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Earmark Funding Update The House lawmakers have yet to decide how much earmarked funding will go to each party.  Before earmarks were banned in 2011, the House split funding at 60 percent for the party in power and 40 percent for the minority.  The Senate split was 50-50.  Senate Appropriations Chair Leahy has stated that…

This Week in Congress President Biden’s prospects for passing a major infrastructure bill through Congress with bipartisan support continued to increase this week; however, Republican Senators and the Biden administration could not  reach an agreement on how much to spend on the package, or how to pay for it.  Per Sen. Capito (R-WV) leading the…

Senate Finance Committee on Infrastructure Financing This week, the Senate Finance Committee laid the groundwork for bipartisan collaboration on infrastructure financing that focused more on areas of agreement such as bonding and public-private partnerships.  Chair Wyden and ranking member Crapo called for bringing back the Obama-era Build America Bonds program, which provided federal payments for…

House Transportation Committee Reviews 2,300 Earmark Requests Roughly three-quarters of House members are seeking a total of almost $14.9 billion for surface transportation ranging from electric bus grants to road expansion as Congress allows for earmarking money for projects after more than 15 years. The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee is reviewing more than 2,300…

ASA Participates in the Transportation Construction Coalition’s Virtual Fly-In On Thursday, May 20, 2021, ASA participated in the Transportation Construction Coalition’s Virtual Fly-In, which included U.S. Transportation Secretary Buttigieg, Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-WVA), Ranking Member, Committee on Environment and Public Works, Sen. Carper (D-DE), Chairman, Committee on Environment Public Works, and Reps. Lamb (D-PA)…

Sen. Marshall and Rep. Comer Introduce Save Local Business Act Sen. Marshall (R-KN) and Rep. Comer (R-KY) introduced legislation that would clarify the definition of joint employer, which they argue has been expanded and has created confusion for small businesses. This legislation, Save Local Business Act, would counter the joint employer provision of the Protecting the Right…

ASA Offers Comments to OSHA’s Hazard Communication Standard On Thursday, May 20, 2021, ASA in conjunction with the Construction Industry Safety Coalition (CISC) submitted comments to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) regarding its proposed rule to amend the Hazard Communication Standard (HCS).  In general, ASA, along with the CISC, supports OSHA’s adoption of…

President Biden’s Death and Estate Tax Increases The following excerpts were prepared by the Small Business Legislative Council (SBLC) (ASA is a member of the SBLC) regarding President Biden’s proposed increase to death and estate taxes on small business owners and farmers.  This would be accomplished by reducing the federal estate tax exemption, in some…

Tobacco Infrastructure Tax On Monday, Senate Majority Whip Durbin, Senate Finance Chairman Wyden, and House Appropriations Chair DeLauro sent a letter to President Biden suggesting an increase in the tobacco tax as a way to pay for the infrastructure and family package.  They purport that an increase to the tobacco tax and imposing the first…

This Week in Congress This week, the House and Senate were in session following two weeks of committee focused activity. The Senate focused on presidential nominees and negotiations continued on President Biden’s $4 trillion economic plan, as President Biden met with members from both parties on Wednesday. To date, the Senate Republicans led by Sen.…