Contact: Gail Raiman, (703) 812-2073 Gerry Fritz, (703) 812-2062

For Immediate Release May 17, 2012

Washington, D.C. – By a bipartisan vote of 211 to 209, the U.S. House of Representatives today passed an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2013 (H.R. 4310) that prohibits federal agencies from mandating anti-competitive and costly project labor agreements (PLAs) on federal construction contracts authorized by the NDAA.

“This is a victory for the nation’s merit shop construction contractors and the 86 percent of the construction workforce that chooses not to join a labor union,” said Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) Vice President of Federal Affairs Geoff Burr. “With a construction industry unemployment rate of 14.5 percent, everyone deserves a level playing field to compete for this work, regardless of labor affiliation.

“The amendment passed today will ensure fair and open competition on government-funded construction contracts, as well as give taxpayers and the government the best possible construction product at the best possible price – completed safely and on time,” Burr said. “We thank the members of Congress who voted in favor of this amendment.” 

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Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) is a national association with 74 chapters representing 22,000 merit shop construction and construction-related firms. Visit us at www.abc.org.