ABC Reacts: 2024 State of the State Address

 “The Associated Builders & Contractors Empire State Chapter is pleased to hear again Governor Hochul commit to improving our infrastructure, expanding broadband, constructing more affordable housing, and continuing our commitment to green energy,” said Brian Sampson, President of the Chapter. “However, our leaders in Albany need to remedy the construction crisis they created.”  

“As session gets underway, policymakers must heed the warnings from our recently released report which ranked New York dead last in the country for creating a pro-growth construction environment. The study made it quite clear why New York is last and what it needs to do to improve its ranking. 

Our chief concern continues to be the utilization of Project Labor Agreements (PLAs) and the application of prevailing wages to private work. These do nothing other than steer contracts to preferred companies and make New York even less affordable. New York continues to be the last state in the nation with the outdated Scaffold Law, it also has an overly generous and often fraudulent Workers Compensation program, both of which severely increase the cost of insurance. These added costs are transferred to projects which makes them unaffordable. It’s why the state continues to use a pothole approach to repair our roads, bridges, sewers, broadband and other public infrastructure. These harmful policies are why New York has some of the worst-graded roads and bridges in the country. It’s also a key driver in why we continue to struggle fixing our energy grid and why vast areas of the state don’t have access to broadband. 

This is unacceptable. Albany can’t continue to waste taxpayer dollars on unnecessary, expensive, and restrictive mandates that benefit no one. New Yorkers pay for better roads, bridges, and infrastructure with their tax money, it’s time they get what they’re paying for. Governor Hochul said it best, the state cannot continue to spend money it doesn’t have, and it must protect taxpayers hard-earned money. The solution is very simple: end their use of harmful mandates that drive up the cost of construction. Doing so will start to address New York's affordability crisis and improve the quality of life for all of us.”