On Dec. 18, the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure's Subcommittee on Waters Resources and Environment held the hearing, "Water Resources Development Act of 2026: Stakeholder Priorities." Ahead of the hearing, ABC sent a letter to the committee, urging it to advance a neutral WRDA bill that allows all contractors to compete, regardless of labor affiliation.

On Dec. 10, the U.S. Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship held a hearing titled, “Running Government Like a Small Business: Cut Waste, Crush Fraud.” Ahead of the hearing, ABC sent a letter to the committee urging lawmakers to roll back federal policies that undermine small construction firms, particularly the White House’s continued enforcement of mandated PLAs on major federal projects. ABC emphasized that small firms make up the overwhelming majority of the industry and cannot absorb the cost or complexity of these mandates.

“No small business would survive if it limited itself to hiring from a pool of just 10% of the workforce, yet the federal government is attempting to do exactly that,” the letter stated. ABC urged Congress to adopt business-minded, competitive practices that empower all qualified contractors and protect taxpayers.

On Dec. 3, the U.S. House passed the Destroying Unnecessary, Misaligned, and Prohibitive Red Tape Act (H.R. 4305) in a 269-146 vote. Introduced by Rep. Tony Wied, R-Wis., the DUMP Red Tape Act codifies the Small Business Administration’s “Red Tape Hotline,” accessible by email, web form, or phone, where small businesses can report burdensome regulations to the SBA’s chief counsel for advocacy.

ABC sent a letter to the House Small Business Committee ahead of its Nov. 18 markup in support of the bill, which cleared the committee hurdle in a 18-9 vote.

The bill will now head to the U.S. Senate, where a vote has yet to be scheduled.

On Nov. 19, the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship held a hearing titled, “Trump’s Regulatory Rollback: Saving Americans $907 Billion and Counting,” with Casey Mulligan, chief counsel for advocacy for the U.S. Small Business Administration.” Ahead of the hearing, ABC sent a letter to the committee supporting deregulation by the Trump administration, including their commitment to institute a new independent contractor rule and the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network’s interim final rule on beneficial ownership reporting requirements.

During the hearing, Committee Chair Joni Ernst, R-Iowa., expressed support for the Environmental Protection Agency’s Waters of the United States rule. “This proposed rule… will help end this government overreach for our farmers, landowners and small business owners,” she noted.

While ABC expressed support for part of the administration’s reg rollback, it also called out the administration for failing to repeal Biden’s executive order and subsequent final rule mandating project labor agreements on federal construction projects of $35 million or more.

On Nov. 18, the U.S. House Committee on Small Business held a markup of several pieces of legislation, including the Destroying Unnecessary, Misaligned, and Prohibitive Red Tape Act (H.R. 4305), introduced by Rep. Tony Wied, R-Wis. Ahead of the hearing, ABC sent a letter to the committee in support of H.R. 4305 and urged the committee to advance the bill for a full House vote. The DUMP Red Tape Act codifies the Small Business Administration’s “Red Tape Hotline,” accessible by email, web form, or phone, where small businesses can report burdensome regulations to the SBA’s chief counsel for advocacy.

During the markup, Rep. Wied noted that the Red Tape Hotline gives small businesses “a seat at the table to highlight the prohibitive red tape regulations from across federal agencies that hurt their ability to grow and compete.” He added that his bill, “is a commonsense way to gather input directly from the people most harmed by overregulation.”

The bill was reported favorably for a full House vote in an 18-9 vote.

On Nov. 17, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers released a proposed rule that will clarify the definition of “waters of the United States.”

“ABC supports the Trump administration’s proposed rule to clarify the Clean Water Act’s definition of WOTUS,” said Kristen Swearingen, ABC vice president of government affairs. “This rule would alleviate the confusion and delays caused by the prior administration’s policies, including its failure to fully implement the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in Sackett v. Environmental Protection Agency. We welcome the administration’s commitment to establishing a clear definition of WOTUS and reasonable boundaries on the scope of federal permitting.

“ABC looks forward to fully reviewing the Trump administration’s proposed rule and providing comments to assist the EPA and USACE in our shared goal of ensuring the efficient construction of critical infrastructure projects while maintaining water quality.”

On Nov. 13, Sen. Jerry Moran, R-Kan., reintroduced the Affordable Housing Expansion Act, which streamlines outdated federal regulations under the Davis-Bacon and Related Acts and helps expand affordable housing nationwide.

“The Affordable Housing Expansion Act removes unnecessary barriers to construction and improves taxpayer value,” said Kristen Swearingen, ABC vice president of government affairs. “By modernizing the Davis-Bacon wage determination process and reducing compliance burdens, this bill provides contractors, workers and taxpayers with accurate and clearly defined rates. ABC commends Sen. Moran for his leadership and urges Congress to advance this commonsense proposal.”

The bill improves the wage determination process by allowing wage surveys to use broader geographic groupings. In addition, it orders the U.S. Department of Labor to review and update how it collects wage data within one year to ensure that surveys are more reliable, generate higher participation rates and achieve a better balance between union and nonunion employers.

By cutting red tape and ensuring fair competition, the Affordable Housing Expansion Act empowers contractors to focus resources on building more homes and revitalizing communities across the country.

For more information on the bill, see ABC’s letter of support.

On Oct. 6, ABC commented on the U.S. Department of Transportation's proposed rule: Normalizing Unmanned Aircraft Systems Beyond Visual Line of Sight Operations. The comments welcomed the Federal Aviation Administration's proposed Part 108 as a framework for beyond visual line of sight operations and highlighted the critical role of UAS in construction, emphasizing their positive impact on safety, efficiency, and the construction workforce. In addition, ABC urged the FAA to consider revisions to the proposal's sections on Shielded Operations Near Structures and Population Density and LandScan Categories to better reflect the construction industry's operating environment. See the comments here.

On Sept. 15, ABC joined a diverse coalition of over 40 trade groups and associations in a letter to Congress opposing the Warehouse Worker Protection Act. “The WWPA would impose long discarded and unworkable regulations on warehouse distribution centers, curtail employers’ due process rights when challenging citations from OSHA, and hamstring a critical part of our national supply chain,” the letter reads. “Despite its narrow sounding title, the legislation would impact workplaces in nearly every industry sector nationwide. Protecting workers is a priority for all employers, but this bill would only impede efficient operations without improving workplace safety.”

On July 23, the U.S. House Committee on Education and the Workforce held a markup of legislation that supports independent contractors and clarifies the joint employer standard. Ahead of the hearing, ABC sent letters of support to the committee for three key bills, all of which were reported favorably for a full House vote:

• The Modern Worker Empowerment Act (H.R. 1319) provides clarity for workers and businesses by establishing a common-sense definition for independent contractor status across federal law. H.R. 1319 passed in a 19-16 vote. See ABC’s letter of support.
• The Modern Worker Security Act (H.R. 1320) clarifies that independent workers can participate in innovative programs designed to connect them with portable, work-related benefits without fear of potentially jeopardizing their independent contractor status under federal law. H.R. 1320 passed in a 19-16 vote. See ABC’s letter of support.
• The Save Local Business Act (H.R. 4366) would amend the National Labor Relations Act and the Fair Labor Standards Act to clarify that an entity is only a joint employer if it directly and immediately exercises meaningful control over workers’ essential terms and conditions of employment. H.R. 4366 passed in a 20-16 vote. See the ABC-led Coalition for a Democratic Workplace letter of support here and ABC’s statement on the bill here.