Newsletter

First International Conference on Pavement Preservation

Jobs, Deficit Reduction to Top Obama's Agenda This Year

When President Barack Obama delivers his first State of the Union address this Wednesday, jobs and the economy will top the agenda.

White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said this week that, "the primary focus will be on creating jobs."

A ready vehicle for job creation is the $174 billion package (HR 2847) passed by the House in December, which awaits action in the Senate. The bill not only includes $37.3 billion for transportation projects, it also would extend the current authorization for federal highway and transit programs through the end of the fiscal year, funding some $53.3 billion for highways, transit, and traffic safety.

Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, D-MT, announced that his committee will mark up its portion of the jobs bill the first week in February. In addition to tax issues and extension of unemployment benefits, the Finance Committee would have jurisdiction over provisions in the bill that would provide an infusion of $19.5 billion to the Highway Trust Fund, with $14.7 billion going to the Highway Account and $4.8 billion to the Mass Transit Account. The infusions proposed by the House are to reimburse the Highway Trust Fund from interest it has not collected since 1998.

Also likely to figure in the State of the Union address is Obama's promise to address the federal deficit, which might have some longer-term impacts on future transportation funding. Senate budget-writers are seeking to create an independent deficit reduction commission that would take a look at federal programs, including entitlement programs such as Social Security and Medicare, and make recommendations for spending reductions to reduce the federal deficit. The reductions would be made after the November elections and would be put before the House and Senate for an up or down vote. Obama is considering creating such a commission by executive order.

Whatever is unveiled during Wednesday night's State of the Union address is likely to be reinforced by the president's budget proposal for federal Fiscal Year 2011, which will be sent to Congress Feb. 1.

(Courtesy of AASHTO) (Return to Top)

California Budget Update

State Controller John Chiang warned Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and legislators last week that the state could run out of cash to pay its bills before the end of the fiscal year and urged them to make $2.7 billion in "cash solutions" to avoid delays in payments.

Chiang didn't mention registered warrants, otherwise known as IOUs, which the state used to pay vendors last year when it hit a severe cash crunch. But his warning undercuts previous assurances from the governor and other officials that the state could make it through the current fiscal year, which ends June 30, without another cash crisis.

A big test will come late in the period, when the state must repay billions of dollars in short-term loans called "revenue anticipation notes," that it floated last year. It cannot issue new RANs until it has a 2010-11 budget in place.

"My analysis of the governor's recently released revenue and expenditure estimates shows that the state's cash position for the remainder of the current fiscal year will be weak from approximately March 30 through April 21," Chiang said in a letter to his fellow officials.

"According to my projections," Chiang continued, "California will drop below its $2.5 billion prudent minimum cash balance on March 30 by $1.3 billion. On April 1, the state will be in the red by $197 million, and our resources to pay bills are not expected to return to safe levels until April 21.

"Barring any unforeseen circumstances, such as a spike in expenditures or precipitous decline in revenues, $2.7 billion in cash solutions are necessary to avoid a cash shortage in the current fiscal year."

Chiang's letter is available here, and his cash flow chart may be found here.

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NAPA Award Winners

Last week the National Asphalt Pavement Association (NAPA) honored companies that earned awards in several available categories. The APA of California would like to recognize its members that earned awards in the following categories:

Diamond Achievement Commendation

The Diamond Achievement Commendation was started in 1999 for Excellence in Hot Mix Asphalt Plant/Site Operations. The criteria for this award begins with a self-assessment of six aspects of plant/site operations: appearance, operations, environmental practices, safety, permitting and regulatory compliance, and community relations. It also includes verification by an outside third party who is not associated with the company.

Blue Diamond Materials

(Division of Sullly-Miller Contracting Company)

Inglewood Plant

Irwindale Plant

South Gate Plant

Sun Valley Plant

Victorville Plant

CalPortland Company

Garey Asphalt Plant

Paso Robles Asphalt Plant

Vulcan Materials Company, Western Division

Fresno Asphalt Plant

Irwindale HMA Plant

Saticoy HMA Plant

Sun Valley Plant

Diamond Quality Commendation

The Diamond Quality Commendation focuses on plant practices that result in excellent product quality. To qualify for this award evaluations must be completed for Quality Management, RAP and Aggregate Handling, Asphalt Storage, Drying and Mixing, Air Quality, Truck Scales, Silos, and Control Rooms focusing on the applicants ability to provide excellent product quality.

Blue Diamond Materials

(Division of Sullly-Miller Contracting Company)

Inglewood Plant

Irwindale Plant

South Gate Plant

Sun Valley Plant

Victorville Plant

Vulcan Materials Company, Western Division

Irwindale HMA Plant

Palmdale HMA Plant

Saticoy HMA Plant

Quality in Construction Awards

Sully-Miller Contracting Company

Anaheim, CA

Long Beach Airport

Phase I & II Imporvements to Taxiway K

Sully-Miller Contracting Company

Anaheim, CA

Long Beach Airport

Phase III Improvements to Taxiway K

Web Site Awards

Associate Award Winner

Astec, Inc.

Chattanooga, TN

www.astecinc.com

Congratulations to all of the winners from the APA of California!!!

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Contractors Committee Meeting

The APA of California Contractors Committee will be holding its February Dinner Meeting on Tuesday, February 9 in Pico Rivera, CA. The February Dinner Meeting will feature a presentation on the new General Storm Water Permit which was passed by the State Water Board last September (refer to APA of California Newsletter dated Nov. 11, 2009).

The new permit will take effect July 1, 2010, and applies to projects that disturb one or more acres, or projects that disturb less than one acre but are part of a larger common plan of development that disturbs more than one acre in total (e.g., large linear utility projects, etc.). For the first time, under the new Construction General Permit, construction sites will be required to implement a specific set of “good-housekeeping” standards and to meet numeric pollutant loads. This revision represents a major shift from past regulation of construction-site storm water discharges, which merely required development of a Storm Water Pollution Prevention Plan (SWPPP) to implement general best management practices (BMPs). Come with your questions - -

The featured member for the month of February will be Ironman who specializes in applictions for diesel engines to assist their clients in clompliance with the new California Air Resources Board rules.

In addition, there will be some of the "normal" networking, business and information transfer opportunities that are always a part of these meetings.

This is always an enjoyable evening with lots of valuable information and networking opportunities with your fellow industry members. Mark it on your calendar and plan to attend!! Cal the APACA office at (949) 855-6489 to make your reservations.

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The history of asphalt pavement recycling dates back to the early 1900s. However, it wasn’t until the oil embargo of the 1970s that the modern practice of recycling became widespread. At that time, there was little experience with the technology. Mix design, pavement design, and construction were experimental. Performance of recycled pavements was unknown at best. With the rapid evolution of construction practices building upon nationally funded research and the experience of numerous agencies, pavement recycling is now quite common. State specs typically allow the incorporation of reclaimed asphalt pavement (RAP) in hot mix asphalt (HMA) ? any where from 10 to 50%![1] In 2006 the HMA industry found itself in a situation comparable to that of the 1970s during the oil embargo. There was a rapid increase in energy costs, as wells as asphalt binder costs, resulting in increased manufacturing and transportation costs. Furthermore, as in the 1970s, there was increased environmental awareness that resulted in difficulty with permitting new aggregate sources.

First International Conference on Pavement Preservation

Plan now to attend the First International Conference on Pavement Preservation (ICPP) which will be held in Newport Beach, CA on April 13 - 15, 2010. The ICPP will bring together researchers and experts working in the field of pavement preservation to exchange ideas, share best practices, and discuss critical issues and concerns impacting the implementation and success of pavement preservation theory and practice. Over 40 peer-reviewed papers will be presented by international experts at this event. Papers will include the follwoing subject areas:

Decisions, Decisions, Decisions - Funding solutions, performance-based decisions, variable condition decision making, surface treatment selection, pay-now or pay-later treatment selection, performance-specified maintenance contracting.

Pavement Management for Pavement Preservation - Remaining life analyses, web-based management systems, agency programs for pavvement management for pavement preservation, whole life analyses, life cycle cost assessments (economical and environmental), estimating treatment life.

Flexible Pavement Preservation Toolbox - Bonded surfaces, slurry seals, chip seals over fabrics, rejuvenator basics, crack sealing and thin overlays.

Rigid Pavement Preservation Toolbox - Ride and noise reduction benefits of rigid pavement preservation techniques, sustainable preservation techniques for cold weather pervious concrete, comparative processes for assessing rigid pavement preservation treatments.

Selecting Materials for Extending Pavement Life - Field performance of new materials, environmentally-based selection of emulsions, influence of crack sealants, thin surface treatments and overlays on pavement life.

For more information on the conference, sponsorship or exhibiting opportunities, please contact conferences@techtransfer.berkeley.edu or 510-665-3628.

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