ACEC/PA Members,

I would like to start by saying thank you to the organization and to JMT for having the faith in me to lead ACEC/PA for the upcoming year. It is truly an honor and a privilege to hold this position. I would be remiss if I did not offer a huge THANK YOU to our outgoing President, Dave Lowdermilk. Dave has left some big shoes to fill with the many accomplishments and issues that were resolved or brought to light before our clients during his tenure as President.

As your new President, I would like to extend a thank you from me and the staff at ACEC/PA to all of those who attended the Annual Meeting in Key West, Florida. It was great tobe able to mingle and converse with representatives from other Member Firms. I can only hope we have the same turn out next year at our annual meeting, which is taking place in San Antonio, Texas.

The goals and objectives from last year were discussed during this year’s annual meeting and will be transitioned into the goals and desired outcomes of the upcoming year. These include:

  • Federal Transportation Reauthorization. Much like what we did for Act 89 in Pennsylvania, we will work with our members of Congress and ACEC National to pass a long term federal transportation funding solution by 2015.
  • Member retention and recruitment. Our Association is only as strong as its members. Last year, the Board approved new full and associate memberships to 25 firms, however during that same time we lost 12 members. While it is important to actively recruit new members to ACEC/PA, it is equally if not more important to retain those that we have. Our Membership Committee will work with others and staff to advance the “value of membership” in our Association with specific targets for both recruitment and retention.
  • Political Action Committees. Through Act 89 and as we continue our work in Washington DC, we have learned that our PAC creates opportunity for our industry to be heard and recognized. It is vitally important that we support those elected officials that support our industry and let them know that they have our backing. Our state and federal PACs are critical tools that we use to keep ACEC/PA and ACEC National in the sights and minds of our leaders. Our goal is to increase our contributions to both PACs AND to increase the number of contributors from our members.
  • The ACEC/PA Brand. Through the efforts of the Public Relations Committee and the ACEC/PA Director of Marketing, we will continue to enhance our brand as THE go-to organization for the transportation industry in Pennsylvania and consulting engineering community.
  • Implementation of Act 89. Now that the state transportation funding bill is law, the hard work begins in implementing and delivering the projects that PennDOT Secretary Barry J. Schoch promised to the citizens of Pennsylvania. Working through our various committees, we will continue collaborating with PennDOT and the PTC to find more effective ways to deliver their aggressive programs.
  • New PennDOT Consultant Profit Factors. We achieved a major victory in modernizing how PennDOT calculates profits factors for engineering firms. Now we need to maintain that positive momentum in the years ahead as this is evaluated on an annual basis.
  • State FAR Audit Compliance. We need to continually work with the State Office of the Comptroller to modernize the way FAR Compliance Audits are conducted in Pennsylvania. Pennsylvania needs to follow national standards that have been set forth via the AASHTO Audit Guide. The timeliness and the length of the audits simply must be improved.
  • Association Non-Dues Revenue Generation. Looking over our year of activities and various other events, ACEC/PA needs to look to increase opportunities for new revenue to be generated that is originated from non-membership dues.
  • Trade Association Partnerships. As we have learned from our efforts with the Keystone Transportation Funding Coalition, our industry carries a much larger voice when we work together than as individual associations. When appropriate, ACEC/PA should join with industry partners to advance the overall health of our entire industry.
  • The Past President’s Council and the Emerging Leaders Forum. I have asked Immediate Past President David Lowdermilk to lead this effort in developing these two groups. The Past President’s Council will tap into the vast knowledge and experience of our past leaders of ACEC/PA. The Emerging Leaders Forum will be avehicle to develop the team of future leaders of our Association and our firms.

In closing, I would like to thank you again for your confidence in me. I look forward to working with all of you, and of course our excellent staff, Eric, Melissa, and Jenna, over the next year. 2014-2015 is a pivotal year for our industry. We received the funding we asked for, now we have to deliver. If we do, ACEC/PA membership will increase and revenue will move in a positive direction. The sky is the limit for our organization.

Regards,

Barry A. Epley, P.E.

President, ACEC/PA

800 North Third Street, Suite 301 | Harrisburg, PA 17102 |Phone: 800-651-1946 | Fax: 800-651-1947 | Website: