CALIFORNIA ASPHALT INSIDER

The latest asphalt news from the California Asphalt Pavement Association

Dec. 7, 2015

IN THIS ISSUE

President signs 5-year, $305 billion federal transportation bill, warts and all

Registration now open for the CalAPA Annual Dinner Jan. 21 in Los Angeles

Members in the news: Sespe's Cohen named CalCIMA "Associate Member of the Year".

Welcome aboard: Holt of California

Join CalAPA today and work smarter tomorrow

Tech Term of the Week: Full-depth Reclamation

Quote of the Week: Edith Wharton

CALENDAR

REGISTRATION OPEN!
CalAPA Annual Dinner
Thursday, Jan. 21 The Jonathan Club
545 S. Figueroa St.
Los Angeles
Details HERE

*

"Critical Changes to Caltrans Section 39 HMA Specifications" class
Tuesday, Feb. 23
1 p.m. to 5 p.m.
City of West Sacramento City offices, 1110 West Capitol Avenue, First Floor, West Sacramento
Contact: Ritha Nhorn (916) 791-5044
Register HERE

*

"Critical Changes to Caltrans Section 39 HMA Specifications" class
Wednesday, Feb. 24

8 a.m. to noon
City of West Sacramento City offices, 1110 West Capitol Avenue, First Floor, West Sacramento
Contact: Ritha Nhorn (916) 791-5044
Register HERE

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View our interactive, "At a Glance" event calendar HERE.

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California Asphalt Pavement Association (CalAPA)

Mailing address:

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West Sacramento, CA 95798

Main office:

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West Sacramento, CA 95691

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This weekly bulletin contains the latest news and information of interest to the asphalt pavement industry in California. Please feel free to distribute this newsletter to others who may be interested in asphalt pavements.

President signs 5-year, $305 billion federal transportation bill, warts and all

It wasn't exactly the early Christmas present industry had hoped for, but it was better than the lumps of coal that was the Scrooge-like booby prize of recent years.

President Obama on Friday signed a five-year, $305 billion highway bill into law after the compromise plan sailed through both houses of Congress on bipartisan votes.

The plan was certainly no one's favored solution, but nonetheless generated a fair amount of back-slapping by elected officials no doubt weary of persistent nagging by good-roads movement.

"This is an historic moment for the American people," U.S. Sen.

Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., the ranking member of the Senate's Environment & Public Works Committee, declared on Friday via Twitter.

To be sure, the road to the latest transportation bill was a winding one, with enough drama to fill a reality TV show. Held hostage at several junctures by anti-tax hardliners, with one Senate version called a "piece of (expletive)" by former House Speaker John Boehner, and more recent versions denounced by others as containing budget gimmickry. The bill nevertheless kept gathering unstoppable momentum and on the day or reckoning, Dec. 3, it sailed through the House on a 359-65 vote, and similarly cleared the Senate later the same day on an 83-16 vote.

Since it is recent fashion to give all transportation bills goofy acronym-based nicknames, the 1,300-page bill was dubbed the FAST Act, shorthand for "Fixing America's Surface Transportation" Act. Given that the previous bill expired in 2012, and America had to suffer through dozens of short-term patches since then, there was nothing "fast" about it. It did, however, include a grab-bag of goodies to please various constituency groups, including funding for Amtrak and restoring the controversial Export-Import Bank. An estimated $281 billion was allocated for highway and road projects, according to the National Asphalt Pavement Association (NAPA).

Both California Senators, Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein, voted "yes" on the measure, as did nearly all of California's House delegation. The lone "no" votes were cast by Republican Reps. Darrell Issa (CA-49), Tom McClintock (CA-4) and Dana Rohrabacher (CA48). Not casting a vote were Democrats Pete Aguilar (CA-31) and Loretta Sanchez (CA-46).

McClintock, a longtime critic of how transportation dollars are spent, both when he was in the California Legislature and now in Congress, explained his "no" vote HERE.

For Boxer, the passage of the bill culminated years of legislative arm-twisting that earned her, in 2013, a "Legislator of the Year" award by the National Asphalt Pavement Association. She has recently announced plans to retire.

The "allocations" for California (in billions), based on previous formulas, look like this (wth current 2015 levels presented for comparison):

FY2015	FY2016	FY2017	FY2018	FY2019	FY2020
$3,542.5	$3,723.0	$3,799.9	$3,882.0	$3,969.6	$4,064.7

A NAPA summary of the main provisions of the bill of interest to the asphalt pavement industry is HERE. A more detailed briefing package provided by the House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee is HERE.

CalAPA Political Action Committee Chair Len Nawrocki from Valero (right) was part of an asphalt industry delegation that met with Sen. Barbara Boxer (center) in Washington, D.C. in 2013 to talk transportation funding.

Registration now open for the CalAPA Annual Dinner Jan. 21 in Los Angeles

Registration is now open for the most prestigious industry event of the year: CalAPA's Annual Dinner Jan. 21 at the historic Jonathan Club in downtown Los Angeles. Click HERE for details.

The evening program will include the formal induction of former

association executive Jim St. Martin into the industry's "Hall of Fame" as a "Life Member."

Traditionally one of CalAPA's most popular events, attendees will be able to re-connect with colleagues, meet new industry leaders and enjoy sumptuous food in one of the most elegant settings in California. This is a member-only event, but spouses and invited guests are welcome if paid for and accompanied by a member.

The festivities will take place at the elegant venue, 545 S. Figueroa St. in Los Angeles. The reception begins at 5:30 p.m., with the dinner program following. The CalAPA Board of Directors meets earlier in the day.

For more information, including sponsorship opportunities, contact Sophie You of CalAPA at (916) 791-5044.

Members in the news: Sespe's Cohen named CalCIMA "Associate Member of the Year"

Scott Cohen

Scott Cohen with Sespe Consulting, co-chair of the CalAPA Environmental Committee, was recently recognized by the California Construction & Industrial Materials Association (CalCIMA) as "Associate Member of the Year."

The recognition was presented at the CalCIMA Education Conference in Monterey.

Sespe has offices in San Diego, Ventura and San Diego. To learn more about the company, click HERE.

Welcome aboard: Holt of California

CalAPA is pleased to welcome its newest associate member, Holt of California.

Holt of California, which has been in business more than 80 years and employs about 700 people, sells and services a wide variety of equipment, including large and small construction equipment, agricultural equipment, forklifts, racking systems, telescopic handlers, prime and stand-by power generation, UPS systems and Holt of California logo

on-highway truck engines. In addition, they rent Caterpillar and other preferred manufactured equipment for contractors.

Holt of California's territory covers 16 counties for the traditional Caterpillar product line, as well as all of Central Northern California for Caterpillar Lift Trucks and the East Bay Area and the Reno/Sparks area for our Mitsubishi & Clark forklift lines. Holt of California's five divisions serve all industries: Earth-moving, Agriculture, Power Systems, Material Handling and The Cat Rental Store.

For more information, click HERE to visit the Holt of California website, or contact Abigail Sinclair at 916-921-8800.

Join CalAPA today and work smarter tomorrow

There has never been a better time to be a member of the California Asphalt Pavement Association (CalAPA). The association is dedicated to representing the asphalt pavement industry in California, as well as delivering products and services to enhance

the knowledge and skills vital to remaining competitive and deliver a high-quality product in today's fast-moving environment. What you don't know can cost you!

A special publication that features a few association highlights from 2015 can be found HERE. A promotional brochure about CalAPA and its many services, including our exclusive member-only "Member Alerts," is HERE. A list of current CalAPA members is HERE. If you would like to do business with companies that are leaders in the industry, click HERE to view our Buyers' Guide.

All CalAPA members agree to abide by the association's Code of Ethics. You can read it HERE. To have information about membership sent to you, contact CalAPA's Member Services Manager Sophie You at (916) 791-5044. CalAPA is the voice of the industry in California. Isn't it time you learned what 200 other companies already know?

	Tech Term of the Week
Each week we highlight a word, acronym or other reference commonly used in the asphalt pavement industry in California. FULL-DEPTH RECLAMATION: A pavement rehabilitation technique in which the full flexible pavement section and a predetermined portion of the underlying materials are uniformly pulverized and blended together to produce a homogeneous stabilized base course (SBC).

	Quote of the Week
"There are two ways of spreading light: to be the candle or the mirror that reflects it." Edith Wharton

	For the record
In an article that appeared in last week's Asphalt Insider about Caltrans specifications, the Caltrans office that is responsible for publishing the specifications was listed incorrectly. The official name is the Division of Engineering Services, Office Engineer. The preferred shorthand name for the office is the "Caltrans Office Engineer."

We hope you enjoy CalAPA's Asphalt Insider. We are committed to providing you with the most up-to-date information on technical issues, regulation, news and events in California that may impact the asphalt pavement industry. Click HERE to contact us with any comments or suggestions.

Sincerely,

Russell W. Snyder

Executive Director

California Asphalt Pavement Association (CalAPA)

The California Asphalt Insider is an official publication of the California Asphalt Pavement Association. For more information or to inquire about membership, call (916) 791-5044, or click HERE to send us an e-mail.
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