Rules governing design-build on highway projects, a state credit for Opportunity Zone investors and a ban on coal tar sealants are among the construction-related bills that are before Wisconsin lawmakers this week.

Tagged with: asphalt broadband design-bid-build design-build Gov. Tony Evers

A bill introduced last week in the Legislature would set requirements for the use of design-build on Wisconsin road projects roughly half a year the state budget began permitting the use of the delivery method in this state.

Tagged with: bidding competitive bidding design-bid-build design-build Gov. Tony Evers Jerry Petrowski John Nygren roads Wisconsin Department of Transportation

With his signature on Tuesday, Gov. Tony Evers called on the state DOT to have at least five projects on hand that contractors can complete using the design-build method.

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The Wisconsin Assembly approved bills on Thursday that would change Wisconsin Department of Transportation policies to set new limits on single-bid contracts and sanction the design-build delivery method on road projects.

Tagged with: design-build Joe Sanfelippo roads state Legislature Wisconsin Department of Transportation WisDOT

Lawmakers have aired out a handful of bills that could shake up how the Wisconsin Department of Transportation awards bids and delivers projects, as part of a multi-pronged effort to reform the department following a funding increase.

Tagged with: design-build Hoffman Construction Jim Hoffman Joe Sanfelippo Joint Finance Committee WisDOT

Wisconsin Republicans say a proposed gas tax is dead-on-arrival and have introduced a set of transportation bills calling for a funding alternative and a number of department overhauls meant to cajole skeptical lawmakers into assenting to a revenue increase.

Tagged with: design-build gas tax Gov. Tony Evers Joe Sanfelippo roads state Legislature Tom Tiffany Wisconsin Department of Transportation

Republican lawmakers on Wednesday began seeking sponsors for about a dozen transportation-related bills that could include an alternative to a gas-tax increase and allow for the use of the design-build system on highway projects.

Tagged with: design-build gas tax Gov. Tony Evers Joe Sanfelippo state Legislature vehicle-registration fees Wisconsin Department of Transportation

Various county officials are calling for a change to Wisconsin's bidding rules to allow design-build contractors to compete for more work — a tweak they say could save taxpayers money.

Tagged with: design-build Joe Sanfelippo Wisconsin Counties Association

If the state of Wisconsin was considering legislation to spend its scarce transportation dollars to pay contractors to build projects “without having to face any competition” in infrastructure “beauty contests” that only reward out-of-state “industry giants,” as described by The Daily Reporter in a recent editorial, then the state’s taxpayers should be very alarmed.

Tagged with: design-bid-build design-build

When a trades group representing mostly nonunion contractors and the state’s biggest construction union are united in their opposition to a legislative proposal, it should give lawmakers pause.

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