Legal/Regs
The Missouri legislature passed Bill HR 2474 in May, which was signed into law by Governor Mike Kehoe on July 13, lowering the threshold for progressive design-build (PDB) from $7 million to $2.5 million and opening it to all state agencies. This model emphasizes early collaboration, but lawyers remind contractors to clarify key terms such as design responsibility, cost transparency, and performance guarantees.
Construction contracts typically require contractors to provide specific insurance coverage for upstream parties such as owners and general contractors, and this obligation often extends to umbrella or excess liability insurance. However, excess policies marked "follow form" do not automatically replicate the underlying policy terms, and their own wording differences can create coverage gaps, contractual breaches, and balance sheet risks. This article outlines seven common risk points, reminding contractors and brokers to verify policies layer by layer rather than assuming coverage automatically flows through the entire liability tower.
Deere & Co. has reached a settlement with the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and five states over a joint lawsuit. The lawsuit alleged that Deere illegally restricted farmers and independent repair providers from repairing its agricultural equipment. Under the settlement, Deere agreed to provide farmers and independent repair shops with the same repair resources, including software, as authorized dealers over a 10-year period. The FTC stated it will oversee enforcement to reduce repair costs for farmers and promote the right to repair.
A coalition of environmental groups has filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, alleging it failed to respond to challenges against the renewal of a clean air permit for U.S. Steel's Gary Works plant in Indiana. The plaintiffs request that the court order the EPA to rule on their petition submitted on July 3, 2025.
Judge Jeannette Vargas of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York issued a permanent injunction prohibiting the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) from withholding funds for the Hudson Tunnel project on the basis of the Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) program. The ruling overturned the funding freeze implemented by the Trump administration on September 30, 2025, and noted procedural violations by the DOT. The Gateway Development Commission, the project's oversight body, stated that the ruling removes legal uncertainty and allows construction to proceed.
Community opposition is becoming an emerging risk for data center contractors. At least 75 projects (valued at approximately $130 billion) were delayed or blocked for this reason in the first quarter of 2026. Legal experts suggest that contractors should clarify the project approval status before signing, include community protests in force majeure clauses, and maintain detailed records to address potential work stoppages.
On June 9, a federal grand jury in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois indicted Ryan Ross, a former property supervisor at the Chicago Housing Authority, and builder Vanessa Rhodes. The indictment alleges that between 2023 and 2024, Ross received over $421,000 in kickbacks from Rhodes in exchange for using his position to award housing renovation contracts worth more than $4.8 million to companies affiliated with her. Each faces eight counts of honest services fraud, carrying a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.
According to documents filed with the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, the White House East Wing was in a severely deteriorated state before demolition, including structural instability, leaks, mold contamination, and aging systems. Joshua Fisher, Director of the White House Office of Administration and Management, detailed the necessity of demolition and reconstruction in a statement.
U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) Administrator Edward Foster testified before the Senate on May 13 that Congress has continuously diverted funds from the Federal Buildings Fund it manages since 2011, totaling $15.6 billion over 15 years ($22 billion adjusted for inflation), leaving nearly half of the agency's 1,600 properties in fair or poor condition. GSA is seeking congressional approval to fully use rental and sale proceeds and to raise the threshold for single-project approvals from $3.96 million to $75 million.
A $2.3 billion Florida highway project that once promised contractors approximately $255 million in profits ultimately turned into losses exceeding $500 million and sparked an $80 million lawsuit. The U.S. Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the ruling against Lane Construction in April, determining that its attempt to exit the I-4 Ultimate project through legal theories was unfounded. The case provides contractors with profound lessons on consortium cooperation, conflicts of interest, and the risks of contract termination in P3 projects.