Dear Representative:
As the House continues deliberation on H.R. 5303, the Water Resources Development Act of 2016 (WRDA), the Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO (TTD), strongly urges you to oppose Representative Graves’ amendment (#10) on nonfederal interest selection.
The Graves amendment eliminates the application of Davis-Bacon prevailing wage requirements for cooperative agreements that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers would enter into with nonfederal entities to perform water resource projects or project components. Davis-Bacon ensures that workers on federally assisted construction projects are paid no less than the “prevailing wages” in the area in which the project is located. This requirement promotes a properly functioning labor market by requiring contractors to compete based on skilled workers, efficient management, and entrepreneurial techniques, not on exploiting the cheapest workforce available. As a result, projects are performed safely, on time and on budget and by qualified employees.
We urge you to oppose the Graves amendment when it considered on the floor this afternoon. If you have any question or concerns, please contact me directly or TTD legislative representative Jeff Pavlak at 202/628.9262.
Sincerely,
Edward Wytkind
President
[download_box title=”Vote No on Graves Amendment to WRDA” size=”195KB” description=”PDF Version” url=”https://ttd.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/TTD-Letter-Graves-Amdendment.pdf”]