ASCE Metropolitan Section - Civil Engineers in Government Group History

Civil Engineers in Government Group History

In 1988, it was determined that one out of seven members of the Metropolitan Section were employed by government. In 1989, a survey was made of Civil Engineers in Government in selected agencies to determine membership, incentives for non-ASCE members to join, and suggestions for improvements. These agencies were the United States Army Corps of Engineers, the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey, the Nassau County Department of Public Works, and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. Of the 248 replies received, 130 (or 52%) were members and many non-members listed the formation of a Civil Engineers in Government Group as an incentive to join ASCE.

The Civil Engineers in Government Committee was officially formed in 1990. The first seminar was held on February 20, 1990 at the United Engineering Building, with two prominent speakers:

Rino Monti, Chief Engineer of the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey
Martin Lang, former New York City Commissioner of Water Resources

Twenty five engineers attended and some of them were recruited for the Civil Engineers in Government Committee. Subsequently, working meetings were held in April and May to plan for the 1990-91 year. Two seminars were planned—one on management skills (November 1990) and another on project management (March 1991). Committees were also setup to recruit new members, improve the status of civil engineers in government, establish a job bank, and for training and development of government engineers. The original Civil Engineers in Government Committee consisted of Albert Machlin (chairman), Herbert Howard, John DiMilia, Bob Petrides, Elizabeth Lonoff, Steve Scaglione, Joe Ramaglia, and Dave Fitzgerald.

On September 9, 1996 the ASCE Met Section Board of Directors voted to elevate the committee to the status of a Technical Group.

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