American Recovery & Reinvestment Act (ARRA) Bonding Assistnace Reimbursable Fee Program (BAP)

This new program, which will be administered by the Department of Transportation’s Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization (OSDBU), allows certified Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) companies to be reimbursed for bonding premiums and fees incurred on transportation infrastructure projects funded by ARRA. The program will be especially helpful for small businesses with traditionally less working capital than larger contractors.

Under the DBE ARRA BAP program, DBEs performing on a transportation and infrastructure projects receiving ARRA funding assistance from any DOT mode of transportation will receive financial bonding assistance in the form of bonding fee cost reimbursement. This provision is applicable to a subcontract or prime contract at any tier in the construction project.

Under this program DOT will directly reimburse DBEs the premiums paid to the surety company for performance, payment or bid/proposal bonds. The range of the premium fee is between 1-3% of the total bond amount. In the event the DBE also obtains a bond guarantee from Small Business Administration’s (SBA) Surety Bond Guarantee Program (SBGP), the DOT will also reimburse the DBE for the small business concern (principal) fee of .729% of the contract price.

Visit http://www.dot.gov/recovery/ost/osdbu/index.htm for more information about this program.

Small Business Contract Opportunities

The Metro Gold Line Foothill Extension Construction Authority has $600 million for construction of the light-rail transit line from Pasadena to Azusa.

Are you interested in bidding on this project? Attend the no-cost workshop being hosted by the Authority on September 15th at 8:30 AM. The event will be held at the Doubletree Hotel, 924 W. Huntingon Drive, Monrovia.

Reservations are required. Call 714-973-1335 or visit the web site:

http://www.foothillextension.org/index2.html

Safety & Bonding for Contractors Workshop

Module 6 of the California Construction Contraction Program focuses on the regulatory requirements in regards to safety and bonding. Safety compliance and record keeping are important aspect of operating a successful construction firm. Any contractor interested in participating in public sector projects must be able to obtain bonding. With the new U. S. Small Business Administration and Caltrans’ Bonding Assistance Initiative Program, attendees will learn how these two organizations have teamed to provide information and assistance to contractors to utilize the U. S. Bond Assistance Guaranty Program.

Courses include:
Course 1 (8/19/2009 - 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM)
Safety Part 1: CAL/OSHA Regulations and Recordkeeping
This class will cover important Cal/OSHA recordkeeping requirements, required forms, and recording criteria, a detailed look at the Annual OSHA Injury and Illness Survey, and the major differences between State and Federal standards.
(Lunch Provided for Courses 1 & 2)

Course 2 (8/19/2009 1:00 PM - 4:00 PM)
Safety Part 2: CAL/OSHA Workplace Injury and Illness Prevention Program
This course will highlight the importance of an Injury and Illness Prevention Program and provide guidelines to implement a program to comply with OSHA and other regulatory requirements


Course 3 (8/20/2009 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM)
A Contractors Guide to Bonding
Areas to be covered in this course include what is a surety bond and how it is differs from insurance, how to meet surety bond requirements, and what happens when issues arise on the bonded project. You will also learn more about the Bonding Assistance Initiative Program.

For additional information and to register on-line go to: http://www.ocsbdc.com/training/cccp_module4.htm and click on Module 6.