ABC Responds to Biden Administration Federal Contractor Minimum Wage Increase

WASHINGTON, Nov. 22—Associated Builders and Contractors today released the following statement in response to the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division’s final rule increasing the minimum wage on federal contracts from $10.95 to $15 per hour beginning in early 2022, superseding a scheduled increase to $11.25 that will occur on Jan. 1.

ABC Announces 2022 National Chair, Executive Committee

WASHINGTON, Nov. 22—Associated Builders and Contractors’ Board of Directors has elected Stephanie Schmidt, president of Poole Anderson Construction, State College, Pennsylvania, as the 2022 ABC national chair of the board of directors during a meeting at the association’s annual Leadership Institute in Aventura, Florida.

ABC Director of Inclusion, Diversity and Equity Honored for Construction Diversity Efforts by Maryland Minority Contractors

WASHINGTON, Nov. 19—The Maryland Minority Contractors Association has awarded Tia Perry, Associated Builders and Contractors’ director of inclusion, diversity and equity, its annual Professional Commitment Award. Perry was honored for her leadership connecting minority businesses with general contractors to help them win work and providing educational opportunities to minority businesses across the country.

Passage of Partisan Reconciliation Bill Harmful to U.S. Economy, Construction Industry, Says ABC

WASHINGTON, Nov. 19—Associated Builders and Contractors released the following statement on today's passage of the partisan reconciliation bill by the U.S. House of Representatives.

ABC Challenges Federal Contractor COVID-19 Vaccination Mandate in Georgia and Texas

WASHINGTON, Nov. 18—Associated Builders and Contractors and its chapters in Georgia and Texas today announced filings in support of pending suits by multiple states challenging President Biden’s COVID-19 vaccination mandate for federal contractors. ABC contends the unprecedented executive order exceeds the administration’s authority and is likely to increase costs and undermine economy and efficiency in federal contracting.

ABC Publishes Inaugural Construction Technology Report

WASHINGTON, Nov. 18—Associated Builders and Contractors today released its inaugural Tech Report, a study of the innovative technology and tools that ABC contractor members are using on jobsites to be safer, more profitable and primed to win more work. The report was sourced from a survey conducted from March through May 2021. It details opportunities for construction contractors to improve their operations in project coordination, planning, estimating, production and scheduling.

ABC Seeks to Overturn OSHA COVID Vaccination and Testing ETS

WASHINGTON, Nov. 9—Associated Builders and Contractors and its Alabama chapter today filed a petition for review with the U.S. Court of Appeals in the 11th Circuit against the Occupational Safety and Health Administration for its COVID-19 vaccination and testing Emergency Temporary Standard, which applies to employers with 100 or more employees.

Construction Input Prices See Largest Monthly Increase Since June, Says ABC

WASHINGTON, Nov. 9—Construction input prices increased 1.5% in October, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Producer Price Index data released today. Nonresidential construction input prices increased 1.4% for the month.

ABC’s Construction Backlog Rebounds in October; Contractor Confidence in Sales and Profit Margins Falls

WASHINGTON, Nov. 9— Associated Builders and Contractors reports today that its Construction Backlog Indicator rose to 8.1 months in October, according to an ABC member survey conducted from Oct. 20 to Nov. 2. The reading is up 0.5 months from September 2021 and 0.4 months from October 2020.

Passage of Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill Holds Promise and Peril, Says ABC

WASHINGTON, Nov. 5—Associated Builders and Contractors released the following statement on today’s passage of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act in the U.S. House of Representatives.

“Passage of the bipartisan infrastructure bill creates an opportunity to effectively modernize our nation’s most critical infrastructure, and ABC and our members stand ready to do the important work to bring America’s infrastructure into the 21st century,” said Michael Bellaman, ABC president and CEO. “However, ABC remains wary of some of the bill’s exclusionary provisions and statements from the Biden administration that could restrict the eligibility of America’s workers to compete for and participate in these construction projects.