation programs until midnight July 19, as House and Senate conferees continue to deliberate over a potential compromise on funding for the TEA-21 reauthorization bill that would provide $286.5 billion for the nation's highways and transit systems.
Lead negotiators on the TEA-21 reauthorization conference committee last week floated the compromise, which essentially splits the difference between the House-passed reauthorization bill, funded at $284 billion, and a $290 billion offer of Senate conferees on June 20. However, talks have stalled over the allocation of high priority project dollars and the minimum returns states would receive from the Highway Trust Fund.
The new extension represents the eighth passed since TEA-21 expired on Sept. 30, 2003. Conferees will have another month to hammer out an agreement before the August recess. |
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New Florida DOT Secretary Stutler Confirmed For Upcoming Fall Conference In Orlando
Denver Stutler |
Denver Stutler, who begins his new duties as Florida Department of Transportation Secretary on July 9, has been added to an impressive lineup of speakers at the upcoming Fall Conference, September 21-24 at Disney's Yacht and Beach Club Resorts in Walt Disney World, Florida.
Stutler, who currently serves as chief of staff for Florida Governor Jeb Bush, will speak at the Opening General Session on Thursday September 22. Prior to joining the Governor's office, Stutler was chief of staff for the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, and was a principal with ACEC member firm CDM.
He joins the Conference speaker lineup that includes Four-Star General Barry McCaffrey, who will address "Leadership in the 21st Century" at the Keynote Luncheon on September 22, and former Minnesota Governor Jesse Ventura, who will discuss how to "buck the system and change the world" at lunch on September 23.
Attendees at the Fall Conference can also take advantage of 35 cutting edge business education sessions as part of the premier business Conference of the A/E/C industry," along with exciting social activities and ACEC/PAC events. |
Visit www.acec.org for more information. Click here to get 5 percent off the registration fee when you register online. |
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Copyright © 2005 by the American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC). All rights reserved. No part of this newsletter may be reproduced, stored in any form of retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, photographic, or other means without the prior written permission of ACEC.
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