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LEGISLATIVE UPDATES

NABTU Statement on the U.S. Senate Republican Proposed "One Big Beautiful Bill"

Washington, D.C. – June 28, 2025 – Today, North America’s Building Trades Unions (NABTU) President Sean McGarvey issued the following statement:

“The revised Senate draft released late last night is a massive insult to the working men and women of North America’s Building Trades Unions and all construction workers. This is not what they voted for.

“If enacted, this stands to be the biggest job-killing bill in the history of this country. Simply put, it is the equivalent of terminating more than 1,000 Keystone XL pipeline projects. In some cases, it worsens the already harmful trajectory of the House-passed language, threatening an estimated 1.75 million construction jobs and over 3 billion work hours, which translates to $148 billion in lost annual wages and benefits. These are staggering and unfathomable job loss numbers, and the bill throws yet another lifeline and competitive advantage to China in the race for global energy dominance.

FULL ARTICLE

Funding

The federal budget bill, also known as the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” contains provisions that would impact funding for renewable energy projects. The bill includes $546 billion in cuts to tax credits and other programs that promote the development of clean energy. The House version of the bill also shortens the timeframe for the availability of tax credits, requiring that renewable energy projects begin construction within 60 days of the bill’s final passage and start operation within two years. The Senate version of the bill maintains the full phase-out of solar and wind energy tax credits by 2028, but extends the credits for hydropower, nuclear, and geothermal projects to 2036. The tax credits, which were created under the Inflation Reduction Act, could potentially lower the cost of clean energy projects by up to 30%. These cuts to federal clean energy tax credits may impact future energy investments and developments in Minnesota. In 2023, Minnesota passed a law requiring 100% clean energy by 2040. Since the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act in 2022, Minnesota has gained more than $1 billion in new clean energy investments and approximately 1,800 new jobs.

Jacobson, Rachel, and Mikaela Tajo. “Cuts to Climate, Energy Funding in House Bill Would Mean Higher Costs, Fewer Jobs, Poorer Health.” Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, June 10, 2025. LINK
“Governor Walz Signs Bill Moving Minnesota to 100 Percent Clean Energy by 2040.” Minnesota Department of Commerce, February 7, 2023. LINK
Volcovici, Valerie, and Nichola Groom. “US Senate Budget Bill Proposal Keeps Cuts to Solar, Wind Incentives.” Reuters, June 16, 2025. LINK
Martucci, Brian. “Utilities, Energy Developers Back Senate’s More Lenient Tax Credit Timeline.” Construction Dive, June 25, 2025. LINK
Radelat, Ana. “Trump Budget Bill Would Gut ‘Green’ Investments That Have Brought Minnesota $1 Billion.” MinnPost, May 29, 2025. LINK

Federal Budget

On May 22nd, the U.S. House of Representatives passed on a party-line vote the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” which sets the federal budget for taxes and spending. All federal bills relating to taxes and spending originate in the House of Representatives before they move on to the U.S. Senate, after which they go through conference committee, final approval by both chambers, and then are signed into law by the President. The Senate is currently debating their version of the “Big Beautiful Bill” with a July 4th deadline expected. Some provisions contained in the House version of the bill that may impact the building trades include:

Eliminating taxes on overtime pay for certain qualifying employees through 2028;
Expanding federal Pell grants to include workforce training programs;
Expanding 529 savings accounts to allow savings to be used to cover the cost skilled training programs;
Expediting permitting for natural gas projects.

The “One Big Beautiful Bill” makes the 2017 Trump tax cuts permanent.xi An analysis of the 2017 corporate tax cut by the Joint Committee on Taxation and the Federal Reserve Board found that workers whose incomes were below the 90th percentile ($114,000 in 2016 dollars) saw no change in earnings.xii An analysis by the CBO of the distributional impacts of the 2025 “One Big Beautiful Bill” finds that the poorest American households would see a decrease in their financial resources by $1600 (-3.9%) per year, middle-income households would see their financial resources increase by $500-$1000 per year (+0.5% - +0.8%), and the highest income households would see their financial resources increase by $12,000 per year (+2.3%). Under this bill, working families with the lowest incomes will see their earnings shrink even more.

Bolton, Alexander. “Republicans Scramble to Save Trump’s ‘Big, Beautiful Bill.’” The Hill, June 27, 2025. LINK
Leggate, James. “House Passes ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ With Key Provisions for Construction.” Engineering News-Record (ENR), May 22, 2025. LINK
“Ways and Means Votes To Make 2017 Tax Cuts Permanent, Provide Additional Relief for Workers, Reward Investment in America, and Hold Woke Elites Accountable.” United States House Committee on Ways & Means, May 14, 2025. LINK
Marr, Chuck, Samantha Jacoby, and George Fenton. “The 2017 Trump Tax Law Was Skewed to the Rich, Expensive, and Failed to Deliver on Its Promises.” Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, June 13, 2024. LINK
Swagel, Phillip. “Distributional Effects of H.R. 1, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.” Congressional Budge Office, June 12, 2025. LINK

Tarrifs

On June 4th, the Trump administration raised tariffs on steel and aluminum imports from 25% to 50%. In anticipation of the increase in tariffs, aluminum and steel prices increased 54% and 7.4% respectively. The increase in prices may have an effect on building materials costs, with structural steel materials prices rising 5-8%.

“Fact Sheet: President Donald J. Trump Increases Section 232 Tariffs on Steel and Aluminum.” The White House, June 3, 2025. LINK
Onstad, Eric, Hyunjoo Jin, and Hongmei Li. “US Aluminium, Steel Prices Jump, Shares Drop on Trump’s New Tariffs." Reuters, June 2, 2025. LINK
Obando, Sebastian. “New Steel, Aluminum Tariffs Will Push Construction Costs Higher.” Constructive Dive, June 5, 2025. LINK

NLRB

The NLRB will lose nearly 100 employees in the next fiscal year due to DOGE buyouts and early retirements. The agency is asking Congress for a 4.7% reduction in funding from current levels, despite having received only 1 budget increase since 2014. Over half of the staffing losses come from employees that are responsible for handling cases at the agency. This may increase the time it takes to investigate unfair labor practices and conduct union elections.

Iafolla, Robert, and Parker Purifoy. “NLRB Plans to Cut Staffers, Save Money Without Mass Layoffs.” Bloomberg Law, May 30, 2025. LINK

USDOL

The Trump administration is proposing cutting 4,000 full time employees at USDOL for the next fiscal year, nearly a quarter of the entire agency. The current number of investigators at the Wage and Hour Division (WHD) is at a 52-year low, with only 611 investigators for the entire country. Despite this record low, the WHD is responsible for protecting three times as many workers, and more than four times as many employers, since its staffing levels peaked in 1978. Since 1980, the funding for USDOL, when adjusted for inflation, has declined from $119 billion to $54.3 billion in 2024.

On June 27th, the Acting Administrator of the WHD announced that the agency will no longer seek liquidated damages as part of administrative settlement investigations over violations of federal wage and hour laws. In the memo to all Regional Administrators and District Directors, the Acting Administrator states that liquidated damages can only be sought when USDOL pursues an enforcement action through litigation. The majority of investigations at USDOL are resolved by administrative settlements, rather than through costly and time-intensive litigation. Therefore, this recent announcement means that in the majority of cases WHD investigators will be tasked with collecting wages owed to employees, but will no longer have the ability to seek damages from employers for wrongdoing. This announcement rolls back the policy that was in place under both the Obama and Biden administrations, in which liquidated damages were typically equal to the amount wages wrongly withheld from workers.

Rainey, Rebecca, Austin R. Ramsey, and Tre’Vaughn Howard. “Trump Seeks 25% Cut to Labor Department Staff in Budget Plan.” Bloomberg Law, May 30, 2025. LINK
Barnes, Jake, Janice Fine, Daniel J. Galvin, Jenn Round, and Hana Shepherd. “To Help U.S. Workers, We Need Labor Standards Enforcement, Not Mass Deportations.” Data Brief. Workplace Justice Lab. Rutgers-New Brunswick School of Management and Labor Relations, May 2025. LINK
Sainato, Michael. “Mass Resignations at Labor Department Threaten Workers in US and Overseas, Warn Staff – as More Cuts Loom.” The Guardian, May 3, 2025. LINK
Harrison, III, Donald M. “Prohibition on Seeking Liquidated Damages in Administrative Settlements under the FLSA.” U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division, June 27, 2025. No. 2025-3. Field Assistance Bulletin.
Niedzwiadek, Nick. “Unions See Template for Dems in Mamdani’s Economic Message.” Politico, June 30, 2025. LINK

Project Labor Agreements

On June 12th, the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) announced in an All-Agency Memorandum that the Trump Administration supports the use of PLAs, and that blanket prohibitions on their use by any federal department or agency are prohibited. This memo overrides recent attempts, including at the Department of Defense, to issue blanket prohibitions on the use of PLAs. Additionally, this announcement from OMB contradicts the policy position in Project 2025 that calls for the end of PLA requirements for large federal construction projects.

xx Vought. “Use of Project Labor Agreements on Federal Construction Projects - Amendments to OMB Memorandum M-24-06.” Office of Management and Budget, June 12, 2025. M-25-29. Memorandum to the Heads of Executive Departments and Agencies.
Berry, Johnathan. “Department of Labor and Related Agencies.” In Project 2025: Presidential Transition Project, 581–618. Mandate for Leadership: The Conservative Promise. Washington, D.C.: The Heritage Foundation, 2023.

Federal Prosecutions of Labor Leaders

On June 9th, federal prosecutors charged David Huerta, President of SEIU California, with conspiring to impede an officer for his involvement as a community observer at a protest responding to an ongoing worksite immigration raid in Los Angeles. If convicted, Huerta faces a maximum sentence of six years in federal prison.

Taxin, Amy. “Federal Prosecutors Charge California Union Leader.” Associated Press, June 9, 2025.
Rosen, Jacob. “California Union Leader Charged with Felony Conspiracy after Being Arrested during L.A. ICE Protest.” CBS News, June 10, 2025. LINK

CARPENTERS IN ACTION

The Carpenters Union stands for fair, safe, and respectful jobs for all workers. We expose developers and contractors who exploit workers, cheat our communities, and lower the standard of living for all of us.

Our union supports elected officials who support workers and opposes those who undermine what we stand for. If recent years have shown us anything, it is that bipartisan support is the only way to get things done.

From the State Legislature to job sites, we defend prevailing wages, quality apprenticeship programs, and opportunity for all workers. In Congress, we support leaders who fight for working families by raising the minimum wage, ending corporate handouts, and restoring workplace rights.

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2024

Congressional Scorecard

A cornerstone of Carpenter Economics is that we lobby our issues to Democrats and Republicans. Whether that is roads, bridges, transit, aviation, ports or other transportation work, whether Congress is weighing in on energy, housing, or industrial development, or other sectors of the economy, Carpenters Economics means fighting for jobs for you and your family.

View the 2024 Congressional Scorecard >>

Carpenter Economics

The North Central States Regional Council of Carpenters' political support is directed in ways that support Prevailing Wage, Member Work Hours, and Market Share. As the next General Election approaches, make sure you know where your candidates stand on carpenter economics.

Union carpenters receive highest quality training with livable wages and benefits from day one. Our carpenters are able to work on the biggest, most complex projects and still return home safe. Union Carpenters enjoy a middle class way of life and a secure retirement while building our states right the first time.

It is important that when you go to the polls or have conversations with your elected leaders, that you bring Carpenter Economics with you. Elections will determine infrastructure packages, bonding bills, policies, wages, benefits and ultimately job security. It is important that Carpenter Economics is always at the forefront because your vote matters.

Prevailing Wage Laws

For nearly 100 years, the federal Davis-Bacon Act has helped to ensure that local contractors can compete on a level playing field for federally funded projects. The law was cosponsored by two Republican senators (James Davis - PA and Robert Bacon - NY) based on concerns about contractors from low-wage markets undercutting contractors from their respective states.

Prevailing wage laws set the wage and benefit floor based on local survey data of the going rate for particular crafts. This ensures that work on government-financed projects does not undercut area standards. It levels the playing field for local workers and local contractors.

Publicly funded projects generally award bids to contractors who have the lowest-cost bid to do the work by the government's standards. Without prevailing wage requirements, a simple way to cut bid costs is by cutting worker pay and benefits, creating a race-to-the-bottom which can encourage practices like wage theft and other payroll fraud.

To learn more, read the NorthStar Policy Action's Prevailing Wage Policies: Preventing Workplace Abuses Before They Happen.

TAX FRAUD

North Central Regional Council of Carpenters’ members and signatory contractors set the standard for the construction industry in the Upper Midwest; setting a high-bar for training, productivity, on-the-job safety, safe working conditions, apprenticeships, and wages and benefits.

We have worked hard to build these standards and will work even hard to defend what we have built. There are always developers and contractors who are willing to cheat the system, taking advantage of workers, paying crews as little as possible or not paying them at all, and even bending or breaking the law through the shadow economy.

Billions of dollars in tax revenue and a failure to pay promised wages, mandatory payroll taxes and workers compensation insurance puts a large burden on carpenters as well as federal, state and local governments.

Tax fraud not only costs taxpayers billions, payroll fraud hurts honest businesses and exploits workers. Honest contractors are losing business opportunities. Hard working carpenters are losing work. Holding dishonest contractors accountable creates a level, competitive playing field for those who build our community and bolster our local economy. STAND UP TO TAX FRAUD.

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