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MCAA Government Affairs Update for the Week of September 8, 2025: The Latest Developments Impacting Our Industry

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As part of its ongoing commitment to protecting your livelihood and setting the stage for a bright future, MCAA has secured the services of Longbow Public Policy Group to advise our MCAA Government Affairs Committee (GAC). GAC Chair, Jim Gaffney will be passing along information relative to our industry on a regular basis.

On Monday, September 8, 2025 MCAA Lobbying Firm, Longbow Public Policy Group provided the following information:

Trump Administration

  • The view of the economy in Washington, D.C. grew much darker last week as Congress returned from its August recess. Last Friday, the Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported that the U.S. economy added only 22,000 new jobs in August and the unemployment rate rose to 4.3%, marking the highest unemployment level since 2021. The report also revealed that for the first time since late 2020 during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the economy lost jobs, as BLS posted downward revisions resulting in a decline of 13,000 jobs in June. The new BLS data highlighted a deceleration in hiring over the last few months, with employers hiring an average of 29,000 workers each month from June through August 2025, compared to 168,000 workers each month during the same period in 2024. Friday’s data followed the release last Wednesday of the BLS Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) that set off alarm bells in D.C. because it showed that July 2025 was the first month in four years in which the number of unemployed people surpassed the number of job openings in the U.S. This was a surprise given the removal of large numbers of immigrants from the U.S. workforce amid the Trump Administration’s immigration crackdown. The BLS JOLTS data also showed sharp negative revisions to June data on layoffs and discharges, which resulted in an increase of 192,000 people who lost their jobs involuntarily in June. The June data on job openings was also revised downward by 80,000. Just as concerning to D.C. politicians as the BLS reports was a Wall Street Journal poll released last Tuesday detailing how Americans currently feel about the economy. The share of Americans in the poll who say they have a good chance of improving their standard of living fell to 25%—the lowest level recorded since the poll began in 1987. Additionally, more than three-quarters of respondents said they lack confidence that life for the next generation will be better than their own. Nearly 70% of respondents also said they believe the American dream—that if you work hard, you will get ahead—no longer holds true, which is the highest level in nearly 15 years of surveys. And when asked how concerned respondents were “when it comes to the country’s economy,” 59% said they were anxious about the inability of the “country’s leaders to solve economic problems.” All this data has the Trump Administration and congressional Republicans alarmed because sour views of the economy tend to hurt the party in power during a midterm election.
  • Last Thursday, the issue of  the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) regulation of noncompete and nonsolicitation agreements sprung back to life as the Trump-appointed FTC requested public comments on a Request for Information (RFI) regarding these types of agreements. The Trump-led FTC wants to better understand the scope, prevalence, and effects of employer noncompete and nonsolicitation agreements, as well as gather information to inform possible future enforcement actions. In the RFI, the FTC says its “noncompete enforcement efforts have been obstructed by the Biden-Harris Administration’s Noncompete Rule” on which the MCAA submitted adverse comments. The FTC now describes that Biden-era rule in terms much more aligned with MCAA’s  position calling it “a blanket nationwide ban that exceeded the Commission’s regulatory power by purporting to prohibit nearly all noncompete agreements across all industries within the Commission’s jurisdiction without regard for their likely effects in specific contexts.” This new RFI seems to indicate that the FTC may abandon a rulemaking and focus on case-by-case enforcement or industry-specific activity. The Commission seeks comments on several topics, including: (1) the name of any employer known to be using employee noncompete or nonsolicitation agreements; (2) the reason for such agreements; (3) the roles, positions, or job functions for which the employer uses these agreements; (4) the typical salary ranges of the roles or positions subject to such agreements; (5) the terms or limitations of the agreements; and (6) whether the employer enforces the agreements and if so, how they enforce them. Comments, that will be made publicly available, are due by November 3, 2025 and should be submitted here. Interested parties can also submit confidential submissions to the FTC that can be separately submitted by email to noncompete@ftc.gov.
  • As the MCAA continues to engage with the Trump Administration and Congress on implementation of the “One Big, Beautiful Bill Act” (OBBBA), we wanted to be sure that MCAA members were aware that last week the Treasury Department released the preliminary list of occupations that can benefit from the OBBBA’s “No Tax on Tips” provision. There are some unexpected occupations on the list of particular interest to MCAA members, including “Home Heating and Air Conditioning Mechanics and Installers,” and “home plumbers.” Treasury says this list will “be published in the Federal Register as part of forthcoming proposed regulations from the Treasury Department and the Internal Revenue Service.” Treasury and the IRS also note that they “anticipate that the official proposed list will be substantially the same as this preliminary list.” Public comments will be requested on the official proposed list of occupations and other aspects of the proposed regulations implementing the “No Tax on Tips” provision.
  • As the MCAA continues to track developments regarding President Trump’s tariffs, we wanted to be sure you knew that last Wednesday, the Trump Administration filed a petition to the U.S. Supreme Court requesting that the justices decide by September 10th whether they will review the August 29th decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit striking down President Trump’s tariffs predicated on the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). These include the President’s “reciprocal” tariffs that were imposed in April that took effect last month and a separate set of tariffs imposed in February on imports from Canada and Mexico, both of which were imposed under IEEPA authorities. While the Administration is expressing confidence that it will prevail in the Supreme Court, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said he is developing backup plans in case the Supreme Court does not reverse the appellate court decision, including using Section 338 of the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act of 1930. This law allows the President to impose tariffs of up to 50% for five months against imports from countries that are found to discriminate against U.S. commerce. The fact that backup plans are being developed indicates that tariff uncertainty is likely to continue even if the President’s IEEPA-based tariffs are ultimately ruled unlawful.
  • On the decarbonization front, there were three notable developments last week. FERC announced that the Secretary of Energy is planning to rescind a Biden-era policy that made it harder to approve interstate natural gas projects and the EPA published a rule rescinding Biden-era regulations threatening the continued operation of coal combustion residual (CCR) facilities that dispose of the byproducts of burning coal to generate electricity and are essential to the continued operation of coal fired power plants. There was also a 2-1 ruling last Tuesday by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia overturning a lower court’s ruling that prevented the EPA from clawing back $16 billion in unspent funds from the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund created by President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act. The funding was disbursed to eight environmental organizations tasked with sub-awarding it to programs that reduce global warming and U.S. air pollution. The ruling does not decide the ultimate outcome of the case, but it does lift an order preventing the EPA from taking back the money while the litigation over it plays out.
  • The Trump Administration is also continuing its effort to revive the U.S. shipbuilding industry as evidenced by last week’s announcement from the Labor Department providing $8 million in funding for U.S. shipbuilding industry. The funding will be used to connect U.S. technical education centers and community colleges with similar training programs in several allied countries—including South Korea and Japan, the world’s second and third leading shipbuilders after China—and establish international collaboration to help American workers learn advanced shipbuilding capabilities. Priority occupational training for this funding will be directed at welders, steel workers, steamfitters, shipwrights, boilermakers, and industrial electricians. Eligible applicants include any commercial, international, educational, or non-profit organizations, including any faith-based organizations, community-based organizations, or public international organizations. Applications are due by September 26, 2025, and can be submitted through Grants.gov here.

Congress

  • As lawmakers returned from the August recess last week, they faced a short legislative timeline to avoid a federal government shutdown once fiscal year 2025 ends on September 30, 2025. Last week, the White House told Congress that it prefers lawmakers pass a continuing resolution (CR) to fund the federal government into early 2026. Congress, at least for now, appears to have other plans. Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) and House Minority Leader Hakeen Jeffries (D-NY) held private talks last week about extending government funding into November or December. Separately, House Appropriations Committee Chair Tom Cole (R-OK) is hoping to pass a CR through the end of November that could include full-year appropriations for the Department of Agriculture, the Legislative Branch, and military construction and the Veterans Administration. This is also the preferred path of Senate Appropriations Committee Ranking Member Patty Murray (D-WA) who has expressed support for passing such a package to allow lawmakers more time to negotiate the remaining full-year funding bills.

    As the negotiations to avoid a shutdown gained steam, last week Congress continued to advance more FY 2026 spending bills. Last Thursday, the House voted 214-213 to pass its fiscal year 2026 Energy-Water funding bill (H.R. 4553). The bill provides a total discretionary allocation of $57.3 billion for the Energy Department, Army Corps of Engineers, Bureau of Reclamation, and related agencies, which is $766.4 million below the FY2025 enacted level. MCAA lobbied to ensure the legislation provides $1.795 billion for nuclear energy ($110 million above the FY2025 enacted level). The bill also includes: (1) $687.5 million for fossil energy ($177.5 million below the FY2025 enacted level) to support fossil fuel generation technologies and increase research and development on critical minerals to develop the full suite of production technologies, including separation and extraction; (2) $9.883 billion for the Army Corps of Engineers, including $397.8 million for construction projects on the inland waterways system and $3.473 billion for the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund; and (3) $1.87 billion for the Bureau of Reclamation’s Water and Related Resources account to prioritize projects that increase water supply and support drought response. The measure also includes a policy rider that bars funds to implement the Biden-era Energy Department’s final rule establishing clean energy performance standards for the new construction and major renovation of federal buildings.

    Other appropriations developments last week included the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor-Health and Human Services voting 11-7 along party-lines to advance its fiscal year (FY) 2026 spending bill to the full Appropriations Committee. With respect to the Labor Department (DOL), the bill provides a total of $9.6 billion (25% below FY 2025 enacted levels) and matches the White House’s request with reduced funding for the Wage and Hour Division (a cut of $25 million) and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (a cut of $50 million). The bill also includes language prohibiting funds from being used to administer or enforce the Biden-era, MCAA-supported independent contractor final rule. DOL’s Employment and Training Administration would also see a cut of $2.6 billion (35%) under the bill. The bill would also eliminate funding for Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) Adult Job Training and WIOA Youth Job Training. Registered apprenticeship programs received $285 million in funding (which is equal to FY2025 levels) and $65 million (also equal to FY2025 levels) would be available for the Strengthening Community College Training Grants intended to develop, offer, or improve education or career training programs at community colleges. The MCAA helped to secure a provision ensuring that any grant funds in the bill used for apprenticeships can only be used for registered apprenticeship pursuant to the National Apprenticeship Act. The bill also includes $1.5 billion for Career and Technical Education and would rename Workforce Pell Grants as “Trump Grants.” Finally, the bill would eliminate funding for the Office of Federal Contract Compliance programs and the Women’s Bureau. The Republicans’ bill summary is available here and Democrats’ bill summary is available here.
  • Last Wednesday, Senate Republicans made progress on a plan to change the Senate’s rules to speed confirmation of 145 pending presidential nominees, including several Department of Labor nominees of interest to MCAA and the nominee to lead the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation. Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso (R-WY) said GOP lawmakers hope to vote on changing Senate rules to confirm dozens of Trump Administration nominees by the end of this week ahead of the congressional recess planned for the week of September 22nd. The Republican rule change originates from a proposal Senate Democrats considered but never enacted in 2021 during the Biden Administration that would allow the Senate to confirm up to 10 nominees in one vote if they were all approved by the same committee. Republicans are also considering exceeding the ten nominee figure and broadening the proposal to include nominees from multiple committees in one batch.
  • Last week, MCAA launched a renewed advocacy effort to enact federal permitting reforms. This effort began with letters to the House and Senate urging lawmakers to advance legislation revising and streamlining federal permitting processes. In a letter to leadership of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, the MCAA urged the committee to examine the need to harmonize agencies’ procedural requirements under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and further clarify the scope of environmental reviews. The letter also urged lawmakers to establish shorter, more appropriate timelines for judicial reviews of agency decisions and expand agencies’ authority to use categorical exclusions where practical and feasible. Finally, the letter asked lawmakers to address any statutory barriers to fully implementing President Trump’s executive orders (EO), including his EOs to expand domestic infrastructure and expedite American energy development—particularly as it relates to nuclear, natural gas, and geothermal energy projects. In a separate letter to the leadership on the House Committee on Natural Resources, the MCAA highlighted its support for the Standardizing Permitting and Expediting Economic Development (SPEED) Act (H.R. 4776) to help further clarify federal agencies’ procedural requirements for project reviews under NEPA. The letter explained that the “byzantine NEPA environmental review process” causes years of delays and potential project cancellations that impacts the country’s ability to realize energy independence, to deploy new technologies, and to reshore manufacturing. The MCAA noted that the SPEED Act will streamline NEPA reviews, return the law to its intended purpose as a procedural statute setting parameters for assessing environmental impacts of all major federal actions, and establish limitations on judicial review of NEPA claims. MCAA’s lobbying team has been meeting with key congressional committees and offices to follow up on these letters and press our permitting reform priorities.
  • Last week, MCAA also renewed its efforts on federal contracting reforms and our work with Rep. Pete Stauber (R-MN) to advance the Small Business Payment for Performance Act (H.R. 4615). As part of this effort, MCAA sent a letter last week to the House Small Business Committee to press for a mark-up of H.R. 4615 “at the earliest possible opportunity.” This important MCAA-advocated legislation would allow small businesses awarded a federal construction contract or subcontract to request an equitable adjustment if the agency’s contracting officer unilaterally directs a significant change in the contract. The bill also requires the agency to pay at least 50% of the additional costs of work pursuant to such changes while the request for equitable adjustment is pending. In the letter, the MCAA explained that the changes to federal contracting law contemplated in the bill would prevent federal contracts from becoming a trap for MCAA members and other specialty subcontractors that bear the risk of unilateral changes to federal agency contracts. MCAA is lobbying to garner additional support to consider and advance this legislation out of committee.

Across the Country

  • Last Thursday, the Environmental Protection Agency awarded $337 million to North Carolina for water infrastructure resiliency and repair of environmental damage from Hurricane Helene. Of the total, North Carolina received: (1) $253,681,000 for its Clean Water Safe Revolving Fund to make low-interest loans with principal forgiveness toward the cost of planning, design and construction of eligible treatment works improvement projects; (2) $22,510,000 for a new Decentralized Clean Water Safe Revolving Fund to improve the resilience of septic systems and assess and connect homes served by septic systems to centralized wastewater systems; and (3) $61,006,486 under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) to manage solid and hazardous waste debris, conduct site assessments to identify and address contamination, rehabilitate damaged waste management facilities and plan for future severe weather events.
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