- Northampton County Council rejected changes to the county's responsible contracting ordinance Thursday night
- The changes would have removed some requirements imposed on construction firms interested in contracting for the county
- The late-night debate grew contentious, with Council President Kerry Meyers at one point reminding some members not to make personal attacks
EASTON, Pa. – Northampton County Council has voted down changes to rules for county construction contractors, leaving intact requirements for apprenticeship programs and training from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).
The measure failed Thursday by a 6-2 vote, with commissioners John Goffredo and John Brown voting in favor. In recordings of the meeting, Commissioner Tom Giovanni appears to vote in favor of the measure, but members present in Courtroom One Thursday did not hear him, and his vote was not counted.
The measure, proposed by Goffredo, would have amended the county’s responsible contractor ordinance, which imposes certain requirements on contractors to bid on county construction and building maintenance jobs.
At issue Thursday was the requirement that firms participate in “class A” internship programs for trades they employ, a definition that aligns with existing union apprenticeship programs.
While unionized employers have access to such apprenticeship programs baked into their collective bargaining agreements, not every non-unionized employer has access to the same programs.
As a result, Goffredo said, the responsible contractor ordinance unfairly excludes non-unionized shops from bidding on county work and depressed the number of contractors submitting bids for county work.
“When I see government and union working hand in glove to keep certain people from acting in what they do best, I take it personally, because it's been going on for a long time,” said Goffredo.
Goffredo works for Nu Cor Management, his family’s construction and contracting firm. Its employees are not represented by a union.
During debate Thursday, Commissioner Kevin Lott pointedly asked the council’s solicitor, Christopher Spadoni, whether that amounts to a conflict of interest on Goffredo’s part. Spadoni said he didn’t think so; Lott said he had already spoken with another lawyer who disagreed.
Stacy Nimus, a representative for the Association of Builders and Contractors, spoke during a public hearing on the amendments. The organization, a trade organization representing non-unionized construction companies, offers qualifying “class A" apprenticeship programs to its members.
“Binding terms that x out 80% of the construction industry is what the issue is, not that we’re against anything with safety, or we don't do this or we don't do that – it’s the binding wording,” she said.
Nimus asked for the responsible contracting ordinance to be repealed altogether, but went on to explain that the organization does not take specific issue with any of its requirements.
When the ordinance was first adopted in 2018, ABC sued, arguing the measure discriminated against non-unionized contractors. Federal courts ultimately disagreed, and the ordinance remains on the books.
Several members of the council, including Tara Zrinski and Lori Vargo Heffner, said the requirements help make sure county contractors are qualified.
“Nobody made a good enough argument tonight against why you would not want to do those things – those very simple things.”Lori Vargo Heffner, Northampton County Council member
Lott acerbically thanked ABC’s representatives for “trying to be a little more professional this time.”
“They didn’t threaten us this time,” he said, before describing an exchange where representatives for the trade group said their members would boycott Northampton County, and refuse to bid on any of their contracts if the responsible contracting ordinance went into effect.
Goffredo later responded with similar intensity, bringing up an episode with himself, Lott, and a third man in an elevator. The resulting back-and-forth prompted the council’s president, Kerry Meyers, to intervene: “We should not be attacking each other… We’re in this together as a unit,” he said.
Shortly before the vote, Goffredo said he could prove construction companies like his were just as capable as their organized counterparts.
“If [the amendment] passes, I will never bid on a county project as long as my company has my name behind it. Ever,” he said. “If this fails, I will find a way to get in just to prove the point that I can get on this job and do a better job than anybody else.”
