Associated General Contractors (AGC) of Washington has named state representative Judy Clibborn (D-41, Mercer Island) as Legislator of the Year for 2010.

“Rep. Clibborn gets it,” said Gene Colin, CEO of Ferguson Construction and chair of AGC’s Government Affairs Council. “She understands that an efficient and adequate transportation system is good for the economy and the environment. Plus, with unemployment for the construction industry hovering around 20 percent, she knows it is important to foster a strong business climate to get people back to work. We always have many legislators to thank for their support of the industry, but this year Rep. Clibborn stands out.”

During the 2010 Legislative Session, Rep. Clibborn helped organize a group of moderate Democratic legislators to consider business issues in light of the current economic downturn and to advocate for balance in legislative actions. For example, she played a key role blocking legislation which would have imposed ill-conceived and costly requirements regarding the use of independent subcontractors.

“Representative Clibborn has been tremendously successful in advancing one of AGC’s core interests: an effective transportation finance and delivery system,” said Rick Slunaker, AGC’s Director of Government Affairs. “She isn’t afraid to ‘push back’ against colleagues and interests who would frustrate progress toward achieving that goal. But her contribution and support of our goals goes way beyond transportation. Rep. Clibborn understands the importance of and has helped lead efforts to reform workers’ compensation laws and to save taxpayer dollars by opposing unworkable public contracting requirements.”

AGC of Washington is the state’s largest trade association serving the commercial construction industry and has 600 member firms.