The Colorado Chapter of NUCA

Congress Will Have To Punt - Again

The House has not acted on any of the pending FY2024 appropriations bills, including the EPA legislation containing a restoration of the $1.7 billion in State Revolving Funds NUCA has been advocating for since last summer.

The Congressional calendar is working against the March 1 and March 8 deadlines imposed by the two chambers in January. The House returns for formal business next Wednesday, Feb. 28, and the Senate is facing a constitutional requirement to address the impeachment of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas the same week. However, there is not enough time in the legislative calendar to properly address these massive funding bills.

It is expected that the House and Senate will be forced to adopt a short-term stopgap measure late in the following week, punting this decision to an unknown date in March.

A government shutdown is not expected, given its negative optics in an election year.

NUCA and other trade associations continue to lobby Congress, demanding that they address this FY2024 SRF funding shortfall.

Companies rely upon stable funding for their projects--Congressional inaction does not help in their resource planning, especially for costly long-lead items.

NUCA will alert the membership when final action is taken by Congress on this important issue.

We urge every NUCA member to come to Washington this May 22-24 for NUCA's Washington Summit and remind their lawmakers of the lasting importance in their support for this nation's water infrastructure programs.

NLRB Joint Employer Rules Take Effect Feb. 26

NUCA has been alerting our members about this pending regulatory change since last summer. The final rule changing the NLRB's joint employer rule was released on Oct. 27, 2023, and takes effect Feb. 26.

The final rule now provides that an employer will be deemed a joint-employer whether they have actual or indirect control of one or more employee’s essential terms of employment. This is essentially a return to the prior definition used before the Trump Administration favorably changed it in 2019 (see story below).

The Final Rule was initially set to take effect on December 26, 2023, but the Board extended the effective date to February 26, 2024, and the Final Rule will only be applied to cases filed after that date. Lawsuits have been filed against this new rule, and the Senate is seeking through Congressional action a repeal of the change.

Employers should prepare for the February 26th effective date by having their current and pending contracts with third parties reviewed by experienced labor counsel to determine whether those agreements give rise to a joint-employer relationship under the new standard. Employers should also consider training supervisors and managers who interact with third-party contractors on the new standards.

More here.

House Votes To Overturn Biden Administration Joint Employer Rule

The House passed a resolution (H.J.Res. 98) on Jan. 12 to overturn the National Labor Relations Board’s joint employer rule, giving momentum on Capitol Hill to reject the new regulation under the Congressional Review Act. NUCA strongly supported this action.

The lower chamber voted 206-177 on a measure to reject the NLRB rule, which has drawn major opposition from Republicans and some Democrats on Capitol Hill. The resolution now heads to the Senate, where a simple majority will be needed for passage. Several House Democrats joined Republicans in voting for the measure. However, the president as expected stated in early January that he will veto this legisation if it reaches his desk.

The NLRB rule, set to take effect Feb. 26, makes it easier for multiple companies to be jointly liable for labor law violations and be jointly required to bargain with employee unions. The Biden Administration rule replaced a Trump-era regulation requiring companies to have "direct and immediate" control over workers in order to be considered joint employers, which was favored by business trade organizations.

Beyond opposition in Congress, the rule also faces a challenge in court brought by a coalition of business advocacy groups. 

EPA Releases $5.8 Billion for Drinking Water, Wastewater Projects in SRFs

The EPA announced Feb. 19 that it is releasing $5.8 billion in funding to upgrade drinking water and wastewater infrastructure projects around the nation.

The new funding supports EPA’s state revolving funds (SRF), which are used by the utility construction industry for federal water infrastructure programs. The funding comes from the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) and was previous appropriated by Congress. Of the newly announced total, $3.2 billion goes for drinking water SRFs and $2.6 billion for clean water SRFs, which help to finance wastewater treatment and stormwater projects.

A breakdown of state-by-state allocations can be found here.

NUCA strongly applauds this action, and hopes that this support by the Administration for needed infrastructure resources will be continued forward this year and beyond.

House Infrastructure Committee Approves Permitting Reform Bills

The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee voted on Jan. 31 to approve legislation to reform and restore permitting processes under the Clean Water Act. Several important bills supported by NUCA were passed:

·    The "Nationwide Permitting Improvement Act," introduced by Water Resources and Environment Subcommittee Chairman David Rouzer (R-NC), streamlines the Nationwide Permit (NWP) process and maintains certainty that regulated entities involved in improving U.S. energy production, transportation infrastructure, and other commercial activities have had for years.

·    The "Confidence in Clean Water Permits Act" ensures that National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit writers do their job in a manner that permittees can rely on, limits opportunities for frivolous lawsuits, and protects permit holders that are acting in good faith.

·    The "Water Quality Criteria Development and Transparency Act," establishes a more transparent procedure for the development of water quality criteria by the EPA often used for NPDES permits, which would provide for additional public participation and limited judicial review.

·    The "Judicial Review Timeline Clarity Act," sets reasonable judicial review timelines for Clean Water Act Section 404 dredge and fill permits to help ensure reliable and efficient project authorizations.

"Fixing the broken permitting process used to build our nation’s infrastructure projects should be a top priority for Congress," wrote NUCA chief executive officer Doug Carlson in our media statement. "Too many of our industry’s projects run into seemingly endless delays caused by uncertain timelines, driving up costs. The reform package introduced by the Transportation and Infrastructure committee majority will streamline the federal permitting process and deliver predictability to a project's timelines."

This package now move to the full House for consideration. NUCA and our members strongly support House and Senate action on permitting reform legislation and urge passage of a strong and bipartisan permitting reform package as soon as possible.

House Passes Reauthorization Bill for Business Taxes

The House passed 357-70 on Feb. 1 the "Tax Relief for American Families and Workers Act" (HR 7024), a bipartisan tax reform package that would address several important tax issues facing our industry, including reauthorizing key expiring provisions of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. 

This important legislation, supported by NUCA and many other business trade associations, would help construction firms and their suppliers purchase new equipment and better manage payroll during the rollout of major federal infrastructure investment, as well as help encourage investment in research and development, technology, and help simplify taxes for many businesses. 

Specifically, the bill restores Section 174 expensing for select research & development investments, the EBITDA-based business interest limitation under Section 163(j), 100% 'bonus' depreciation under Section 168(k) through the end of 2025, expanded Section 179 small business expensing, and Forms 1099-NEC and 1099-MISC information reporting relief.

The $79 billion tax relief package cleared the House Ways and Means Committee by an overwhelming bipartisan 40-3 vote earlier last month.

The bill now moves to the Senate for action.

NUCA Thanks Our Many National Partners For Their Generous Support Of NUCA's Washington Summit & Advocacy Programs

Current NUCA Muster Advocacy Alerts!

Get involved! NUCA encourages each member to get involved in our association's Congressional advocacy campaign. And it is very easy to do so: just click on the Muster title links below to submit a pre-written letter to your own federal lawmakers about each issue, and let them know what is on your mind! It will only take a minute, and you can add your own story and thoughts.

Restore Full SRF Funding in the FY2024 Appropriations Bill! The House's existing FY2024 Interior/EPA appropriations bill cuts a catastrophic $2 billion from federal clean water SRF programs. Tell Congress to restore this funding to the final appropriations bill!

Support the LIBERTY Campaign! This grassroots pro-business campaign supported by NUCA seeks to find common ground on uncontroversial border enforcement and immigration law reforms supported by both parties. 

Support the Fair and Open Competition Act (HR 1209/S 537)! This bill (called FOCA) supported by NUCA will stop government mandated Project-Labor Agreements (PLAs). It passed out of the House Oversight Committee on July 12, 2023, on a 22-20 vote, and now heads to the full House for a vote.

Second Session, 118th Congress Schedule

Congress is in session until February 18, when it will take a week-long break for Presidents Day. Returning for business on February 26, it will stay in session until March 22. Congress is expected to finish final work on the FY2024 appropriations process, as it is scheduled to begin its work on the FY2025 appropriations process this month. 

Both chambers will take two weeks away from Washington March 25-April 5 for Easter recess and district meetings. Returning to work April 8, the next two weeks will see legislative debate before taking another week-long break April 22-26. Congress will then remain in session April 29 to May 24, trying to finish up as much work before the summer election season takes off.

Lawmakers are seeking to spend as much time in their districts and states to campaign, as 34 U.S. Senators and all 435 U.S. House members face the voters on November 5.

It is imperative that this industry reminds Congress that we depend on two EPA State Revolving Funds to fund water and wastewater projects desperately needed by American communities. Please make plans to visit Washington, D.C. in May for our annual Washington Summit and let your lawmakers know their votes of support are required for our public health infrastructure projects.

A full House-Senate Congressional calendar for 2024 can be downloaded here.

Sign Up For NUCA Muster Advocacy Alerts

Get involved! Did you use our Muster system this month to let Congress know your opinion of their legislative priorities? If you're a NUCA member, your Washington government affairs team wants you to be part of our Capitol Hill advocacy program! NUCA urges you to sign up to receive our Muster advocacy alerts. These emails will alert you to pending legislative action where your opinion can make a difference.

It's easy to sign up via the link below. Use your personal home address if you can do so, since our online Muster advocacy program finds your members of Congress via your voter registration address. But business addresses work just as well to receive our alerts.

I'm a NUCA member and I want to receive NUCA's Advocacy Alerts!

For Breaking Legislative News:

Follow @NUCA_National on Twitter!

Join NUCA's Government Affairs Committee!

Get involved! If you enjoy analyzing politics and find the inner workings of Congress and our industry's legislative program interesting or useful to your business, why not take the next step and join NUCA's Government Affairs Committee? Membership is open to all NUCA members, and we welcome the active participation of those seeking to make a difference in their industry, and to help shape NUCA's official policies on legislation.

Help shape the legislative and advocacy program of your association. Contact NUCA's Vice President of Government Affairs Zack Perconti to get started today.

The House's Cannon HOB subsurface

infrastructure being rebuilt, 2019. Photos: AoC.