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Politics & Policy
ABC’s September Regulatory Roundup—Learn About the Latest Developments Affecting the Construction Industry
ABC Disappointed in NLRB’s Cemex Decision
NLRB Revives Controversial 2014 ‘Ambush’ Election Rule; ABC Opposes Again
Safety
Build Health and Safety Engagement Through Leadership Commitment and Metrics Tied to Leading Indicators
Is Your PPE and Mobile Equipment as Safe as You Think It Is?
President Biden Announces Heat Safety Actions, Including DOL Hazard Alert
Events/Products/Programs
Nearly 350 ABC Leaders Gather in Washington for Annual Legislative Conference
ABC Members Rank Among ENR’s Top 400 Contractors
Trades Day: Industry Outreach Opportunity With Meaning
State/Local News
Ed Capodanno Honored by Delaware State Legislature
Election Update: ABC Staff and Members Elected in 2022
California Targets Workplace Cannabis Testing
Awards
Graham Roofing Earns the AQC Credential in September
ABC's Construction Executive Magazine Wins Silver in Publishing Competition
Legislation
ABC-Supported Legislation To Overturn the Northern Long-Eared Bat’s Endangered Species Listing Heads to President Biden’s Desk
ABC Advocates for Solutions to Workforce Shortage at U.S. House Committee Roundtable
Smucker Introduces the ABC-Supported Main Street Tax Certainty Act
Regulations
ABC Submits Comments Opposing NEPA Permitting Revisions
OSHA Announces Silica-Focused Inspection Initiative in the Engineered Stone Fabrication and Installation Industries
Take the Survey: Input Needed by Oct. 2 on President Biden’s IRA Mandates
Workforce Development
Register Now for ABC’s Construction Inclusion Week Webinar Series
DOL High Road Workforce Development Program Map Snubs Nonunion Programs
LISTEN: How to Design an Effective Technology Adoption Strategy
ABC Newsline
On July 26, the U.S. House of Representatives passed S.J. Res. 24, a Congressional Review Act resolution on the Endangered Species Status for Northern Long-Eared Bat with a bipartisan vote of 220-209. The passage of S.J. Res. 24 would, if enacted, prevent the ABC-opposed U.S. Department of Interior&a
On July 26, ABC Senior Director of Legislative Affairs Peter Comstock participated in a roundtable hosted by the U.S. House of Representatives’ Education and the Workforce Committee Chairwoman Virginia Foxx, R-N.C. The roundtable focused on the reauthorization of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act and policies to better connect job creators and small businesses with job seekers.
On July 18, Rep. Lloyd Smucker, R-Pa., introduced the Main Street Tax Certainty Act, H.R. 4721, legislation which would make permanent the current 20% deduction for small and family-owned businesses, provided through Section 199A of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017. This bipartisan proposal is co-sponsored by 99 U.S. representatives, including two Democrats, and has the support of all Republican members of the U.S. House Ways and Means Committee.
On June 13, ABC authored a letter to the U.S. House Ways and Means Committee for its markup of H.R. 3938, the Build It in America Act. ABC supports this legislation, which would extend key provisions of the ABC-supported Tax Cuts and Jobs Act and provide additional certainty to the construction industry, including the deduction for research and development and the extension of th
ABC, as part of the Jobs and Careers Coalition, is working with staff of the House Education and Labor Committee as they draft legislation to reauthorize the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act. ABC encourages members to fill out the WIOA survey today to provide important feedback on this critical workforce bill.
On June 21, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee held a markup of ABC-opposed legislation, including the Protecting the Right to Organize Act, Paycheck Fairness Act and Healthy Families Act. Ahead of the hearing, ABC sent a letter to the committee highlighting concerns with the bills marked up in committee and urging members of the committee to oppose the partisan proposals being considered. ABC also joined with the Coalition for a Democratic Wo
On May 1, ABC and 430 business organizations highlighted key immigration priorities for the 118th Congress in a letter urging U.S. representatives and senators to find a path forward to enact necessary reforms that ensure border security and address the economic and workforce needs of businesses throughout the United States.
On April 21, Republican Sens. John Thune, S.D., Tim Scott, S.C., Mike Braun, Ind., and Tommy Tuberville, Ala., reintroduced the Training America’s Workforce Act for the 118th Congress. This bill would expand opportunities for careers in construction, allowing for the federal recognition of industry and market-driven apprenticeship programs developed by the private sector. ABC worked
On April 26, Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan., and Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., introduced the Save Local Business Act (S. 1261 / H.R. 2826) to make clear that an employer may be considered a joint employer in relation to an employee only if the employer directly, actually and immediately exercises significant
On March 30, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the ABC-supported H.R. 1, the Lower Energy Costs Act, in a bipartisan 225-204 vote, with four Democrats supporting and only one Republican, Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Pa., opposing the bill.
On March 29, the U.S. Senate passed the ABC-supported H.J. Res. 27, the Waters of the United States Congressional Review Act Resolution, in a 53-43 vote with the support of all Senate Republicans and five Democrats, Sens. Rosen, Nev., Cortez Masto, Nev., Manchin, W.Va., Tester, Mont., and Sinema, Ariz. Four Senators did not vote.
The Biden administration continues to roll back Trump-era initiatives and institute new, pro-union policies that challenge our members’ ability to win work. ABC is fighting against these proposed rules and regulations affecting merit shop contractors and is advocating for open competition and free enterprise.
ABC members have sent nearly 3,700 messages to Congress through the ABC Action app in support of the Fair and Open Competition Act (H.R. 1209/S. 537), which was reintroduced in the 118th Congress by Sen. Todd Young, R-Ind., and Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., on Feb. 28. Urge your members of Congr
On Feb. 28, congressional Democrats reintroduced the ABC-opposed Protecting the Right to Organize Act (HR 20) in the 118th Congress. The bill is a wish list of radical labor policies that would infringe on workers and employers’ rights, diminish opportunities for entrepreneurs and small business owners and devastate the economy. The ABC-led Coalition for a Democratic Workplace is leading opposition to the bill.
On Jan. 31, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 497, the Freedom for Health Care Workers Act, by a bipartisan vote of 227-203. ABC supported the legislation, which would eliminate the Biden administration’s COVID-19 vaccination mandate on health care workers and repeal the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services health care staff vaccination rule that continues to affect ABC members who perform construction work at health care facilities. ABC provided a statement in support of the bill ahead of passage.
The Regulations from the Executive In Need of Scrutiny Act of 2023, or REINS Act, was recently reintroduced to the U.S. House of Representatives by Rep. Kat Cammack (R-Fla.). The bill, which would require every new “major rule” proposed by federal agencies to be approved by both the House and U.S. Senate before going into effect, currently has 179 Republican co-sponsors.
On Sept. 29, the U.S. House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure held a hearing, “Investing in our Nation’s Transportation Infrastructure and Workers: Why it Matters,” which covered the impacts of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021 and the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022.
On Sept. 28, after failing to secure the support of at least 59 of his Senate colleagues, Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., requested that his efforts to attach language on federal permitting reform for energy projects be removed from the must-pass continuing resolution, ensuring smooth passage of a government funding bill ahead of the Sept. 30 deadline.
ABC opposes Democrats’ partisan reconciliation package, which would raise taxes in an economy pointed toward recession, exacerbate inflation and cost American jobs. New, restrictive labor policies included in the most recent proposal make the package even more damaging.
In a letter to U.S. House Representatives, ABC urged members to support an amendment to the House appropriations bill (H.R. 8294) that would prevent the use of federal funds to support flawed, inflationary Davis-Bacon prevailing wage requirements. The amendment failed by a vote of 165-264.
ABC sent an action alert on to members July 11 urging them to oppose to Democrats’ proposal to impose a new tax hike on small businesses in their partisan reconciliation bill.
On June 16, House Committee on Oversight and Reform Ranking Member James Comer, Ky., and 12 other House Republicans sent a letter to the Office of Management and Budget raising concerns about the implementation of President Biden’s Executive Order 14063, “Use of Project Labor Agreements for Federal Construction Projects,”
More than 500 ABC members and chapter staff are in Washington, D.C., for ABC’s 2022 Legislative Week, meeting with leaders on Capitol Hill to advocate for fair and open competition and fight the Protecting the Right to Organize Act, project labor agreement mandates and burdensome regulations. Highlights of the fly-in included keynotes from Rep. Steve Scalise, R- La., House minority whip, and Sen. Todd Young, R-Ind., who spoke in favor of free markets and condemned the Biden administration’s regulatory overreach and the PRO Act.
ABC sent out an action alert for ABC members to urge their members of Congress to remove unnecessary, job-killing provisions in the US Innovation and Competition Act/America COMPETES Act bills.