SMACNA Presses Labor and Banking Issues

SMACNA recently urged the Senate to confirm Acting Labor Secretary Keith Sonderling, calling him “highly professional, cooperative, experienced, and trustworthy” and crediting him with expanding registered apprenticeship programs and fairly enforcing workplace standards. The association stressed that Sonderling’s clear regulatory approach and commitment to compliance assistance have earned “widespread support” from contractors across the industry.

In a letter to senators, SMACNA’s Stan Kolbe cited Sonderling’s leadership on the Davis-Bacon Act, safety, and workforce initiatives, arguing these efforts are crucial as contractors face ongoing labor shortages.

At the same time, SMACNA is pressing lawmakers to support H.R. 9471, the SAFE Banking Act, which would allow banks and credit unions to serve legal cannabis-related businesses and, crucially, the contractors who build and maintain their facilities. With much of the industry forced to conduct business in cash due to federal restrictions, SMACNA warns that the status quo creates financial and security risks for contractors in states where cannabis is legal.

“The positive economic and contractor security benefits to the construction industry of its passage cannot be overestimated,” Kolbe wrote. Despite passing the House seven times with bipartisan support, the bill has repeatedly stalled in the Senate. The latest version, introduced with backing from both parties, remains in committee.

Transportation Reauthorization Emerges as Industry's Largest Concern

Federal transportation funding is the construction sector’s most urgent issue. During a recent AGC briefing, CEO Jeffrey Shoaf unveiled Morning Consult polling showing overwhelming, bipartisan support for a new highway and transit bill before current programs expire at the end of September.

AGC’s “America’s Moving Forward” campaign has already prompted voters in 12 states to send over 30,000 letters to Congress. Shoaf called the campaign “a small price to pay to ensure continued economic growth across the country.” The polling also shows strong public support for new highway funding, user fees for electric vehicles, and safety improvements like speed cameras in work zones.

Despite the industry’s full-court press, some observers remain skeptical that Congress will deliver more than another stopgap extension. During the AGC’s briefing, one reporter pressed Shoaf on whether there was really enough time left in the session to pass a major highway bill, noting that both the House and Senate were out of session for much of the summer. Shoaf acknowledged the tight timeline but insisted that “this is the kind of bill that can pass in a bipartisan way,” adding, “we’re trying to be the path of least resistance.”

“The overwhelming support for a new bill should be seen as a bipartisan call on the House of Representatives to pass Build America 250,” Shoaf said. “Congress has a chance to unite the country by investing in a bill that creates jobs, improves safety, and enhances economic growth.”

The legislation AGC is rallying behind, the BUILD America 250 Act, would authorize approximately $580 billion in transportation investments over five years and represents Congress' next attempt to replace the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act framework. The proposal includes increased funding for roads, bridges and transit systems, workforce provisions, project delivery reforms and a new registration fee for electric vehicles designed to strengthen the Highway Trust Fund.

Lynn Hanson, CEO of Crowder Constructors, warned that without reliable federal funding, projects will be delayed or canceled, congestion will worsen, and safety improvements will fall further behind – especially in fast-growing states like the Carolinas. “Our workers deserve the opportunity to go home safe to their families each night, but also to be able to provide for their families,” she said. “If the current highway and transportation bill expires in September without a new one in place, highway projects will be at a standstill throughout the country. We cannot allow Congress to let this happen.”

A Common Theme: Certainty

Taken together, SMACNA’s advocacy for Sonderling and SAFE Banking, and AGC’s transportation push, reveal a clear trend: construction groups are focused on targeted, practical measures that provide certainty. Whether on apprenticeship, banking access, or multi-year federal funding, the ask is the same: predictable rules that let contractors invest, hire, and plan with confidence.

Whether the issue is workforce development, financial reform, or transportation investment, construction industry groups are making a similar argument: contractors need certainty. The coming months will reveal whether bipartisan support for those priorities leads to real legislative victories – like passage of a new multi-year highway bill or permanent reforms to labor and banking rules – or if Congress falls back on its old habit of passing short-term funding extensions that leave major questions unresolved. For contractors trying to forecast workloads, staffing needs, and capital investments, the difference between long-term solutions and stopgap measures could be the difference between growth and stagnation.