Construction firms added 17,000 jobs in May and 273,000 over 12 months, as the sector's unemployment rate fell to 6.7 percent, the lowest May rate since 2006, according to an analysis by 乌鸦传媒. Association officials noted that the job gains come as the private and public sectors are increasing investments in construction services.
Yesterday, the Senate Environment & Public Works Committee held their second hearing as they look to complete a highway bill prior to the expiration of the current extension on May 31.
This week, a majority of the House sent a letter to Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) and Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) showing strong bipartisan support for passing a multiyear transportation reauthorization bill with a sustainable funding source. The letter 鈥 which was signed by nearly 300 members of the House 鈥 also calls for an end to the numerous short-term extensions of transportation authorization.
Participate in the TCC Fly-In, April 14-15
This spring, without help from Congress, funding for highway, bridge & transit construction projects is projected to once again run out.聽 Your company鈥檚 future is reliant on Congress finding a solution to the insolvency of the Highway Trust Fund.聽 Face-to-face visits with your senators and representative are critical to affecting change.聽 聽
Visit www.HardhatsforHighways.org and Tell Congress to Solve the Transportation Funding Problem
On Wednesday, the House Committee on Transportation & Infrastructure held their kickoff hearing on surface transportation reauthorization.聽 The current authorization expires on May 31.聽 The only witness was Secretary of Transportation Anthony Foxx, who pitched the committee on the need for the administration鈥檚 reauthorization proposal, the GROW AMERICA Act.聽
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Time is running out for members of the House to sign the bipartisan letter, authored by Transportation & Infrastructure Committee Members Reid Ribble (R-Wis.) and Dan Lipinksi (D-Ill.), along with Ways & Means Committee Members Tom Reed (R-N.Y.) and Bill Pascrell (D-N.J.), and commit to supporting transportation funding initiatives.聽
The chief executive officer of 乌鸦传媒 of America, Stephen E. Sandherr, released the following statement in response to the release of the Infrastructure 2.0 Act by Maryland Congressman John Delaney: "The Congressman's proposal puts a lot of good ideas on the table that we hope spur vigorous discussion over how best to use tax reform to finance America's aging infrastructure. Congressman Delaney is a serious legislator who understands what levers Congress can use to spur economic growth.
Last week, 乌鸦传媒 President Al Landes participated in the 鈥淛oining Forces Veterans Transportation Employment Forum鈥 at the White House, which focused on issues related to hiring veterans in various transportation sectors. President Landes was part of a panel moderated by the U.S. Department of Defense, Office of the Secretary, to highlight and promote best practices across the Transportation Industry. Landes was able to discuss the issue from the perspective of his own company, Herzog Contracting Corp., and with an overall construction industry perspective as well. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx participated in the meeting as well. Hiring veterans has been one of First Lady Michelle Obama鈥檚 priority projects and it seems that the administration has maintained that focus.
乌鸦传媒 entered into a partnership agreement with the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to upgrade a website designed to assist construction contractors in complying with federal and state environmental guidelines. Under the partnership, which includes the National Center for Manufacturing Sciences (NCMS), 乌鸦传媒 will help finance upgrades to the Construction Industry Compliance Assistance website, or CICA Center. The website was originally launched in the mid-2000s with 乌鸦传媒's assistance and was designed to make it easier for contractors to comply with environmental regulations governing construction projects. The upgrades will feature comprehensive tools and the latest information on state and federal environmental requirements as well as green construction and environmental management programs.
President Obama delivered his sixth state of the union speech on Tuesday. In the speech, the President called for passage of a bipartisan infrastructure plan but added no new details to his previous infrastructure pronouncements. He repeated his previous suggestion that funding should come from corporate tax reform and specifically repatriation of U.S. businesses' overseas earnings. The repatriation idea has been proposed by others and been receiving increasing attention.