Florida Elections Watch and ACEC's March Achievements

To the ACEC Community, 

I begin this month’s recap with the sad news that former ACEC Chair Eric Flicker passed away yesterday morning. Eric served as Chair from 2003-2004, but his influence and impact can still be felt throughout the Council after more than two decades. His obituary, which you can read here, is an account of a life well-lived, marked by service to his family, friends, and community. Eric was the sort of colleague we all we wish had more of – kind, committed, and unfailingly supportive. He will be deeply missed. We send our deepest condolences to Eric’s wife Gerry Ann and the Flicker family. May they find peace in their shared memories.  

The eyes of political watchers turn today to Florida, the site of two House special elections that could have implications not just for the GOP’s already razor thin House majority but also could send up warning flares to the Trump White House if Democrats manage a flip. The special elections are being held to fill the seats left vacant by National Security Advisor Mike Waltz and one-time Attorney General nominee Matt Gaetz. Although these are both deep red districts in what is becoming an increasingly deep red state, the Democrats have been raising tremendous amounts of money for these races. The GOP is favored to hang on to both seats tonight, but a shock flip last month of a Lancaster County, Pennsylvania state senate seat that hasn’t been held by a Democrat since 1889 has some observers seeing warning signs for Republican candidates even in areas President Trump won resoundingly in November. Voters have a way of upending conventional political wisdom, so these Florida races are ones to watch.

Meanwhile, March was another busy month at ACEC. Last week, we hosted more than two dozen state MO executives and their volunteer leaders from across the country in a day-long orientation. As more and more political action begins to shift back to the states, it was invaluable to hear from these leaders what’s happening outside of Washington. Speaking of outside the Beltway, we also hosted fly-ins throughout the month for Texas, New York, New Mexico, and Illinois at our Capitol Hill Residence, drawing more than 40 Members from both sides of the aisle.

Late last month, a celebration of STEM event hosted by ACEC Arizona attracted more than 600 middle-schoolers – and coverage from the ABC affiliate in Tucson. The event was composed of four stations that included hands-on activities focused on utilities, transportation, and structural engineering. The fourth station focused on career development, which could not be more topical as we look forward to our Engineering Workforce Consortium meeting later this month. Born of last year’s Engineering Workforce Summit, the EWC pools collective expertise and resources from across academia, government, and the private sector to develop strategies to address our industry’s workforce challenges. One thing we know: if we are going to capture the hearts and minds of the next generation of engineers, we have to start early – with events like the one in Arizona. I know there are so many other fantastic events being done across our federation, and we would love to share every one of them, so please pass them along to our Director of Workforce Development Patrick Brady at pbrady@acec.org.

Here are some other March highlights: 

Advocacy: 

• Helped to secure funding increases for highway, transit, and airport infrastructure programs in the “continuing resolution” appropriations bill for the remainder of the fiscal year. 

• The Engineering Influence Podcast with CTDOT and UConn’s School of Civil and Environmental Engineering discussed their collaborative efforts to reshape engineering education to meet the real-world demands of infrastructure development.  

• Advocacy update for ACEC-NM. 

• On March 7, ACEC held a briefing with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) on the Defense Department’s anticipated enhanced cybersecurity requirements later this year. Potential cyber investments will impact company strategic and investment decisions.  

• Participated with the FIDIC North American regional meeting and briefed FIDIC President Catherine Karakatsanis and our counterparts from Canada and Mexico on the changing dynamics in Washington, notably tariffs and international development cuts, as well as opportunities with preserving current tax policy, permitting reform, energy investments, and surface transportation. Our Canadian peers talked about their provincial dynamics and the announcement of a new Prime Minister Mark Carney ahead of a snap election coming on April 28. 

• ACEC commented on three proposed rules to the Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR), including role of small business on multiple award contracts as well as the handling of Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI), which will impact how the industry supports both defense and civilian government customers.  

• Presented on a panel session at the Society of American Military Engineers (SAME) Capital Week program sharing the ACEC advocacy agenda along with observations on the federal marketplace.  

• Hosted ACEC MO fly-ins with Texas, New York, New Mexico, and Illinois that featured strong participation from the congressional delegations and discussions on industry priorities in tax policy, infrastructure and workforce. 

• Hosted the first Leadership Circle event for Rep. Jason Smith, Chair of the House Ways & Means Committee with ACEC members from seven different states raising $52,500; hosted a fundraiser at the residence for Rep. Johnny Olszewski (D-MD) and attended events for Representatives Graves (R-MO), Fitzpatrick (PA); Smucker (PA); Morelle (NY), Joyce (OH); Lee (NV); Carter (GA); Quigley (IL); Davids (KS); Jack (GA); and Pappas (NH).  

• Met with ACEC NC Executive Director Tara Robbins and 2 of her members, taking them to Chairman Graves Transportation reception. 

• Met with the Governmental Affairs staff from ACEC Members Olsson, B&V, and HNTB.

• Raised over $81,000 in March, including adding three Capitol Club members. 

• Kansas, Minnesota, and Nebraska made their goals. 

• Two Minuteman Fund grants in March: ACEC Kentucky - support for amicus brief to Kentucky Supreme Court on issues of immunity for design professionals working on government projects, and ACEC Ohio – support for ballot initiative on statewide infrastructure funding. 

Communications and Marketing: 

• The Communications and Marketing Department was largely focused in March on convention and EEA promotion:

  • The department selected images for each of the top 24 award winners as well as more than 100 NRA winners. 

  • The ACEC script team began its work to produce the EEA awards and the upcoming convention’s general sessions. 

  • The department also began working with the Meetings, Events and Awards team and our production team on the overall visual design for the events and the elements for each show. 

  • Social media messages to promote the EEA awards began running across all ACEC platforms. 

• The Marketing team moved further to shift several MOs under the ACEC website, with the launch of ACEC New Mexico’s website. 

• The Engineering and Public Works Roadshow team continued to plan its upcoming events, including two events in April and two in May. Visitwww.infrastructureroadshow.org for more information. 

• The Communications and Marketing Department assisted with new MO Orientation. 

• The team also continued to work with the membership team to work on new ROI marketing documents to assist our MOs.  

Meetings, Exhibits, & Awards:

• Annual Convention and Legislative Summit

  
  

  Five hundred attendees already have registered for our 2025 Annual Convention, which is just seven weeks away and promises to be the most important gathering of our industry this year. As we continue to navigate the new political terrain, it is crucial that you join us in DC to learn the latest and lend your voice on Capitol Hill. Check out the website for updates on programming and events you won’t want to miss. Early bird reduced rates end April 17. Register Now! 

  
  
  
  

• Engineering Excellence Awards Gala

  
  

  Mark your calendar for Tuesday, May 20, and get ready for a night to remember! The 2025 Engineering Excellence Awards is a black-tie affair you won’t want to miss. This annual event honors groundbreaking projects from around the world, recognizing the innovation, creativity, and impact that define engineering at its finest. It’s a night of inspiration, recognition—and a whole lot of fun. Enjoy a first-class evening filled with exceptional food, top-tier entertainment, and a celebration of the groundbreaking achievements that make our industry shine. Then, keep the energy going at our lively after-party—it’s the perfect way to cap off an unforgettable night. Click here to learn more, and here to purchase EEA tickets.

Membership, MO Services, and BRE:

• March was a busy month for ACEC Education. The team kicked off two new series, including an AI Strategy Bootcamp for Small Firms and a four-part session to help DBE firms navigate the evolving landscape. More than 300 members registered to learn the ins and outs of Microsoft’s Copilot’s productivity tool, and ACEC opened registration for the popularCommunication Bootcamp. 

• New and long-time ACEC members tuned into Membership Monday to learn how to access national benefits. Sessions are offered monthly, and all are invited to take part to maximize your return on investment for membership. 

• Held the second of a two-part session for Marketing & Proposal Automation with Joist AI and member firm Olsson. Catch it on demand here. 

  
  
  
  

• On 3/27 the Market Intelligence Committee hosted its second live Market Briefing from the ACEC National Advocacy team. The market specific post-election recap and outlook included 129 registrants. You can watch the recording here.  

Research Institute:

• Engineering Business Sentiment Q1 2025 

  
  

  The Q1 2025 Engineering Business Sentiment report was released on March 4  in conjunction with our State of the Engineering Economy 2025 Q1 roundtable hosted by the Institute’s Joe Bates and ACEC’s Thomas Grogan. On March 25, we hosted a follow up roundtable to discuss how industry leaders are using data to strategically manage their firms.

• DBIA Conference Presentation  

  
  

  The Institute’s research team presented two sessions at the DBIA Design-Build Conference on March 19. Joe Bates and Jon Gray presented the results of the Institute’s Economic Assessment & Forecast and Engineering Business Sentiment during the morning general session. Later that day the Institute shared the stage with FMI to deliver a session on Navigating the Evolving Landscape that featured its latest work on progressive design-build with lead researcher, Keith Molenaar from the University of Colorado at Boulder.

• DPC Firm of the Future Workshop 

  
  

  During the Winter Design Professionals Coalition meeting, Institute leadership facilitated a session on the Firm of the Future. During the workshop participants provided feedback on the 2025 FOTF research projects, as well as brainstormed new Horizon 1 and Horizon 2 research topics.  

• Scholarship Program Sees Significant Growth in Applications and Participation

  
  

  Applications for Institute’s national scholarships officially closed on March 14. In the platform's second year, over 9,000 students created profiles, marking a 119% increase from last year and 1,753 qualified students completed applications, a 99% increase from the previous year. All scholarships are now under review. 

• Registration Open for 4th Annual ACEC Research Institute Golf Classic 

  
  

  Registration and sponsorships are now open for the Institute’s 4th Annual Golf Classic, November 5 at the Tiburon Golf Club. Registration includes golf as well as the full ROG+ Partners Growth & Ownership Strategies Conference.Register through this link to receive the lowest rate. 

Linda Bauer Darr

President & CEO

American Council of Engineering Companies | ACEC

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