Author: clara.kinney@agc.org
The Louisiana Associated General Contractors gathered at the AGC Townhouse in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday, September 17, to meet with lawmakers and officials from the Trump administration. Representing more than 600 contractors, subcontractors, suppliers, and service providers across the state, Louisiana AGC leaders highlighted both the economic opportunities and challenges facing Louisiana’s construction industry. The event offered a forum to share updates directly with lawmakers and agency officials about how federal policies and regulations impact local businesses and the communities they serve. The program featured high-level briefings from federal officials, including Jay Payne, Chief Counsel at the Federal Highway Administration…
On September 18, the U.S. Senate confirmed Sean McMaster as the 22nd Administrator of the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). In an en bloc vote of 51–47, McMaster was confirmed along with Jonathan Morrison as Administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and Paul Roberti as Administrator of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA). You may recall, AGC previously reported on President Trump’s selection of McMaster to lead FHWA and AGC’s support of the nomination. McMaster brings experience from senior positions at the U.S. Department of Transportation during President Trump’s first term, as well as time on…
On Wednesday, September 17, the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee passed the bipartisan Promoting Innovation in Pipeline Efficiency and Safety (PIPES) Act of 2025 (H.R. 5301). The bill was negotiated and passed by Committee Chairman Sam Graves (R-Mo.) and Ranking Member Rick Larsen (D-Wash.) and would reauthorize the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) safety programs over the next four years. The House is the first chamber to move toward the reauthorization of federal pipeline safety programs. The PIPES Act also provides roughly $8,000,000 through 2029 for state One-Call Notification Programs, a necessary increase to improve underground location and…
On Sept. 10, the Department of Defense (DoD) released the final regulation that requires Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) compliance for every DoD prime and subcontractor. The regulation will go into effect on November 10, 2025. The DoD is implementing the CMMC requirements over four phases, starting with the inclusion of CMMC Level 1 and Level 2 Self-Assessment requirements in all applicable DoD solicitations. Most AGC members will fall under Level 1 or 2, and contractors should expect to see the CMMC clause in their contracts in the coming months. CMMC Level 3 requirements are expected to come into being in…
On Sept. 10, the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure held the first hearing on the Water Resources Development Act for 2026 (WRDA). At its core, the WRDA empowers the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to carry out projects that strengthen the nation’s water infrastructure, while also giving Congress a role in shaping priorities by authorizing specific Civil Works projects. AGC submitted a letter for the record expressing its strong opposition to the use of Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund (HMTF) dollars to build or maintain Corps-owned dredging ships, noting that private contractors can perform this work more efficiently and at…
U.S. Representative Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-Iowa) toured the I-380/Penn Street modernization project in North Liberty on Friday with representatives from Streb Construction, of AGC of Iowa, and AGC of America. The project is expanding I-380 from four to six lanes and includes new bridge construction, concrete replacement, and asphalt surfacing. Now more than 50 percent complete, the project will improve safety and support economic growth in one of Iowa’s fastest growing regions. During the visit, the group viewed the work zone where a critical “lane switch” is underway, diverting traffic to newly finished lanes while older sections are removed and rebuilt.…
On Sept. 8, AGC submitted comments on the revised PART 36 of Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR). The FAR revision is due to President Trump’s Executive Order, Restoring Common Sense to Federal Procurement, directing sweeping changes to the federal procurement. The order intends to create a more efficient procurement system by removing undue regulatory barriers and eliminating FAR provisions not required by law or essential to sound procurement. Specifically, AGC called on for restoring best practices like site visits and preconstruction conferences, refining Project Labor Agreement requirements, improving the timing of government cost estimates, and reducing the administrative load on contracting officers…
AGC of America has released its updated 2025 Economic Impact Factsheets for all 50 states. These one-page tools highlight construction’s contribution to GDP, employment, wages, and spending, helping chapters, members, and stakeholders communicate the industry’s importance to policymakers, the media, and the public. The factsheets also provide context on workforce trends and industry pay, offering a quick, credible resource for advocacy, comment letters, and media outreach. They are designed to help make the case for continued investment in construction careers and training. To see your state, click here. For more information, please contact Macrina Wilkins.
On September 4, the Trump administration published its first Unified Agenda of Federal Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions (“the Agenda”). The Agenda is a data call from the federal agencies that publishes a list of rules and regulations that each agency is working on. The lists are posted on reginfo.gov and available for public review. The activities included in the Agenda are primarily those currently planned to have an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM), a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM), or a Final Rule issued within the next 12 months. Agencies may also publish a list of long-term actions that…
Treasury and the IRS have issued Notice 2025-42 to implement the “begin construction” deadline in the One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA). Under OBBBA, the clean electricity production credit (§45Y) and investment credit (§48E) terminate for wind and solar facilities after December 31, 2027, if construction begins after July 4, 2026. The Treasury guidance tells contractors exactly how to prove they began construction in time and tightens the standard compared with pre-OBBBA practice. The most important change in the notice is that now the only way to establish construction began before July 5, 2026 for wind and solar projects is…