MCAA Represents Union-Signatory Construction Employers at IRS Hearing on Prevailing Wage and Apprentice Utilization Proposed Rules for Energy Projects

MCAA Government Affairs Committee Chairman Jim Gaffney and former Congressman Earl Pomeroy, MCAA’s government relations consultant, testified on MCAA’s behalf at the November 21, 2023, Internal Revenue Service hearing. The hearing addressed proposed rules requiring prevailing wages and apprentice utilization for enhanced tax credits under the Biden Administration’s Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) energy projects available for the next 10 years.

MCAA’s remarks and written statement delivered by Chairman Gaffney and former Congressman Pomeroy declared, “The Biden Administration energy project policy is laudable and worthy – and the market is eager for much more specific regulatory guidance from IRS and the Labor Department – which is absolutely essential to meet the statutory and public policy goals of the IRA.”

Chairman Gaffney noted that, “robust competition for qualifying projects depend on specific regulatory guidance for quality construction firms to assess the project performance risks and costs and commit resources to competing for that work.”

Chairman Gaffney continued, “lax regulatory and compliance guidance may well cede this market to low-road contractors over high-quality firms that would perform qualifying projects much more competently and productively.”

Chairman Gaffney and Congressman Pomeroy concluded by recommending a regulatory re-proposal that would adopt, “a Private Letter-type pre-award compliance review that would provide incentives for qualifying project owners to write full compliance specifications into their project bidding and prime contract and subcontract documents in a manner similar to the incentives allowed in the current proposal for owner use of Project Labor Agreements.”