Welcome to the Columbia Pacific Building Trades Council website.  CPBTC is an organization that represents 25 different crafts, including: asbestos workers, boilermakers, brick & stone masons, cement masons, carpenters, electricians, elevator constructors, glaziers, ironworkers, laborers, linoleum & carpet layers, millwrights, operating engineers, painters & tapers, pile bucks, plasterers, plumbers, pipe fitters & steamfitters, roofers, sheet metal workers, sprinkler fitters and teamsters.

The CPBTC is committed to a high level of professionalism and quality because of our extensive apprenticeship and journey level programs.  We have nine different training centers located throughout our area providing skill enhancement and training of thousands of apprentices and journey level workers.  We spend over ten million dollars a year, 100% private sector, providing our members with access to training programs designed by the construction industry for the construction industry.  These programs are State of Oregon certified and nationally acclaimed.  

Columbia Pacific Building Trades

John Mohlis -- Executive Secretary Treasurer

The Columbia Pacific Building Trades Council was a wonderful event.  Thank you to all of you who made this event a memorable one. 

Click here to view pictures of the event and read the about the history of the Columbial Pacific Building Trades Council.   

Prevailing Wage Bill Signing Ceremony - July 13, 2007

HB 2140 – Payment of Prevailing Wage for Public/Private Partnerships

Governor Ted Kulongoski held a bill signing ceremony on July 13, 2007, where he praised the
Building Trades for passage of this important legislation.  Effective as of July 1, 2007, HB 2140
represents a very significant victory for Oregon's Union construction community.  Among various 
ceremony attendees was Columbia Pacific Building Trades' own John Mohlis.  

After working with interests across the construction and political spectrum for nearly a year before
the 2007 Legislative Session commenced, HB 2557 was introduced to clarify Oregon's prevailing
wage statutes.  A great deal of attention was paid to the concept throughout the session, and while 
the construction industry supported the idea, passage was hard-fought at every step of the way.  
When amendments were needed to clarify the intent of the bill and a new vehicle was needed, 
HB 2944 was “stuffed” with the language from HB 2557 and with the help of Representative 
Mike Schaufler, Chair of the House Business and Labor Committee, moved out of the House
in mid-April by a vote of 40-19.  

In the Senate, HB 2944 was referred to the Senate Commerce Committee.  After a public hearing 
and some political hostage taking, it became clear that the bill could not move forward without
including amendments the Building Trades could not support.  Chair Floyd Prozanski encouraged us 
to explore other options, and thanks to Senate Leadership’s willingness to let us play some political 
games of our own, we quickly identified HB 2140 as the new vehicle in Senator Vicki Walker’s 
Senate Education and General Government Committee for our concept and moved the bill with her
help before our opponents could blink.  After further negotiations ensued, HB 2140 ultimately 
passed the Senate unanimously and then re-passed the House during the final days of session 51-4.    

In its final form, HB 2140 included several components.  Private projects with public funds (as defined in statute) equal to $750,000 or greater now fall under the prevailing wage law.  Certain affordable housing projects and other projects already underway are exempted, as are several identified situations defined under the public funds section of the statute.  Finally, the State Treasurer is to prepare a report on the various state bonding programs and submit the report to both the Prevailing Wage Advisory Committee and the Legislature to allow for policy analysis and potential applicability of prevailing wages in the future.