On Dec. 27, 2002, the Ohio Supreme Court issued a unanimous decision striking down a 1999 Ohio law that prohibited public authorities from using PLAs on public works projects within the state. The Court held that the Ohio statute was in conflict with, and preempted by, the National Labor Relations Act. The lawsuit had been brought by the Ohio State and Cleveland Building and Construction Trade Councils, which were supported in the litigation by the Building and Construction Trades Department.

Over a month earlier, the Iowa Supreme Court held that a PLA entered into between Polk County and the Central Iowa Building and Construction Trades Council did not violate the state’s competitive bidding and right-to-work laws. The decision upheld the use of a PLA for the construction of the Iowa Events Center. In the Iowa case, as well as in Ohio, the Building and Construction Trades Department had filed a friend on the court brief, supporting the legality of the PLA.