ACEC representatives met with Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) senior staff this week to urge modification of a proposed rule that could require many engineering firms to incur the significant cost and legal burdens of registering with the agency as “municipal advisors.”

The SEC’s proposed interpretation of the “engineering exemption” in the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act could require firms to register if they provide such common client services as cash-flow modeling and certain feasibility studies.

“We engaged in a productive dialogue with the SEC, and we shared information about traditional engineering activities that I think will be relevant as the rule-making process continues,” said Lisa Palumbo, general counsel of Parsons Brinckerhoff, who participated in the meeting.

Click here to read ACEC’s comment letter to the SEC.

The recent agreement to fund government programs for the remainder of fiscal year 2011 maintains core highway and transit formula funding at current authorized levels from the Highway Trust Fund—a hard-won battle for ACEC.

Negotiators, however, eliminated all funding for high speed rail and rescinded $400 million in unspent funding, essentially killing the program. The bill preserves funding for airport projects and Amtrak.

Federal water programs were reduced, but less than was originally proposed in the House. Wastewater funding is set at $1.525 billion and drinking water funded at $965 million, which are in line with the President’s 2012 budget request.

Military construction accounts were reduced by nearly $10 billion from the 2010 level. Click here for a summary from the House Appropriations Committee, and click here for information on specific programs reduced in the budget agreement.

The Illinois Supreme Court has let stand its January decision in Thompson v. Gordon, in which it ruled that an engineering firm’s scope of duty was “circumscribed by the terms of the contract” and that it was improper to consider subsequent expert testimony to expand that duty.

The Court last week denied the plaintiff’s motion for a rehearing, thereby closing the book on this landmark case.

ACEC’s Minuteman Fund supported an amicus brief filed by ACEC/Illinois.

Former ACEC Chairman Jerry Stump (left), COO of Wilbur Smith Associates, presents a $25,000 check to ACEC President Dave Raymond to become the first charter member of the new Institute for Sustainable Infrastructure (ISI). Founded by ACEC, the American Public Works Association (APWA) and the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), the Institute is designed to do for the infrastructure sector what the U.S. Green Building Council (and its LEED Rating System) does for the habitable structures sector. ISI is developing an infrastructure rating tool that will be released this summer. ISI membership is open to individuals, companies, non-profits and government agencies. For more information on ISI and its rating system, visit www.sustainableinfrastructure.org.

PAC Champion David Bills

ACEC/Hawaii met its 2011 ACEC/PAC fundraising goal this week. The Aloha State joins Wisconsin as the first state organizations to reach their ACEC/PAC objectives this year.

“We work hard to make our ACEC/PAC goal, but we also have fun doing it, and we get many ACEC members involved that otherwise would not have been,” said PAC Champion David Bills of Bills Engineering Inc. in Honolulu. “Once they become part of the program, they realize how important it is to their bottom line.”

For more information on ACEC/PAC, contact Greg Knopp, executive director, political affairs at gknopp@acec.org or Elizabeth Coit, PAC director at ecoit@acec.org.

April 21, 10-11 a.m. (Note special time.)

Qatar plans to invest more than $100 billion in infrastructure over the next 10 years and is looking for American engineering firms to help.

In an exclusive online seminar, Over $100 Billion in New Infrastructure Investment in Qatar: What You Need to Know to Get Involved, April 21, 10-11 a.m., representatives of the Qatar and U.S. governments will describe the wide-ranging opportunities for firms, including roadways, water, power, buildings/structures, airports, and port logistics.

Attendees will gain insights on doing business in Qatar, meet key Qatar and U.S. officials, and learn about how to get started in this dynamic new market.

For more information and to register, click here.

Eric Madden joins ACEC/Pennsylvania

Eric Madden, recently PennDOT’s Deputy Secretary for Aviation and Rail/Freight, has been appointed the new EVP of ACEC/Pennsylvania.

Madden takes office at a time when the state faces a $3.5 billion annual transportation funding shortfall and has the highest percentage of structurally deficient bridges in the nation (26.5 percent).

"We consider ourselves fortunate to have Eric Madden as our new Executive Vice President," said ACEC/PA President Steve Bolt. "With his broad experience, he will be pivotal in building our advocacy efforts with the administration, the legislature, and the public."

ACEC’s online seminar Responding to Requests for Discounts or Unilateral Fee Reductions drew more than 160 Member Firm participants. To purchase and download the recorded session, click here.

In the program, P. Douglas Folk of Folk & Associates outlined the ways firms can deal with client requests for discounts or reductions, including legal challenges and the application of Federal Acquisition Regulations.