MAY 2019 May 10th June 21st July 19th Cover - 2019 Lobby Day ...more on page 2 Builder Developer Public Improvement Liability Bow Tie Economist - Free is Never Really Free Mayors Luncheon—Waterloo Mayor, Tom Smith NAHB Now - OSHA’s Use of Drones HBR Metro East Association 6100 West Main Street Maryville, IL 62062
LOBBY DAY 2019 Participating Members: Art Stumpf AUTCOhome Appliances Mary Ann Lopez Drake Drake Construction Mark Fulford Fulford Construction, Inc. Jan Johnson Garrett E. & Herschel E. Johnson RE & Dev. Steve Macaluso Halloran Construction Jon Edler Henges Interiors Aaron Klemme Klemme Construction Jason Huelsmann & Josh Buck New Tradition Homes David Padgett Padgett Building & Remodeling Co., Inc. Jeff Schmidt R.P. Lumber Company Mark Vogt Vogt Builders, Inc. Senator Plummer brought our group on the Senate floor before session started The issues: General Contractor held liable for Subcontractor Employee Wages—this bill has passed out of the House and now going to the Senate for consideration. Senator Rachelle Crowe is pivotal on this bill that will most likely go to the Senate Judicial Committee that she is the Vice Chair. Senator Crowe told us that she has our backs on this Bill. 15 Day Right to Cancel for Seniors that are solicited for Home Repairs. Amended language was added that points to uninvited solicitors to protect Seniors and the professionals in our organization. All Legislators were favorable of this change. Repeal of the Kyoto Protocol Act would remove the protections we have for the IL EPA to propose any new rules placing Illinois in a non-competitive position with neighboring states giving the agencies a blank check to regulate greenhouse gases beyond current federal standards. Support from the Legislators was heard on expansion of the Vacant Lot Act that will allow Home Builders to purchase and hold lots at an affordable rate of taxation until home construction begins. Graduated Income Tax was brought to the table with each Legislator. One of our Legislators said “they are voting to allow WE the PEOPLE to vote on this” another shared “this tax is like rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic”. There was a caucus meeting held that day with Senate and the House to get this moving forward, Senate passed this and now goes to the House. Senator Manar visit at his office Page 2
LOBBY DAY 2019 Visited with: Rep. Jay Hoffman came off the session floor and set us up in a conference room Rep. Jerry Costello in the tundra Senator Crowe Senator Manar Senator McClure Senator Plummer Senator Schmipf Rep. Bourne Rep. Bristow Rep. Costello Senator Schimpf at his office Rep. Davidsmeyer Rep. Greenwood Rep. Hoffman Rep. Bourne Rep. Meier Rep. Stuart Rep. Avery Bourne and baby visited with us at Charlie Meier’s office Senator Rachelle Crowe outside of committee meeting Talking with Senator Plummer in his office Rep. Monica Bristow came out of session to meet with us outside the House doors Rep. CD Davidsmeyer met up with us at the Reception along with Columbia Mayor Hutchison Rep. Charlie Meier visit was our last stop for the day ending us on a great note of 100% support
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FREE IS NEVER REALLY FREE Over the last few years large social media and search engine firms have been routinely accused of trading and selling our personal information, propagating toxic content, weaponizing user information, and more generally eroding our privacy. Last October, Tim Cook, CEO of Apple, made many of these same claims while bashing technology companies in front of a receptive audience in Brussels. Yet this is not simply a battle between tech billionaires. Rather, it is a result of a serious design flaw plaguing the Internet. It is no coincidence that Google, Facebook and Twitter, which each receive more than 85% of their revenue from advertising, are the ones most frequently accused of malevolent activity. Conversely, Microsoft, Amazon and Apple, whose revenues come from selling goods or services or both, fly almost entirely under the radar. It’s because Facebook and Google make their money by giving away their products to one group and then selling advertisements to an entirely different one. Think about why price matters. It’s how the market rations resources. A price tells sellers how much to invest in a product and it helps consumers decide whether a product is worth buying. But a price of zero messes this all up. Free is great for generating volume and user engagement, but it is a disaster when it comes to quality control. Some firms offer free entry-level products in the hope of up-selling their users a later date, like Adobe, and some services like Wikipedia are free due to thousands of hobbyists who love what they do and expect no monetary compensation. By contrast, free is the entire business model of search engines and social media. To generate advertisements, they must maximize users and engagement, and that requires low barriers, if any, to their platforms. And to maximize advertising revenue, the platforms must learn as much about their users as possible. This pits volume and revenue against quality and confidentiality. The result is the steady erosion of privacy. We all know that free services are anything but. Users not only give away their data, but as a result are exposed to lots of useless and occasionally harmful content, such as phishing attacks which result because senders of email don’t have to pay (buy stamps) to get email delivered. Similarly, there are always fake, or paid-for reviews mingled with legitimate ones on “free” services such as Yelp. And there is always a steady stream of manipulative or fake news that contaminates news feeds. In a world where communication is free, bad communication beats good communication because good communication is costly. But it doesn’t necessarily have to be this way. Apple prioritizes user privacy and content quality, is more restrictive about what apps can run on its devices and has humans curate content. But that is one reason why Apple devices and products cost more than similar such Android offerings. TV offers another example. Network television was once an ad-supported oligopoly that aimed its content to the lowest common denominator. But HBO and now Netflix have shown that viewers will pay for quality content that is void of advertisements. Pandora and Spotify offer ad-free music streaming services for a monthly fee. And new technologies now make it easy to charge tiny amounts online, making it possible to bypass “free” services if desired. But there are problems: Apple’s market share has stalled as new potential buyers balk at its high prices, while Netflix, Pandora and Spotify have yet to turn a profit. Lastly, search and social media outlets that might, in the future, charge will have a hard time becoming viable due to the large network effects that “free” incumbents enjoy. That said, some broad-based firm will eventually succeed and show that free need not remain the reflexive internet model of the future and in the process, our privacy concerns will hopefully wither away.
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The Remodelers Council is excited to announce the due to the Flip House being sold, they were able to donate $5,000 to R3 Development. R3 Development is a non-profit community development organization. They specialize in creating programs and ecosystems that improve economic futures for the youth of East St. Louis. They do this through social enterprise efforts that include rehabbing homes in the East St. Louis area. Through donations from private individuals and organizations, they are able to recruit, train and employ East St. Louis youth while providing leadership development programs. Their programs use best practices that are evidence-based. The students that R3 works with could be a great resource for HBR members to build the workforce that has been so challenging. Contact R3 Development at (314) 504-2864 or visit their website at r3dev.org Its official—before the house even hit the market, it was sold! The Remodelers Council along with members and added resources really knocked this one out of the park. What a transformation and effort showcasing how amazing the members of the Remodelers Council Metro East are. Page 8
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To Mayor Tom Smith and Staff, Waterloo, IL Benchmark Title Co, Fulford Homes, Drake Construction Jacob Sunrooms, Exteriors & Baths, TheBANK, Remmington Properties Custom Marble, ReMax Preferred, Associated Bank, CMI Construction Bank of Waterloo, Alderman TWM, Padgett Building & Remodeling Co., C.A. Jones
Population: 10,874 Households: 3,913 Businesses: 720 Total area of 7.52 square miles * 5,400 acres Waterloo Schools are ranked 3rd Best District in the State of Illinois in ELA & Math proficiency. Parks and Recreation and Community Events and Involvement coupled with a strong Business Community make Waterloo ideal for any family or business to thrive! Utilities Infrastructure Water - Purchases water from Illinois–Ameren Water Streets - The City of Waterloo owns and maintains 62 miles of roads within the city limits and are maintained by the city. Sewer - Presently the city processes one million gallons of wastewater per day. Which is 50% of the cities sewer treatment facility, built in 2005. Natural Gas - Waterloo owns and operates its own natural gas System. The response time for a gas department employee is 30 minutes from the time of an emergency call being placed. Electric - Electric service is purchased through the Illinois Municipal Electric Agency (IMEA) and has it’s own Line Crew which, also has 30 minute response time. Waterloo also has it’s own powerplant that allows the city to operate independently during an interruption of incoming power and produce electric for sale on the open market through the IMEA. Residential Subdivision Update As of January 1, 2019 There are 127 total available lots in five (5) different zones Commercial Developments Update As of January 1, 2019 There are 53 total available lots —ranging from .27 to 22 acres
May 1 New Tradition Homes May 8 Otten Contracting May 15 Padgett Building & Remodeling Co. Social Media is loving Dream Homes!! Results from the month of videos People Reached 238,451 Viewers 95% on mobile devices Post Engagements Link Clicks 112K + 2,200 + 40% more Men from ages 18-34 Equal Men/Women ages 35-44 45% more Women from ages 45+ Thanks to all the amazing builders that participated in the 2019 Metro East Dream Homes. New Tradition Homes RCC Padgett Building & Remodeling Co. Otten Contracting Huntington Chase McBride Homes Spencer Homes D&F Home Builders Vogt Builders C.A. Jones Garrett E. & Herschel E. Johnson Real Estate and Development Co. Fulford Homes CMI Construction Page 12
St. Clair County 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 Madison County 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 Monroe County 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 YTD Jan Feb Mar 28 32 32 32 23 15 30 27 23 25 42 44 39 35 21 Totals 85 106 98 90 69 YTD Jan Feb Mar 10 21 14 19 11 24 19 20 17 18 36 29 28 23 20 Totals 67 62 63 62 55 YTD Jan Feb Mar 12 12 6 8 5 8 8 11 9 4 8 8 10 8 6 Totals 28 28 27 25 15 Troy 14 Edwardsville 12 Highland 8 Glen Carbon 6 Unincorporated 6 O’Fallon 21 Mascoutah 16 Unincorporated 9 Belleville 3 Columbia 7 Waterloo 4 Unincorporated 4 MarketGraphics provides the HBA with these permit reports. MarketGraphics offers many other housing and subdivision analysis reports. Contact them today to see how that can be of service to you directly. Page 13
OSHA’s Use of Drones: What Builders Need to Know “[Drones] may be used to collect evidence during inspections in certain workplace settings, including in areas that are inaccessible or pose a safety risk to inspection personnel.” With the emergence of wider drone use, OSHA has also stepped into the drone business, allowing the use of drones during worksite inspections for compliance assistance and for training purposes. The potential for OSHA to use drones in enforcement activities has raised concerns from home builders and other contractors. On May 18, 2018, in a memorandum to Regional Administrators, OSHA set forth its policy related to the use of drones during inspections. The Agency stated: “[Drones] may be used to collect evidence during inspections in certain workplace settings, including in areas that are inaccessible or pose a safety risk to inspection personnel.” In addition to OSHA having to comply with FAA and other regulations regarding drone use, the memorandum establishes “Recommended Best Practices” to be followed by OSHA regions when using drones. The best practices are extensive and are designed to ensure the drones are flown safely and that employer and employee rights are protected by the use of the drones. Notably, in order for OSHA to use a drone in the course of an inspection, OSHA must receive consent by the employer to use the drone. OSHA must also notify all affected personnel on the job site that it will be using a drone. These internal procedures will help ensure that OSHA is using drones only when absolutely necessary and not to attempt to open an inspection with the use of a drone without rigorous consultation with employers and employees. In the Recommended Best Practices, OSHA also sets forth rigorous training procedures for those individuals who will be involved in drone operation. For those regions that will be using drones, a regional training plan must be developed to address initial training, recurrent training, and training on base tasks for the pilot of the drone and the secondary visual observer, who would also be required for any drone use. How to Prepare In the near term, OSHA’s use of drones during inspections will likely be limited to rare circumstances where the nature of the inspections is such that compliance officers cannot safely access particular areas (e.g., emergency response inspections, or accessing work sites located at significant heights). “Home builders should still be aware that OSHA owns drones and has the capability to use them in the course of inspections, and should plan accordingly,” noted Brad Hammock, an attorney with the law firm of Littler Mendelson, P.C. in Washington, D.C. To prepare, home builders should review OSHA’s drone memorandum and Recommended Best Practices. In addition, job site supervisors should be trained in the memorandum, in particular, that: 1. OSHA by policy cannot use drones in the course of an inspection without employer consent, and, 2. OSHA must notify any affected employees regarding the use of drones. Home builders should determine their approach to allowing OSHA’s use of drones in advance of an inspection and ensure job site supervisors are trained and knowledgeable about the approach. Finally, home builders operating in OSHA State-plan States are encouraged to research how those states are using drones, if at all. Several OSHA State-plan States have also purchased drones and developed their own policies for drone use. Page 14
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RENEWALS Ambassador Floor Company Belleville Supply Company Benchmark Title Company Brennan Building & Remodeling City of Troy Crown C Supply Crown Roofing & Exteriors Custom Floors & More, Inc. Custom Marble, Inc. DMI Plumbing, Inc. Drake Construction Econ-O-Johns FCB Banks First National Bank of Waterloo Fulford Construction Henges Interiors J.T McDermott Remodeling Contractors Joe Lanahan Construction Services, Inc. Kappert Construction Company, Inc. L.D.C. Homes, Inc. Lantz Homes, Inc. MDB Electric, Inc. Padgett Building & Remodeling Co., Inc. Quantum Homes, Inc. RE/Results Realty SCI Engineering, Inc. Spencer Homes TFH Construction, LTD. Wade Sales and Service, Inc. Wells Fargo Home Mortgage Yaekel & Associates, Inc. Professional Women in Building Council Padgett Building & Remodeling Co., Inc. (x2) R.P. Lumber Co., Inc. Remodelers Council AUTCOhome Appliances Sherwin Williams Company Michael Fahnestock Cameron Ashley Building Products 6363 Bartmer Industrial Drive St. Louis, MO 63130 O: (314) 426-2225 C: (314) 581-5840 michaelfahnestock@cameronashleybp.com www.cameronashleybp.com Jim Knobeloch Trinity Heating, Cooling and Electrical Inc. 325 Meadow Drive Bethalto, IL 62010 P: (618) 407-6350 jim@trinityservice.net Dave Corbitt XL Building Products 10707 Midwest Industrial Blvd. St. Louis, MO 63132 P: (314) 429-2919 www.xlbpco.com Remodelers Council New Members Arrowhead Building Supply Eagle Flooring Himstedt Roofing Landscapes Unlimited Page 17 Bank of Springfield Electro Door Jarvis Electric Midwest Carpet & Duct Cleaning New Membe r s
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6100 West Main Street Maryville, IL 62062 Phone: 618-343-6331 E-mail: tbutler@hbaswil.org Web: www.hbrmea.org
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