Opinion: Consider inclusive infrastructure policies during United for Infrastructure Week

OPINION

As we celebrate United for Infrastructure’s twelfth annual Infrastructure Week, May 13-17, the importance of quality, safe and reliable infrastructure to New Jersey communities cannot be understated. Infrastructure projects are critical to economic growth, job creation, transportation and improving our overall quality of life in the Garden State.

However, when we invest in critical infrastructure projects, we must also deliver the best value for our taxpayers and municipalities. And that means creating a level playing field so that all New Jersey contractors have the opportunity to bid on taxpayer-funded construction contracts; competition is constructive for our sector.

Unfortunately, President Joe Biden’s administration has rejected the inclusive, win-win policies that would welcome eight in 10 non-union construction workers in New Jersey to build and rebuild our infrastructure systems . The President’s approach is not only pro-union, but also exclusively union-oriented, designed to exclude some of the state’s most qualified contractors and their talented and highly skilled workforces from the fight for jobs in our communities.

The Biden administration continues to push anticompetitive regulations, such as the final rule mandating corrupt project labor agreements on federal construction contracts, the controversial proposal to overhaul the state registered apprenticeship system, and the burdensome final Davis-Bacon rule, which is driving up costs, will stifle competition and exacerbate the sector’s labor shortage of more than half a million. Even the Inflation Reduction Act is under pressure from labor-only policies implemented through the Internal Revenue Service that raise costs, reduce competition, and delay construction of privately developed clean energy projects, which are eligible for more than $270 billion in federal tax benefits.

While this exclusionary policy secures political donations and accolades from politically connected special interests, in practice all it does is drive up construction costs and steer public works contracts to political donors at the expense of New Jersey taxpayers.

If the goal of United for Infrastructure Week is to “shine a light on the importance of prioritizing transformative infrastructure projects in our communities,” then let’s discuss solutions that invite all qualified contractors to compete to build and rebuild our infrastructure systems to build.

New Jersey taxpayers deserve the best return on their infrastructure investments. One solution to achieve that is the federal Fair and Open Competition Act, which allows all contractors to compete fairly on merit and leverage the talented construction professionals they have invested in and who are realizing their dreams with their employer choice.

Another solution in Congress is the Employee Rights Act, which would preserve worker choice, unlike the Biden-backed PRO Act, which effectively forces workers to unionize.

Solutions like these will result in cost savings, more jobs and more opportunities for all qualified small, minority and women-owned businesses in the construction industry and the completion of more construction projects built safely by quality local New Jersey contractors and construction workers. on time and within budget.

Samantha DeAlmeida Roman is the president and CEO of the Associated Builders and Contractors, New Jersey Chapter