President’s Report
SUE Association
Art Worthman, 2019-2021 President
Annual Business Meeting
Wednesday, October 21, 2020
I am pleased to report that we’re off and running. In our two years, we recruited 35 dues paying member firms, including 10 in the past year. If you know of a firm that is not yet a member of the S.U.E. Association, I would encourage you help recruit new member firms by directing a prospect to our website, and please let our Executive Director, John Palatiello, know who you are attempting to recruit, so we can follow-up. TJ Stokes is our Membership Chairman and he will help with any technical information.
We had an annual conference planned for Denver this past July, but because of COVID we had to cancel that. In its place, the Board is discussing a series of webinars to provide information and education for our members. We’re seeking presentations. We’re also looking for content for our newsletter. If you would like to contribute either, please contact our Executive Director, John Palatiello, and he will put you in touch with our appropriate committees to schedule your participation.
Of course, we hope to host an in-person conference once again as soon as the COVID protocols permit such gatherings.
If you’re interested in serving on a SUE Association committee, again, look at our website, select a committee that interests you, and let us know that you would like to participate.
Now, for an update. In the two short years since we organized the association in Washington, DC in July of 2018, we’ve elected a board of directors and officers, retained an association management firm, developed a strategic plan, established committees, began outreach and branding in the community and among government and elected officials, organized our conference, published an e-newsletter, signed a memorandum of understanding with the Utility Engineering and Surveying Institute of ASCE, and begun dialogues with licensing board officials to clarify whether S.U.E. requires a PE or LS in the states. We’ve also commented upon and affected Federal regulations, began advocacy in Congress, started a liaison and coalition with other organizations that support S.U.E. and the ASCE-38, began the process of assuring that government contracts for S.U.E. services are subject to qualifications based selection. We educated members on the revision to ASCE-38. We educated members on risk management and best practices during the COVID pandemic. We were part of a coalition that sent a letter to the leadership in Congress urging action on the FAST Act, which is the current Highway law, and our efforts were successful when Congress extended the current law through September 30 of next year.
And most importantly, we worked with the Department of Homeland Security and the Governors of several states to assure that our services were defined as critical and essential, enabling all of us to keep our businesses open and our workforce employees throughout the pandemic.
We’ve worked to keep S.U.E. Association as open and transparent as possible, communicating and keeping members informed through email communications and social media using Facebook and LinkedIn. We worked closely with media partners, such as the trade press, to publicize the work of the association.
Those are just a few highlights.
I thank the membership for its support and participation. I urge your continued involvement and commitment to S.U.E. Association.