Engineering Trade Councils will hold joint meeting in Pennsylvania

To promote dialogue on major infrastructure, transportation and energy issues that will have a profound impact on the tri-state region, the leading trade councils for the consulting engineering industry of New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania will hold an inaugural joint state conference this fall. The three-day conference, which begins on Sunday, Sept. 23, at The Hotel Hershey in Pennsylvania, was planned cooperatively by member organizations of the American Council of Engineering Companies: ACEC New York, ACEC New Jersey and ACEC Pennsylvania. Over 150 attendees are anticipated. Following a golf tournament and welcome dinner on Sunday night, Monday's program includes three panel discussions: Congressional Infrastructure Panel on infrastructure and energy issues, led by ACEC National's VP of government affairs, Steve Hall. Representative Bill Schuster (R-PA), Richard Hanna (R-NY) and Bill Pascrell, Jr. (D-NJ) are among the elected officials invited to serve on the panel. The future of high-speed rail in the northeast corridor, with panelists from NJ Transit and SEPTA. Keynote speaker Joseph Boardman, Amtrak president and CEO, will address the group during a luncheon following the discussion. The environmental impact of hydraulic fracturing in the Marcellus Shale. Representatives from the EPA, the Marcellus Shale Coalition and Environmental Advocates of New York will be on hand to weigh in on the hydrofracking issue. On Tuesday, several sessions will be held to satisfy professional development hours required for licensed engineers, including a session on "Ethics for Engineers," presented by Zetlin & DeChiara LLP. In a joint statement, the presidents of the three organizations, Joe Fiordaliso of ACEC New Jersey, Eric Madden of ACEC/PA, and Jay Simson of ACEC New York, said, "The opportunity to address regional issues and promote best practices from within our three states is extremely valuable to both our public partners and our member firms. We are confident that our members will take advantage of this program to gain important market information, interact with our public agency partners, and network within the industry to improve their business knowledge and skills. This is our first joint effort and we are excited by the value this brings to all three member organizations." State member organizations of the American Council of Engineering Companies are the leading voice for the consulting engineering profession, promoting the business interests of the industry through advocacy, education and networking. ACEC New York's membership comprises 270 companies and 20,000 employees throughout the state. ACEC New Jersey is made up of 115 engineering firms, employing more than 5,500 people in New Jersey. ACEC/PA is Pennsylvania's largest statewide organization of engineers engaged in the practice of consulting engineering, representing more than 147 independent engineering firms in the commonwealth.