or seventy-five years, Associated General Contractors, or AGC, of Alaska’s mission of “advocate, educate, and promote” has been at the forefront of all we do. AGC has been a bedrock of transformation, shaping the state’s infrastructure and forming constructive legislation on behalf of its members. We have served to support our members as they work to find innovative solutions to Alaska’s unprecedented challenges.

Over the decades, AGC has contributed to the changing landscape that builds community and fosters opportunity for growth. Where previously Alaska’s extreme geography kept us apart, AGC’s members have built bridges and paved roads that connect us. Our members have built the businesses that drive our economy, the schools that teach future leaders, and hospitals that save lives. We all truly “build Alaska.”

Advocacy, the cornerstone of AGC’s mission, is where real change begins. AGC’s relentless commitment to informing legislators and community leaders about our industry’s significance has paved the way for a better Alaska. AGC has served, and continues to serve, as the meeting ground for industry leaders, fostering partnerships that have pushed the boundaries of what’s possible, bolstering healthy competition and industry unity.

• Build America, Buy America Act, or BABAA, pushback: AGC is leading a coalition effort to challenge the White House Office of Management and Budget’s inept implementation of BABAA across the federal government and seeking more reasonable implementation and waiver processes. AGC provided numerous educational resources, including a BABAA FAQ document (go to bit.ly/BABAA), webinars, and presentations to help members better understand the final guidance from the Build America, Buy America Act.
• Construction impacts of averted government shutdown: While urging Congress to avoid full/partial shutdowns, AGC provided its federal contractor members with several resources that outlined what to expect and how to prepare should the federal government shut down in advance of multiple shutdown scares throughout the year.
• Lawsuit against government-mandated Project Labor Agreements, or PLA: AGC of America filed a lawsuit to block the Biden administration’s government-mandated PLA rule in court, while providing guidance to members through webinars and action alerts explaining the rule, its impact, and how contractors can prepare to comply with the requirements.
• Lawsuit against Davis-Bacon Act reform: AGC of America has sued the federal government to block updates to the Davis-Bacon Act. In addition, AGC provided clear breakdowns and hosted webinars to help contractor members prepare and understand the significant changes made to compliance with Davis-Bacon on direct federal and federally assisted construction contracts.
• WOTUS definition change pushback: After persistent lobbying efforts, AGC celebrated the US Supreme Court’s 9-0 ruling in the Sackett v. EPA case—a win for Alaska, providing property owners with clarity and flexibility in developing their land and reducing uncertainty on what is qualified as “waters of the United States,” or WOTUS. This ruling reaffirms the primary role of states in managing their own land and water resources and will provide much-needed regulatory certainty for all projects in Alaska. The precise definition of WOTUS is fundamentally important to the construction industry.

• Legislative Affairs Committee activity: This group met twenty-five times leading up to and throughout the session, tracking more than forty bills, eight of which we testified or wrote letters of support/opposition about; met with countless legislators, lobbyists, and key policymakers during session to provide contractor input and perspective on crucial issues; and drafted key position statements to support our legislative priorities.
• Ambler Road update: Throughout 2023, AGC provided testimony and letters of support granting prompt right-of-way permitting for Ambler Mining District Industrial Access Road, urging the federal Bureau of Land Management to stick to the original scope of remand.
• Environmental Protection Agency Pebble project veto: AGC of Alaska joined other Alaska business groups expressing disappointment in a formal press release responding to the final determination for preemptive veto of the Pebble Mine project, and AGC continues to monitor additional opportunities for revision on this policy.
• 404 Primacy rejection: Unfortunately, AGC’s strong support and hard-fought battle for 404 Primacy over the Clean Water Act and Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, or RCRA, program funding was ultimately denied in 2023. It will remain on our advocacy priorities list as we enter the 2024 legislative session.
• Sustainable Budget Taskforce development: A core group of AGC of Alaska leaders have worked to establish a better understanding of what it means to have a sustainable fiscal plan for the State of Alaska, to more effectively communicate AGC’s legislative priorities to legislators and policy makers as it relates to the industry.
• Willow update: AGC of Alaska joined the Alaska Chamber and other pro-development organizations in filing a “friend of the court” amicus brief. This ultimately led to a federal court decision to deny requests for temporary restraining orders, which allowed the Willow project to continue engaging in winter development activity.

• Inaugural Educator Externships: 2023 saw the launch of AGC’s Educator Externship program with the goal of exposing Alaskan educators to the many career opportunities available within the construction industry. The program’s specific focus for the externship experience is to provide educators with first-hand experience on jobsites of real-life applications of current high school curriculum.
• Scholarships: In 2023, AGC awarded $30,000 through our scholarship and endowment programs to students across Alaska who are pursuing higher education in construction-related fields.
• Sponsorships: AGC supports the UAA-Construction Management, or CM, and UAF-AGC student clubs by providing monetary support for club participation in competitions which include Steel Bridge, Concrete Canoe, Starvation Gulch, Ice Arch, and the ASC Regional competition.
• Speed Interviewing events: To connect CM students directly with AGC contractor members, AGC facilitated speed interviewing events in Anchorage and Fairbanks to help students perfect their interviewing skills while introducing them to actively hiring contractor members.

**All employees of AGC member companies are eligible for member-pricing discounts on all AGC training programs.**

• Online Plans: In 2023, AGC listed more than 2,387 project postings to our Online Plans site, making our members the first to know about new jobs/projects from both public and private sectors across the state of Alaska. AGC’s Online Plans has 3,825 active users who use the platform daily.
• AGC 401(k) Retirement Plan: AGC members (contractors & associates) can enroll in this cost-effective, low-maintenance 401(k) program for companies of all sizes. In 2023, more than thirty-three Alaska-based AGC members participated in the plan, contributing more than$2.5 million combined towards their employees’ retirement.
• Labor relations: In 2023, AGC renegotiated five collective bargaining agreements on behalf of our industry and signatory members. The formal bargaining process saw successful contract negotiations on behalf of the following trades: Operative Plasterers & Cement Masons Local 528; Teamsters & Technical Engineers Local 959; Roofers, Waterproofers and Allied Workers Local 189; Alaska District Council of Laborers Local 341 & 942; International Union of Operating Engineers Local 302. AGC would like to thank the members that dedicate time and serve a crucial role in ensuring these agreements are fair, equitable, and meet the needs of business for contractors who elect to do work under our Alaska-based agreements.
• Union contractors quarterly town hall: In addition to negotiations, AGC partnered with our signatory contractor members nationwide to discuss issues of importance across the industry as they impact our members to facilitate the sharing of information, trends, and best practices.
• ConsensusDocs discount: AGC members are achieving better project results through ConsensusDocs to ensure up-to-date contracts, reflecting industry standards. AGC members receive 20 percent off of ConsensusDocs subscriptions, saving them time and money by accessing customizable templates for hundreds of standardized contract documents, including general-subcontractor, design-build, public-private-partnership, and so much more.
• AGC Emerging Contractors Education series: In 2023, AGC released a series of educational videos geared towards smaller, up-and-coming contractors. The twelve modules cover a variety of topics, including Business Development, Bidding & Estimating, Financials & Cash Flow, and more. This entire video series is free for AGC members.

• Construction Spending Forecast Breakfasts: More than 200 members attended AGC’s Construction Spending Forecast Breakfasts in Anchorage and Fairbanks, where attendees heard McKinley Research Group analyze industry prospects by region, construction type, and other critical factors, empowering our members with strategic information for the year ahead.
• Fairbanks Bowl-A-Thon: Twenty teams participated in this AGC FUNdraiser helping benefit AGC’s Alaska scholarship program.
• Legislative Fly-In: Eighteen members gathered in Juneau alongside AGC’s staff and lobbyist for our annual legislative fly-in. The event was of great value to our members and our state leaders as AGC’s members met with nearly thirty legislators, the governor’s office, as well as the commissioners of the state departments of Transportation, Labor, and Commerce to advocate for and educate about AGC’s legislative priorities.
• Spring Agency Day: Seventy-five attendees joined AGC at our Fairbanks office for Agency Day, where members received program presentations from the Alaska Department of Transportation & Public Facilities, or DOT&PF, US Department of Defense, University of Alaska, and other owners/agencies. More than 130 members gathered at the Auto Museum for the networking reception element of Agency Day.
• Anchorage and Fairbanks golf tournaments: Unseasonably chilly weather couldn’t stop seventy-five teams from teeing off at the industry’s favorite golf tournaments, held at Moose Run and Chena Bend. The collective efforts of sponsors, volunteers, and dedicated golfers transformed these tournaments into a resounding success.
• Safety Fair: 2023 was a phenomenal year for the Safety Fair thanks to our Safety Committee and our partners at Davis Constructors. More than 200 attendees visited twenty-four different stations for families to explore and learn more about construction-related safety and health.
• Sporting Clays Shoot: Nearly 130 shooters enjoyed blue skies and sun at this year’s Sporting Clays Shoot. Twenty-four teams descended on the Birchwood Recreation and Shooting Park—our largest event of this kind in AGC history!
• Annual Conference: 2023 was the biggest year yet for our Annual Conference and Dinner Dance. With a record 530 registered attendees and 62 sponsors, not even a record snowstorm could stop our members from joining us at the Hotel Captain Cook for presentations from the AGC Education, Training and Workforce Development and Safety committees, legal seminars, updates from the DOT&PF and US Army Corps of Engineers-Alaska, or USACE, and our keynote speaker Haydn Shaw, among others. AGC’s Dinner Dance sold out in fourteen minutes, and after our program celebrating seventy-five years of Building Alaska, we saw nearly 650 attendees dance the night away to crowd-favorite band, Final Say.

• 2023 saw the reformation of AGC’s Legal Affairs Committee, which focuses on providing guidance to the association and presentations on current legal issues impacting our members and Alaska’s construction industry.
• Throughout 2023, AGC published four editions of our award-winning magazine, The Alaska Contractor, which featured profiles on longstanding AGC members, statewide project updates, columns on construction industry financial services, occupational health & safety, legal, and HR updates, along with expert advice and guidance related to the construction industry for state and federal agencies, private groups, and other trade organizations.
• We had record-setting submission numbers for the 2023 Excellence in Construction Awards program, which gives recognition of exceptional projects completed by contractor members and are presented at AGC’s Annual Conference.
• AGC’s DOT&PF Steering Committee had a remarkably productive year, achieving significant milestones through close collaboration with DOT&PF. One key accomplishment was the development of the rural materials best practices document, which was endorsed by Deputy Commissioner Katherine Keith and Commissioner Ryan Anderson. This document guides DOT&PF project personnel in assessing and permitting rural material sources, ensuring cost-effectiveness on DOT&PF projects. Members of the DOT&PF Steering Committee also met as a smaller workgroup to address challenges related to oversize/overweight haul units on rural projects. We are looking forward to another productive and collaborative year within this committee.
• In 2023, AGC Executive Director Alicia Amberg promoted the Economic Benefits of Alaska’s Construction Industry report at a Resource Development Council Breakfast Forum. This presentation provided AGC with the opportunity to engage a larger audience and disseminate a resource that serves as a significant tool in AGC’s advocacy work to convey the value and impact our industry has statewide.
• AGC is proud of the partnership we’ve developed with the US Army Corps of Engineers, and in 2023 we provided members with the USACE partnering playbook during a members-only Art of Partnering Webinar, which contained valuable information on successfully partnering strategies with USACE.