In 2018, Northampton County Council adopted a Responsible Contactor Ordinance (RCO) that required apprenticeship programs from contactors and subcontractors who do major projects for the county. In 2020, it amended its RCO to make it applicable to projects as low as $100,000. After seeing several instances in which there was only one or no bids for a project, Council member John Goffredo has proposed a change that will exempt Lehigh and Northampton County contractors and subs.
Former Council member Bill McGee, who is also a union agent, spoke against this change during public comment. He told Council that OSHA and apprenticeship training is "paramount" in the construction industry. He noted it is a matter of safety. He indicated that there are more deaths in the construction industry than in any other.
Executive Lamont McClure also spoke against changing the RCO. He noted that the county's forensic center, which was built on time and under budget, included nonunion contractors who had apprenticeship programs.
Goffredo said all contractors and subcontractors post bonds and receive no payments unless the work is done responsibly. He added that the current RCO is unfair to businesses who pay taxes in Northampton County but are denied the opportunity to bid.
With respect to the paucity in bods for county work, McClure stated that for five years prior to the RCO, 55% of county projects had multiple bids. In the five years following adoption of the RCO, 60% of county projects have had multiple bidders. He noted that the number of bidders increse with the size of a project. "That's just a fact of life."
"McClure stated that for five years prior to the RCO, 55% of county projects had multiple bids. In the five years following adoption of the RCO, 60% of county projects have had multiple bidders."
ReplyDeleteAre these numbers akin to the sketchy 12% claim in the previous post? Lamont has a credibility problem.
RC Ordinances are anti-competitive, drive up costs, and are a union handout. At least, get rid of them for all contracts and subcontracts under $1MM. There are ample methods in place to ensure quality work and a safe job site without requiring apprentice programs.
ReplyDeleteAgreed. But being a total union guy I don't expect McClure to want this change
DeleteGoffreddo for County Executive!
ReplyDelete11:41am. No they don't the jobs come in on time and under budget, also when companies like Goffredo is pushing do the work, then you have the real cost of construction when everything is done shadily and we have to pay to fix it over and over again and lets not forget all the change orders you get with sloppy companies Like MSG or whatever they call themselves today
ReplyDeleteLott's head is going to explode.
ReplyDeleteNice try Steveo, your boss is a lifelong ambulance chaser. He wants to explain how business works to a real businessman, like Goffredo. So, you put out a make-believe completion date and over price the project, so they come in on time and under fake budget. That scam has been done for years. You are slippery but not as shrewd as you think you are. No problem, Bernie still has your back.
ReplyDelete"the jobs come in on time and under budget"
ReplyDeleteSure. Easton's parking garage comes to mind. Also, the "budget" is inflated from the start by eliminating competitors who might bid lower. A little econ 101 brush up is in order.
Wasn’t that under Stoffa ?
DeleteGoffredo is correct and I hope this passes, with NO MINIMUM bid requirement. As a taxpayer, I want the job done as cost effectively as possible. Just like I would at my home. The focus needs to be on vetting all companies at time of bid, so the work gets done correctly. The practice of using UNION only is actually discrimination.
ReplyDeleteMcClure brags about how he is the only one saving taxpayer money. Except of course on overpriced union work. Posser!!
ReplyDeleteSo just the way it is, is. McClure benefited from all the big development in the and yes, including the warehouses he claims to hate. He also started with the john Brown tax increase surplus he inherited. Add to that The Federal dollars that rained down on the county and despite your boy Barron's BS, the money in some pots were very discretionary.
ReplyDeleteSo, they have salted much away by over budgeting and playing with the line items numbers. Too bad Doran Hammond the truth teller is gone, he is needed.