March 27, 2020 -- 1 p.m. PDT
CalAPA COVID-19 Update No. 7 -- March 27, 2020
Important Notice: This CalAPA "Member Alert" is an exclusive benefit of CalAPA membership and should not be shared outside a member company without prior permission from CalAPA.

SUMMARY:
The California Asphalt Pavement Association (CalAPA) is closely monitoring events related to the Coronavirus / COVID-19 virus outbreak to assess what impact it will have on the asphalt pavement industry in California. What follows is the latest information gathered on the topic by the association since our previous Member Alert sent on March 23, 2020. Links to our previous Member Alerts are at the bottom of this report.

WHAT IS NEW:
  • Some states have put out conflicting guidance as it relates to if construction activities are deemed essential activities exempt from various "stay at home" orders. So far in California, no significant changes have been announced with regard to statewide guidance on this topic, and CalAPA has confirmed with Caltrans that the department is proceeding with construction projects, albeit with additional safety precautions in place.
  • On Thursday, March 26, Caltrans issued two new "Construction Procedure Directives" to staff related to operations during the COVID-19 emergency. The first, CPD 20-5, provides revised guidance with regard to how the Coronavirus situation will impact the Alternative Dispute Resolution process. It can be viewed HERE. The second, CPD 20-6, requires Caltrans resident engineers to work with contractors to revise Code of Safe Practices for projects to reflect new guidance and prevention protocols with regard to the COVID-19 pandemic. That CPD can be viewed HERE. All CPDs, including a previous directive providing guidance on specification language covering working days as it may be applied to the COVID-19 situation, be found on the Caltrans CPD archive page HERE.
  • The CalAPA Legislative Committee met on Wednesday, March 25, and, among other matters, received an update from the association's advocates, Jeff Sievers and Greg Hurner, regarding the COVID-19 impact to the Legislature, the status of bills in the Legislature and the state budget. While much remains in flux, the latest understanding is that the Legislature will continue to follow various deadlines mandated by the State Constitution, including for the 2020-21 budget to be enacted by July 1. COVID-19-related bills will be given priority, and many other bills deemed non-essential may be sidetracked for the year. The disruption to business operations, and the additional burden on the state to provide services to those impacted by the virus will clearly have an impact on state budget revenues, but the extent of those impacts are impossible to know yet but are expected to be substantial.
  • Transportation California, supported by CalAPA, released guidance on Wednesday, March 25, reaffirming that gas tax revenues devoted to transportation are protected by the state Constitution and cannot be diverted for other purposes.
  • Numerous transportation policy experts noted this week that reduced driving will depress gas tax revenues derived from fuel taxes to an extent not fully known, and retail sales tax revenue that also flows to transportation will also likely be curtailed. In the near term. However, there are funds available for projects already in the pipeline and there is general agreement with state and local authorities to continue to move those project to construction quickly.
  • The National Asphalt Pavement Association (NAPA), a CalAPA partner, has assembled various COVID-19-related health and safety information on a special safety page devoted to the topic, including an "Exposure Prevention, Preparedness and Response Plan for the Construction Industry" developed by a NAPA-supported consortium, the Construction Industry Safety Coalition. These and other resources can be accessed HERE. NAPA also held a labor law and safety webinar today (March 27). During the webinar it was noted the U.S. Department of Labor has published some COVID-19-related guidance. That information is assembled on a special website HERE.
  • CalAPA sent a letter to the California Air Resources Board formally requesting that CARB suspend the rule-making process to implement the AB617 community air toxics law. The letter follows a verbal request made to CARB during a meeeting on March 13. A copy of that letter is HERE.
  • A Caltrans document providing general guidance to the construction industry, shared in a previous CalAPA "Member Alert," has now been posted on the Caltrans web page. The direct link is HERE.
  • CalAPA continues to contact agencies and members to assess the impact of the health emergency statewide on operations and will continue to compile and summarize that information in upcoming "Member Alerts" as conditions warrant. The March 24 "Member Alert" can be found HERE.

BACKGROUND:
Guidance from government officials continues to be issued at the local, state and federal level with regard to the COVID-19 flu virus, commonly referred to as the novel coronavirus, which originated in China late last year and has been spreading quickly to other countries, including the United States. California is one of the states impacted, and the governor has declared a state of emergency as state and local governments mobilize resources to understand the nature of the flu-like virus, how it is spread, and what health implications it will bring with it. Business operations have already been disrupted as "shelter-in-place" orders are issued. Road construction has so far escaped most of these most severe restrictions as it is considered work related to "essential services" to protect vital infrastructure. CalAPA continues to seek out guidance from government and elected officials on how the public health emergency will impact the construction industry, and is monitoring supply chains to identify and assess upstream disruptions

RESOURCES:
CALAPA RESOURCES :
CalAPA is constantly updating its clearinghouse of COVID-19-related resources of interest to the asphalt pavement industry in California on the CalAPA Safety Page HERE .

The March 24, 2020 CalAPA "Member Alert" Update No. 6 on this topic is HERE .

The March 23, 2020 CalAPA "Member Alert" Update No. 5 on this topic is HERE .

The March 23, 2020 edition of the " California Asphalt Inside r" newsletter, featuring a roundup of COVID-19 issues and impacts to the asphalt industry is HERE .

The March 20, 2020 CalAPA "Member Alert" Update No. 4 on this topic is HERE .

The March 18, 2020 CalAPA "Member Alert" update No. 3 on this topic is HERE .

The March 16, 2020 CalAPA "Member Alert" update No. 2 on this topic is HERE .

The March 16, 2020 edition of the " California Asphalt Insider " newsletter featuring a roundup of COVID-19 issues and impacts to the asphalt industry is HERE .

The March 10, 2020 CalAPA Member Alert with the initial assessment of potential impacts of the coronavirus to association operations and the asphalt pavement industry as a whole is HERE .

A March 2, 2020 CalAPA California Asphalt Insider newsletter article on crisis communications tips is HERE .

OTHER RESOURCES :
The State of California, Department of Public Health website devoted to providing updated coronavirus information in California is HERE .

The California Department of Industrial Relations COVID-19 webpage is HERE .

The National Asphalt Pavement Association COVID-19 information page is HERE .

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention webpage with information on COVID-19 is HERE .

For more information on this “Member Alert,” contact CalAPA Executive Director Russell W. Snyder, CAE, at (916) 791-5044.



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