TAUC, Congressional Building Trades Caucus Push for Major Infrastructure Spending

May 18 2017

WASHINGTON, DC – The Association of Union Constructors (TAUC), along with the other contractor trade association members of the Construction Employers of America (CEA) and the Congressional Building Trades Caucus, gathered on Capitol Hill May 17 to urge Congress and the Trump Administration to quickly enact a long-awaited infrastructure bill and begin restoring America’s critical transportation and energy resources.

“Working as an electrician, I learned the value of hard work while hanging hundreds of feet above the Delaware River lighting the Benjamin Franklin Bridge. I know we need to update our aging infrastructure and that, when we invest properly, we will add high-skilled, high-wage jobs,” said Rep. Donald Norcross (D-NJ), Co-Chair of the Congressional Building Trades Caucus, a bipartisan group of members of Congress focused on issues vital to the construction industry.

“As an engineer, I understand how America’s construction workers helped build this great country,” added Rep. David B. McKinley (R-WV), also a Co-Chair of the Caucus. “From infrastructure investments to corporate tax reform to streamlining regulations, there are a host of options for federal policymakers to boost job growth, drive economic prosperity, and allow America to reclaim the mantle of infrastructure leadership on the world stage.”

The Capitol Hill press conference was part of Infrastructure Week 2017, a nationwide advocacy effort to elevate infrastructure as a critical issue impacting all Americans. The press conference was organized by the Caucus and the Construction Employers of America (CEA), a joint initiative made up of TAUC and six other construction trade associations designed to coordinate action on labor, workforce, and construction issues facing our industries.

Speakers urged Congress and the Administration to move quickly on a $1 trillion infrastructure bill. “CEA stands ready to work with Congress to pass sweeping infrastructure legislation that will include not just roads and bridges, but also energy and water infrastructure, key public buildings, airports and municipal projects of all kinds,” said Todd Doenitz, Director of Trade Labor with Barton Malow Company, one of the country’s leading multi-trade union contractors and a TAUC Governing Member.

“Now is the time to make this investment,” added Jeff Soth, Legislative and Political Director for the International Union of Operating Engineers. “We really have a transformative, once-in-a-generation opportunity here before us, with the commitments President Trump has made combined with the commitments of folks like Rep. Norcross and Rep. McKinley. We can really get this done, and the Operating Engineers are here to help. We’re anxious to go to work to build our coalition and to work with our contractor partners at TAUC and elsewhere – but more importantly, we’re anxious to go to work to rebuild this country.”

Steve Lindauer, TAUC CEO, praised the efforts of CEA and the Caucus. “As someone who has worked in Washington, D.C. for decades, I know firsthand that it takes more than good intentions to ensure legislation is passed that will benefit our industry. Even a popular issue like infrastructure spending is far from a ‘slam dunk.’ It will take a sustained effort from everyone – contractors, our partners in labor and our owner-clients – to make the long-promised infrastructure investments a reality. Today’s event was a great first step. Now TAUC, CEA and the Congressional Building Trades Caucus will build on this success and do all we can to fight for great-paying, blue-collar, middle-class jobs.”