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Use Congressional Recess to Tell Your Congressman: Finish Work on Highway & Transit Bill With the Senate completing action on a six-year transportation reauthorization bill before the August recess, focus has shifted to the House. The House has indicated that they will work on their version of a long-term highway & transit bill when they return to Washington after Labor Day. Use your Congressman’s time in the state to meet with them on the importance of passing a long-term, fully funded transportation bill. Resources to help you schedule meetings can be found on the Hardhats for Highway “Meet with Congress” page. Please follow up your meetings with an email to your House Representative, reminding them to focus on passing a long-term highway & transit bill after the August recess.

Following nearly three days of debate and the consideration of 147 amendments, the House of Representatives passed the Surface Transportation Reauthorization and Reform Act (STRRA) of 2015 by a vote of 363-64. The six-year bill is the first long-term bill to be passed in the House in a decade. The next step is for House and Senate negotiators to work out final details of the bill prior to the expiration of the current extension on Nov. 20. Prior to the vote, 51���� sent a letter urging support for passage of the bill. In addition, the 51���� –led Transportation Construction Coalition and our partners in the Americans for Transportation Mobility voiced support for passage of the Act.

Contact your Reps – Visit Hardhats for Highways Another week has passed without any progress for the House’s plan for passing a long-term highway & transit bill prior to the expiration of the current extension on Oct. 29. Although there have been reports of negotiations between House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-Wisc.) and Senator Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) on how to fund a long-term transportation bill, they have not yet reached a compromise. The Senate has already passed a six-year bill with three years of funding.

In addition to passing the continuing resolution to keep the federal government operating, Congress also passed a six-month extension of the Federal Aviation Administration spending authorization and the Airport and Airway Trust Fund taxation authority. The extension provides $1.675 billion in contract authority for the Airport Improvement Program for the first half of fiscal year 2016. This is $65 million higher than half of the FY 2015 enacted level of $3.220 billion. Originally, program funding in FY 2015 was set at $3.350 billion, but that level was cut by a $130 million rescission in the FY 2015 appropriations act. The six-month extension for FY 2016 restores half of that rescission and hopefully that funding level will be continued through the remainder of the year.

October 10 Hotel Deadline Approaches Lean construction practices have had a major impact on productivity in the vertical sector of the construction industry. Highway, bridge and other horizontal construction activities can benefit by using these principles. The Highway Contractors Conference, held Nov. 5-7 in Phoenix, Arizona, will now feature a presentation on how to make your company more profitable by applying lean construction principles to your company’s operations and specific job applications. Jeff Esgar and Andrew Apostolk, both of Sundt Construction Co, will explain what is lean and how it can work for you. Esgar and Apostolk have experience with using lean construction on vertical and horizontal projects and are active in 51���� of America’s Lean Construction training.

51���� Member Videos Highlight Message With the Senate completing action on a six-year transportation reauthorization bill before the August recess, focus has shifted to the House. The House has indicated that they will work on their version of a long-term highway & transit bill when they return to Washington after Labor Day. Use your Congressman’s time in the state to meet with them on the importance of passing a long-term, fully funded transportation bill. Resources to help you schedule meetings can be found on the Hardhats for Highway “Meet with Congress” page.

More Information at meetings.agc.org/highway Get up-to-date information on a variety of issues that will impact the highway and transportation construction markets over the next year. The 2015 51���� Highway Contractors Conference will be held Nov. 5-7, 2015, at the JW Marriott Phoenix Desert Ridge Resort & Spa. Industry professionals from companies involved in building highway, bridge, transit, airport runway and rail projects will benefit from this conference. The conference will feature presentations and discussions on major trends in highway construction, including:

Senate Approves DRIVE Act, House to Focus on Long-Term Bill in Sept. The Senate today approved H.R. 22, the Developing a Reliable and Innovative Vision for the Economy (DRIVE) Act by a vote of 65-34. Thank you to those who have contacted their Senators over the past week, urging support for this long-term highway & transit bill. Our focus now shifts to the House, which has not yet begun action on a long-term bill. Contact your representative and tell them to pass a long-term bill when they return to Congress in September.

Construction employment declined in 127 metro areas, was stagnant in 51 and increased in 180 between June 2014 and June 2015, according to a new analysis of federal employment data released today by the Associated General Contractors of America. Association officials noted that the declines come as the House and Senate struggle to enact legislation to extend federal transportation investments beyond the July 31st expiration of the current program.

Thank You for Contacting Your Senators and Asking Them for Their Support The Senate voted 62-36 yesterday to begin debate on the long-term highway & transit bill known as the “Drive Act.” The vote now opens the bill up for debate, amendments and hopefully approval before the July 31 program expiration deadline. Thank you to all who contacted their senators asking them to support beginning debate on this bill. Please now take a moment to thank your Senators who voted “yes” and express your disappointment to your Senators who voted “no” to move this transportation bill forward in the Senate.