WASHINGTON, DC – Co-Chairs of the Congressional Building Trades Caucus, Congressmen Donald Norcross (D-NJ) and David McKinley (R-WV), along with the Construction Employers of America, commemorated Infrastructure Week 2017 and called for robust infrastructure investments at a press conference on Capitol Hill.

“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 Congressman Donald Norcross (D-NJ-01), Co-Chair of the Congressional Building Trades Caucus. “It’s great to stand alongside construction contractors and join them in supporting worker training and apprenticeship programs and protections, like Davis Bacon. We desperately need to invest in our roads, bridges, rails, ports, airports, Electric Grid, pipes and more; simply put: it’s time to build.”

“As an engineer, I understand how America’s construction workers helped build this great country,” said Congressman David B. McKinley, P.E. (R-WV-01), Co-Chair of the Congressional Building Trades 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.”

According to a study by Professor Stephen Fuller at George Mason University, an additional $1 billion invested in nonresidential construction would add $3.4 billion to our gross domestic product, $1.1 billion to personal earnings, and create or sustain 28,500 jobs. The Administration’s stated promise to secure $1 trillion in infrastructure investment would invigorate our economy and produce long-term job growth across the country.

The policymakers and CEA members are advocating key provisions be included in federal infrastructure legislation, including retaining voluntary use of Project Labor Agreements and maintaining and strengthening regional prevailing wage (Davis-Bacon) requirements.

About the Congressional Building Trades Caucus

In March 2016, Rep. Norcross, an electrician by trade, joined with Rep. David B. McKinley, who worked and taught in the construction industry, to launch the Congressional Building Trades Caucus. The bipartisan effort brings together Members of Congress from both sides of aisle to discuss issues that affect the millions of men and women who work in the construction industry.

About CEA

CEA’s seven employer associations include FCA International, International Council of Employers of Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers, Mechanical Contractors Association of America, National Electrical Contractors Association, Sheet Metal & Air Conditioning Contractors National Association, Signatory Wall and Ceiling Contractors Alliance, and The Association of Union Constructors. Our impact on the American economy is significant. We represent over 15,000 employers and 1.4 million employees nationwide. More information about CEA and our issues can be found online at www.constructionemployersofamerica.com.

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