Join your ACEC Alaska member organizations for an informal mixer and social event!

• Chat with your peers to discuss common issues your firm may be seeing in delivering work this coming year.
• Renew acquaintances and make new connections.
• Listen to ACEC leaders discuss updates on the legislative fly-in, as well as local and national ACEC legislative priorities.
• Enjoy appetizers and the bourbon bar while you mingle.
• Be present for your chance to win a $1,000 gift certificate to REI (must be present to win)!

Cost: Admission is the purchase of a $200 ACEC national spring sweepstakes ticket. Not only will this help ACEC Alaska meet it's annual national Political Action Committee (PAC) goal, it gives you the opportunity to win both the $1,000 REI gift certificate AND one of 17 cash prizes at the spring sweepstakes (May 15th) ranging from $1,000 to $10,000. That's over $50,000 in prize money available from the spring sweepstakes. Purchase one ticket for yourself...or purchase a couple and bring along some of your emerging leaders to give them a chance at the $1,000 REI door prize (and give you more chances at the $10,000 grand prize drawing).

We look forward to seeing you at this once-every-4-years opportunity. Leap into action today--RSVP and buy your spring sweepstakes now!

Thursday, February 29th 

4:00 - 6:00 PM

Door Prize Drawing at 5:15 PM

CoWork by RSD

911 West 8th Ave., Anchorage, AK

Street parking or adjacent pay lot on the southeast side of the intersection

Remember to RSVP AND purchase tickets.

Helpful hint: Please purchase your tickets beforehand. Log onto the ACEC website at

https://www.acec.org/advocacy/political-action-committee/ and navigate to the ACEC PAC webpage. You may need to agree to a "prior approval" if you have not donated to the ACEC PAC previously, and then find the Spring Sweepstakes link. Be sure to click on Alaska when presented with the map so that Alaska gets credit for the PAC donation! If you have any difficulties or questions, please contact Matt Stone at matthew.stone@hdrinc.com or 907.229.0093. There will also be printed spring sweepstakes forms on-site if you would rather do it that way.

Join ACEC Alaska for the 2024 Annual Meeting on April 17th. Participating in this year's annual meeting is an excellent opportunity for firm leaders to stay at the forefront of industry trends, make important connections, and build a culture of teamwork. We encourage the attendance of both C-Suite and emerging leaders to benefit from the keynote speaker and networking and to create a constructive environment for learning, discussions, and growth. 

Speakers will include:

• President – Len Story
• National Director – Matt Stone
• Education Committee Chair – Aaron Christie
• ACEC National Vice Chair with updates on national issues and achievements – Elizabeth Stolfus
• Keynote speaker – Leo MacLeod: Developing PMs into Future Leaders (see more info below)
• CEO/emerging leaders breakout roundtables

Wednesday, April 17th

10:30 AM to 4:30 PM

Lunch Provided

The Megan Room

6591 A Street, Anchorage

Fee structure:

• Register by March 15^th and receive a $100 discount
• Early Bird Price: $150 Member / $200 Non-Member

Register by March 15^th and receive a free copy of our keynote speakers’ book, From the Ground Up: Stories and Lessons from Architects and Engineers Who Learned to be Leaders.

Andrea Story, FSMPS, CPSM

The cornerstone of ACEC policy on the procurement of services from design professionals is selection on the basis of qualifications. Protection and expansion of the Brooks Act is a threshold, core priority of ACEC National. The national organization has been lobbying for push down requirements for state and local governments whose projects receive federal funding.

Alaska is one of 46 states that have also codified the use of QBS within state statute. Expansion of Alaska’s “mini-Brooks Act” has long been a goal of our local ACEC chapter. Expansion in Alaska would include push down requirements for local governments. This would mean that local governments whose projects are funded by state or federal dollars would be required to follow a QBS process.

The largest challenge we face within our QBS efforts is the lack of enforcement. The burden of advocacy falls on our industry.

Locally, ACEC advocacy efforts focus on reaching out to government agencies whenever we are made aware of a Request for Proposals (RFP) that contains cost as a basis for selection. Recent successful efforts include:

• Working with the Alaska Department of Transportation & Public Facilities (DOT&PF) to cancel an RFP for transportation master plan that not only included cost as the basis for selection, but also did not follow the Department’s established PSA process. Due to our advocacy efforts, the RFP was canceled and hopefully will be reissued under the DOT&PF PSA process.
• Working with the Municipality of Anchorage to modify an RFP for a Tsunami Analysis that included cost as the basis for selection. Due to our advocacy efforts, the RFP was modified to remove the cost component.

Local firms can do two things to assist in ACEC’s efforts:

1. Talk to your state legislators about the importance of expanding the mini-Brooks Act and requiring all state agencies and local governments whose projects receive federal or state funding to follow a QBS process.
2. Take a stance on QBS. Quit responding to RFPs with cost-based selection. Don’t contribute to the commoditization of professional services by responding to these RFPs. Become a vocal advocate for QBS by educating clients on why they should use QBS. 

To read more about QBS, please visit the ACEC QBS Resources Portal at https://program.acec.org/qbs-resources-portal. For more information on our local ACEC government advocacy efforts, please contact Andrea Story at astory@rmconsult.com. 

John Walsh, ACEC Alaska Lobbyist

Alaska's legislative session runs from January 16th to May 15th. Click the button below to visit the ACEC Alaska website and access the latest bill tracking spreadsheet, as well as stay informed about recent legislative updates regarding the industry.

As part of ongoing collaboration and sharing of information between ACEC Alaska and AK DOT&PF, AK DOT&PF will be providing training on AASHTOWare Project (AWP). AWP is a website based software designed specifically for state DOTs to manage their complex construction processes. AK DOT&PF is now using AWP to administer their construction contracts. Contract Administration and materials administration trainings are occurring in Juneau, Anchorage and Nome in March, April and May. Information on these trainings is located on the DOT&PF T2 Training Calendar. For additional information about AASHTOWare Project, including the ability to sign up for email updates please check out https://dot.alaska.gov/aashtoware/.