Legislative Priorities

No other construction industry organization in the Carolinas delivers on legislative and regulatory issues like Carolinas AGC. Whether it involves helping ease the workforce shortage; leading efforts to secure hundreds of millions of dollars for infrastructure improvements involving transportation, building and utility public construction work; improving the business climate for construction or cutting bureaucratic red tape and minimizing risks for the construction industry, CAGC is working for you.

Below is a snapshot of how Carolinas AGC lobbyists work on members’ behalf in the North Carolina and South Carolina legislatures.

North Carolina

“The devastating effects of Hurricane Helene on the western part of the state will be the primary focus of this legislative session—along with passing a two-year biennial budget. With the loss of the Republican’s veto proof majority, there may be fewer opportunities for them to overturn any gubernatorial vetoes and therefore fewer bills seeking to reduce the Governor’s powers.” - Betsy Bailey, NC Government Relations & Building Division Director and CAGC Foundation COO.

CAGC’s Legislative Goals for this year in North Carolina Include:

A budget request of $6.0 million dollars in the first year and $3.6 million in the second year to fund various construction workforce development programs that will enable our industry to better respond to rebuilding western NC and building other critical public infrastructure projects throughout the state. 

• Heavy Equipment Operator Programs ($3.0 million the first year and $600,000 the second year): One of the most significant needs our industry has right now is for heavy equipment operators. The NC Community College System (NCCCS) operates fewer than ten of these programs across the 58 colleges in the system. More heavy equipment operators are desperately needed to help rebuild our roads and bridges in the western part of the state. CAGC recommends adding another 6 programs with most of these programs concentrated in western counties. These programs have a one-time cost to get them up and running due to the up-front purchase of equipment needed for training. By year two, these costs decrease significantly.
  
  
• Construction Bootcamps ($2.0 million the first year and $2.0 million the second year):ARPA/SFRF funds of $2.5 million was awarded to the CAGC Foundation in 2021 to create Construction Bootcamps to recruit individuals into the construction industry and provide them with 8-10 weeks of accelerated “construction 101” training to prepare them for an entry level position in the construction industry. So far, more than 14 community colleges have participated in this program and graduated nearly 300 students.

   

  Additional funding would be used to target high school students and steer them into a pre-apprenticeship or internship construction program, which would provide a transition between high school and full-time employment. The NCCCS would serve as the training partner and CAGC Foundation funding would pay for classroom training, marketing, career coaching, paid on-the-job training, job matching, and placement with one of our contractors. A special focus would be on creating these programs at community colleges in the western part of the state.

• Construction and Trades Programs in Middle and High School ($1.0 million the first year and $1.0 million the second year): The CAGC Foundation will work with the Department of Public Instruction and interested middle and high schools to create pilot programs to recruit and train construction industry professionals to be adjunct instructors. The funding will be used to provide grants to schools to maintain or expand construction and trades programs and for grants to employers for their company to provide instructional assistance to the school. A special focus would be on creating pilot programs at schools in the western part of the state.
  
  
• Work Zone Safety will continue to be a priority for CAGC.  We will continue to work with NCDOT and our state legislature on ways to improve work zone safety for our workers and the traveling public.For example, we will explore the use of speed safety cameras devices that use radar or other technology to detect speeding vehicles and record evidence of the violation.
  
  
• CAGC will fully support legislative efforts to modernize and increase funding for transportation.  As our state continues to grow it is critical that we provide the infrastructure to support that growth.  We will also advocate for funding for Hurricane Helene recovery funding in western North Carolina.
  
  
• CAGC is working with a group of stakeholders to draft updates to the NC 811 Damage Prevention Law. Notable changes in the draft legislation include: permitting the use of soft dig technologies; better defining the tolerance zone around existing facilities; extending the life of an 811 locate ticket from 15 to 28 calendar days; clarifying the requirement for excavators to use non-mechanical equipment with 24 inches of oil, gas, petroleum, highly volatile liquid and electrical transmission lines; requiring the venue to adjudicate claims in NC in the county where the violation occurs; and limits excavators’ liability for damages where the excavator has complied with all the requirements of the law and the operator fails to properly locate an existing facility that is damaged. 

South Carolina

“The members of the SC General Assembly returned to Columbia January 14, kicking off the 126th legislative session. With 32 new members of the legislature (19 in the House and 13 in the Senate) and renewed energy by the Senate to pass meaningful tort reform, we expect this to be an exciting legislative session.” -  Leslie Clark, COO & Director of SC Government Relations and Divisions.

CAGC’s Legislative Goals for this year in South Carolina Include: 

• CAGC will fully support additional funding for emergency bridge replacement and repair in the state budget to ensure the safety of everyone who travels the roads in SC. In addition, CAGC will support increasing the EV registration fee to be more in line with our southeastern states. In addition, CAGC will encourage legislators to consider indexing the current gas tax as well.

• CAGC will also support the continued $95 million annual investment of funds to South Carolina Workforce Industry Needs Scholarships (SCWINS) through the South Carolina Technical College System. Over the last four years over 42,000 South Carolinians have taken advantage of this scholarship program. These scholarships cover the cost of tuition and fees at any of our 16 technical colleges across the state to earn a post-secondary or industry credential in high-demand careers like manufacturing, nursing, computer science, information technology, transportation, logistics, or construction.

• Workforce funding will continue to be a priority for CAGC. We will seek continued funding for the Be Pro Be Proud Skilled Trades Mobile Workshop as well as looking to secure additional funding for educational programs CAGC is supporting.

• CAGC is in full support of S.244. This is a meaningful tort reform bill that will improve the state’s economy.  Loopholes in the current judicial system are making the state less competitive economically, exposing businesses to uncertainty, and costing consumers more money. S.244 will not insulate “bad actors” from the consequences of their behaviors and no one will be forced to pay for damages for which they are not responsible. The bill addresses among other things Joint and Several Liability, Construction Defects/Statute of Repose, and Seatbelt Admissibility. The bill, which Carolinas AGC has been instrumental in filing, is critical to our members who are always one lawsuit away from going out of business.

• As our state grows, our infrastructure must too. Having as many tools as possible to help deliver projects on time and on budget is critical. H. 3560 would add another tool. Phased Design Build uses a stepped, or phased qualifications-based selection process, followed by a progression to a contract price. This legislation will allow SCDOT to use Phased Design Build as a procurement method if they choose. CAGC supports passage of this legislation.