In another victory for merit shop construction, the Placer County Board of Supervisors in California Aug. 24 voted 3-2 to enact an ordinance that ensures fair and open bid competition by banning the use of project labor agreements (PLAs) on county-funded construction projects. Placer is the third county in the state to enact such an ordinance.
According to the
ordinance, the ban is needed “to promote competition in contracting, to reduce the risk of cost increases in public works projects in Placer County, and to protect the interests of the taxpayers of Placer County.” The ABC Golden Gate Chapter spoke out in favor of the ordinance before the vote.
“It’s great to see increasing momentum in California of local governments taking a proactive and positive stance in support of fair and open competition and fiscal responsibility for taxpayers,” said Kevin Dayton, state government affairs director for ABC of California.
San Diego, the sixth most populous county in the nation, will vote to ban PLAs Nov. 2, following in the footsteps of Orange County, and the city of Fresno, Calif., both of which have also banned PLAs.
ABC anticipates additional California cities and counties will consider and approve fair and open competition ordinances in the coming months, as the “
20 in 2010” campaign advances to guarantee by the end of 2010 that taxpayers in 20 local California governments get the highest quality construction at the best price.
For more information about PLAs, visit
www.TheTruthAboutPLAs.com.